In Holy Women, Wholly Women, Elaine J. Lawless continues her work with women in American religion, and explores the life experiences of women in parish ministry in several Protestant churches--including the United Methodist, Christian Church-Disciples of Christ, American Baptist, Episcopal, and Unitarian churches. Applying an approach, which she calls reciprocal ethnography, Lawless collects and interprets the stories of ten women ministers and examines their public and private lives, their ministries, their images of God, and their negotiations of sexuality and the religious life. Throughout, she retains much of the dialogue, which developed between herself and the participants; the voices of the women are clearly distinguishable from Lawless's words and from each other's. These women are ordained in different denominations, yet their deep-seated beliefs about spirituality, God, and ministry are surprisingly similar. Denominational affiliations are less critical for them than is the maintenance of a theology of wholeness and well-being for all humans. By employing an ethnographical approach informed by feminist theory, Holy Women, Wholly Women contributes to our understanding of women in the ordained ministry. It will be of compelling interest to students and scholars in folklore, women's studies, and religion.

Lawless collects and interprets the stories of ten women ministers and examines their public and private lives, their ministries, their images of God, and their negotiations of sexuality and the religious life.

Addresses central questions regarding the ways that religion regards the role of women.

A Woman Through and Through In a culture that can belittle womanhood on the one hand—making it irrelevant—and glorify it on the other—making it everything—it’s hard to know what it really means to be a woman. But when we understand womanhood through the lens of Scripture, we see that we need a bigger category for what God has called “woman.” This book breathes fresh air into our womanhood, reminding us what life in Christ—as a woman—looks like. When we see that we are women in all we do, we can be at peace with how God has created us, recognizing womanhood as an essential part of Christ’s mission and work.

Essays by 30 authors attempt to reclaim and to create heightened awareness about individuals, contributions, and struggles that have made African American women's survival and progress possible.

Includes life histories of four women preachers, transcriptions of sermons, and analysis by Lawless of both life stories and sermons.

A study of the Hebrew term qedesah, meaning "consecrated woman," but translated "prostitute" or "sacred prostitute" in English Bibles. Offers an alternative explanation suggesting a wider participation for women in Israel's early cultic practice.