I have mixed feelings about this book, while I thought the author presented some challenging ideas within his book, I feel that the whole premise of the book (that women are leaving the church due to lack of influence or feelings of being overworked) doesn't quite fit the reality (that I've seen at least). I'm not sure which denomination the author was studying (I can't recall if he mentioned that the numbers reflected an inter-denominational survey, etc...) but in my experience women have a great deal of influence within the church, as well as they tend to (at least in the circles I've seen) dominate the leadership roles for the most part. I however live in Canada, so perhaps it is different here?
I do though appreciate that the author points out that many women are feeling under appreciated, and actually do agree with him on this point. In my experience a lot of ministries (that are not solely men focused) have a majority of female leadership, who do tend to get over worked/under appreciated. (especially since in my experience (my husband is a pastor) there are fewer willing volunteers so when you get one, they tend to get a lot of work thrown at them!)
I think too that the author and I might differ on some doctrinal issues which is perhaps why I didn't agree with the book, I'm more of a traditional mind set, so the whole quietly working behind the scenes works well with me!
All in all though, I do have to give this book a thumbs up, it did challenge me to consider why I hold certain views towards not only women in the church, but also leadership. Plus it caused me to look deeper into the Bible to see what it had to say about my role, and the role of my gender. Also I appreciated that the author, while he presented his views straightforwardly, didn't belittle those with other views. (that's sometimes hard to find in books such as these!)
So this does get a recommendation from me, if nothing else it will challenge you to consider why you hold the beliefs that you do!
This book was provided to me by Tyndale for reviewing purposes.
3 comments:
Thank you for noticing this
Also I appreciated that the author, while he presented his views straightforwardly, didn't belittle those with other views. (that's sometimes hard to find in books such as these!)
I appreciate your generosity toward my ideas
Thanks for reviewing the book. As one of the "Eve's" in the book, I'm hoping that folks stop to think, and not just to defend old, tired positions often based on tradition rather than scripture. I also hope that the book opens up dialog - a conversation.
Thanks for the thoughtful review of my book. I would like to invite you and your readers to our upcoming free - Resignation of Eve Cloud Conference on Feb. 27 @8pm EST – you only need a telephone to join the call and have a chance to participate in a conversation with myself and the women of “Resignation of Eve.” David Kinnaman, President and author of the Barna Group will also be on this call to talk about his latest research on women and the church. http://myaccount.maestroconference.com/conference/register/D5YMSUE4530RMOB – Hope you are able to join us. Thanks, Jim Henderson
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