Female Ministers & Shapers of Theology from the Early and Medieval Church Part 3: Widows & Deacons

An image from the sarcophagus of Crispina shows the 4th century woman probably holding a codex (holy text) containing the Chi-Ro (Christ symbol).

Image source: Shala Graham, Visual Museum of Women in Christianity

Widows & Deacons

The existence of female deacons and the designation of widowhood as a church office find their roots in the New Testament. Paul addresses female deacons (3:11) and widows (5:1-16) in his first letter to Timothy. In addition, Paul recognizes Phoebe as a deacon of the church at Cenchreae in Romans 16:1-2. The Didascalia Apostolorum (3rd century) and the Apostolic Constitutions (4th century) both outline the actions of female deacons in the early church, and the latter also describes the office of widowhood.[1]

Joan C. Campbell observes that these documents describe female deacons as clearly ordained members of the clergy who primarily served female congregants, including teaching, baptizing, and administering communion as needed.[2] Olympias, a close friend of John Chrysostom, along with several other women were ordained as female deacons in the fourth century. However, by the twelfth century, female deacons had almost entirely disappeared.[3]

Widows also pledged to serve the early church through steadfast prayer, service to those in need, teaching, hospitality, prophecy, and more in exchange for the church’s support.[4] These widows and female deacons humbly served the church for centuries, teaching doctrine, administering the sacraments, and contributing to the flourishing of the church.

References

[1] Leanne M. Dzubinski and Anneke H. Stasson, Women in the Mission of the Church (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2021), 26-27.

[2] Joan Cecelia Campbell, Phoebe: Patron and Emissary (Collegeville, MN: Order of Saint Benedict, 2009), 49-50.

[3] Dzubinski and Stasson, Women in the Mission, 52-55.

[4] Dzubinski and Stasson, Women in the Mission, 26.