Women in the Office of Widows, Deacons, Elders, and Priests: Silenced by Churches (1 Timothy)

Were women deacons, elders, and overseers in the first-century church?

Yes, the Bible names Phoebe as a deacon, Priscilla as a teacher, Junia as an apostle, and a number of other women as hosting or leading church congregations in their homes. Jesus equipped women as disciples and commissioned them as apostles. Women and men are created equally in God's image, with some women and men empowered by the Spirit to preach and teach.

Women were deacons, elders, and overseers - until Church Councils restricted them.

While the Bible gives evidence of God affirming women in ministry and Jesus bringing freedom for both men and women, men have often tried to restrict women. While Levite priests and the twelve apostles were Jewish men, the church today has no problem allowing non-Jews to be priests. While 1 Timothy says an overseer must be a husband of one wife, the church has no problem allowing a man with no wife to be a pastor, whether he is single or widowed, or a widower who is remarried. However, the church has often had a problem seeing where the Bible commends women as prophets, speakers, teachers, evangelists, deacons, elders, church founders and leaders.

I'll look at evidence of women in ministry and how the church has silenced them:

1. Ancient Art shows women in ministry

2. Since "Man" means "Person," men and women are both qualified for ministry.

3. 1 Timothy provides evidence of women in church leadership offices

4. Christian Councils recognized women in ministry and took action to restrict them.

1. Evidence in Ancient Art that Affirms Women Leading in Ministry

 Virgin Mary plaque circa 375, labelling Mary as a Minister of the Temple. Source: Mary and Early Christian Women, by Dr. Ally Kateusz

My upcoming novel portrays Maria, Jesus’s mother, as a leader in the early church. She officiates communion, teaches disciples, and commissions apostles for mission trips.

Scholars are now writing about how Jesus’s mother and other women played a key role in the early church. Ancient art and manuscripts show women as priests, bishops, and overseers officiating at holy communion. Historical evidence shows women were martyred for serving as evangelists, patrons, deacons, and priests in the early church for several centuries.

In her book, Mary and Early Christian Women: Hidden Leadership, Dr. Ally Kateusz shares historic research showing Maria as an early church priest or overseer[1]. 

When the Popes of the seventh century commissioned the mosaic at the Lateran Baptistery Chapel in Rome, the portrayal of Mary as a bishop was widespread.

Mosaic at the Lateran Baptistery Chapel in Rome. Credit: Dr. Ally Kateusz, Mary and Early Christian Women: Hidden Leadership.

Figure 4.11 is a photo of the mosaic, which places Mary in the centre as the Eucharistic leader. She is wearing red shoes and the episcopal pallium, a narrow band looped around her neck with one long end hanging down, both items worn by bishops and archbishops. Hanging from her belt is the Eucharistic cloth or maniple with two thin red stripes, indicating that she officiates at Holy Communion. Mary has her arms raised, indicating her authority to give the benediction. Christ is pictured above Mary, blessing her. Dr Ally Kateusz found this huge altarpiece hidden behind art depicting Mary as an unassuming mother holding a baby. It seems intentional that the church chooses to show the art honouring her as a mother and hiding the ancient art honouring Mary as a priest and bishop.

In fact, there were so many women attracted to Christianity that the 2nd-century critic, Celsus, wrote that Christianity was especially attractive to “the silly, and the mean, and the stupid, with women and children."[2] My novel has a character who reflects men's shock at the idea of women speaking. His words are inspired by Celsus.

The influential 4th-century Christian, Augustine, believed that women were inferior. This is an idea straight from the pagan philosopher, Aristotle. Augustine speculated that Adam had a more developed mind and lived by his superior reasoning capacity, qualifying him to lead. Eve had an undeveloped intelligence and lived according to the instincts of the body, making her easily deceived and unqualified to lead. Augustine suggested that only men possess the full image of God. Rosemary Reuther calls this ‘perhaps the ultimate core of misogynynism’ [3]. Augustine defined childbearing as a woman’s only strength, stating, “I cannot think of any reason for a woman’s being made as a man’s helper, if we dismiss the reason of procreation.” [4]

2. Evidence that "Man" means "Person"; God created "Men" as Male and Female Persons

In the sixth century, rumours spread that only men had souls, based on the ambiguity around whether the word 'man' meant "male and female humans/mankind". At the sixth-century Council of Macon, clerics discussed the idea that women did not have souls [5]

There came forward at this Council a certain bishop who maintained that woman could not be included under the term “man.” However, he accepted the reasoning of the other bishops and did not press his case for the holy book of the Old Testament tells us that in the beginning, when God created man, “Male and female he created them and called their name Adam,” which means earthly man; even so, he called the woman Eve, yet of both he used the word “man.”

The bishops at the Council of Macon agreed that women and men both have souls, both being made in God's image.

Elaine Kelly visiting the Famous Five statue in Ottawa, Canada

But the idea that "man" means males and not females has caused a recurring issue. The question of whether or not women are included in the term "man" was central to the 1929 Persons Case [6]. Nellie McClung and the Famous Five brought a case to the Supreme Court of Canada, which ruled that women were not "persons" according to the British North America Act, therefore ineligible to serve as Senators. However, they appealed to the Privy Council of Britain and won. Women were included in the definition of "men" and deserved the right to hold political office.

Nellie McClung at the Famous Five statue, holding the announcement that Women are Persons

Like many early feminists, Nellie McClung was motivated to advocate for women's equality because of her Christian faith. McClung noted that the United Church of Canada's formational documents said that Christ called "men" to ministry. Using the Persons Case, she said that the word "men" included males and females.

Some churches today find it convenient to sometimes make policies based on the idea that "man" includes only male persons. This idea is behind the idea that a woman carries only a partial reflection, while a man is a full reflection of God's image. Stating that an individual woman does not carry God's whole image, or that God's image is not fully represented in her until she is united with a man, is unbiblical. Women and men are each fully in God's image, and God equips and authorizes each of us equally (Genesis 1:27-28). Paul uses the unity of marriage to illustrate the unity of Christ and the Church, not to discuss who is in God's image (Ephesians 5). In fact, Paul supports Christians being either single or married, and does not suggest that a married person more fully represents God (1 Corinthians 7). Paul asserts that no one can boast about coming first, since all things come from God (1 Corinthians 11:12).

3. Evidence in 1 Timothy that Demonstrates Women in Church Leadership Offices

Woman Serving Communion Image: https://www.pexels.com/photo/woman-priest-taking-bread-8815221/

The letter of 1 Timothy recognizes that it is a noble desire for whoever aspires to be an overseer (1 Timothy 3:1). There is no specification that it is only a noble desire for men.

Traditionally, it was understood that 1 Timothy 3 is about church leaders, 1 Timothy 4 is about being a good leader, and 1 Timothy 5 is about the duty of leaders to serve poor widows. What if 1 Timothy 5 continues on the theme of being a good leader? What if it is not about which woman to recognize as a widow based on her need for charity, but about which woman is to be recognized for the Office of Widow (parallel to the Office of Elder), and compensated accordingly?

Perhaps traditional interpretations concluded women were not clergy because early women clergy used the title "widow" or "virgin" instead of the title "deacon."

 She points out that the list of requirements to be "enrolled as a widow" would imply refusing food to a hungry older woman who has not met these requirements. It makes more sense that these requirements were for enrolling widows into an order or office [7]. The writer instructs Timothy to "give proper honour/recognition/support" to true widows (1 Timothy 5:3). This could refer to proper compensation for women who are truly serving in the Office of Widow, since Paul later says that those serving the church are worthy of "recognition/honour" (1 Timothy 5:17).  The writer says not to enrol younger widows, because they may want to marry and that would mean breaking their first pledge (1 Timothy 5:12). The first pledge that would be broken by marriage would be their pledge to the Office of Widows.

Theologian Sandra Glahn discovered that the early church had an Office of Widow with requirements and responsibilities parallel to the Office of Elder [8]. Glahn quotes Roger Grayson, author of The Ministry of Women in the Early Church, who concludes,

“Up to the end of the nineteenth century, historians of the early Church often identified deaconesses and widows as if these two different titles corresponded, for those who held them, to the same function.” Grayson argues, “One thing is undeniable: there were in the early Church women who occupied an official position, who were invested with a ministry, and who, at least at certain times and places, appeared as part of the clergy. These women were called ‘deaconesses’ and at times ‘widows.’” [9]

The second-century theologian Tertullian ranked widows with clergy [10]. These Widows were part of the ordained clergy according to an early text called Hippolytus's Apostolic Tradition. They had duties and qualifications developed from 1 Timothy 5. To be approved for the roster of Widows and receive compensation for it, these women were expected to assume pastoral responsibilities, to visit, teach, and pray for the members of the church. In the Clementine Recognitions and Homilies, perhaps from the first half of the 3rd century, St. Peter, as he prepares to leave Tripoli, appoints elders and deacons and organizes an order of widows.

Don't get distracted by today's assumption that only a woman whose husband had died can be a widow. Any more mature woman was called a widow, much as we might address a mature woman today as "ma'am" or "Mrs." The Order of Widows included any unmarried woman, virgins, never-married, or with a deceased husband. Tertullian complained about a virgin who was ordained to the Order of Widows at the age of 19.

Women ministering in the early church were called priests, deacons, and widows. Women were involved in serving Holy Communion and in providing Baptism. It was improper for men to baptize women, since baptism by immersion involved holding the person being baptized, and this person was often nude to symbolize rebirth.

The Office of Widow was for any woman, regardless of whether she had been previously married, who was consecrated to vocational ministry. The Office of Widows was parallel to the Office of Elders, and both supervised male and female Deacons.

There is a shocking parallelism in the requirements for elders, deacons, and the office of widows.

Below, I compare the requirements to be an Elder, Widow, or Deacon.

Elders (1 Timothy 3:1-7) NRSVUE	Deacons (male and female) 1 Timothy 3:8-13	Widows (1 Timothy 5:9-22)
married only once, faithful to his wife, husband of one wife (vs. 2); women likewise faithful in all things.	married only once, faithful in marriage (if married) (vs. 12)	married only once, faithful to her husband, wife of one husband (vs. 9)
Temperate, self-controlled, respectable, an apt teacher, not a drunkard, not violent, gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money (vs 2-3), well respected by outsiders (vs 7).	Tested and proved blameless (vs 10). Not slanderers, but temperate and faithful in all things (vs. 10)	attested for her good works, helped the afflicted, devoted to doing good (vs. 10). Compensated by relatives or by the church. Those who preach and teach may be worthy of double compensation. (vs. 16-17).
hospitable (vs 2)		shown hospitality (vs. 10)
manage the household well, keeping children respectful (vs. 4-5)	manage household well (vs. 12)	raised children (vs. 10)
Not a recent convert (vs 6)		do not ordain anyone hastily (vs. 22)

4. Early Christian Councils Recognize Women in Ministry and Restrict it

Women in the early church served as church leaders until later Christian Councils divided clergy and lay people and regulated women’s activities. After Emperor Constantine became a Christian, the church established a divide between orthodoxy and heresy, clergy and laity. Constantine called together male bishops at the AD 325 Christian Council of Nicaea, defining orthodox or true, authentic Christian beliefs. Michele R. Salzman states that in the fourth century, the persecution of Christian heretics became a higher priority than the persecution or conversion of pagans [11]. The Council of Nicaea declared that women were lay persons and that women deacons were prohibited from being ordained as deacons [12]. Prior to the Council of Nicaea, men and women were both recognized as deacons, and neither was ordained. The AD 364 Council of Laodicea prohibited women from being ordained as presbyters (elders). The AD 451 Council of Chalcedon declared that a woman could not be a deacon unless she was at least forty and never married.

As Christianity became dominated by Gentiles who did not understand Jewish law, and led by patriarchal men, Christians came to call all men clean all the time and all women unclean all the time. In AD 494, Pope Gelasius condemned women for officiating the Eucharist, limiting the role to men. Christian clerics argued that women were unclean and that touching a woman disqualified a man from touching sacred objects, so therefore, priests were to remain celibate[13]. However, the Old Testament never says that women are unclean/impure and men are clean. Jewish law called unclean any man with excrement or "discharge from his member" (Leviticus 15:30) and any woman during the seven days of her menstrual period (Leviticus 15:19). Christian Councils did not consider that women who were not menstruating for 75% of each month, nor about 50% of their lives after menopause. Being unclean prohibited women from marrying, from administering sacraments, such as baptizing, officiating communion or marriage ceremonies, and laying on hands for confirmation, commissioning, or ordination.

The sixth-century Council of Macon placed abbeys under the authority of bishops, taking leadership away from the abbess and prohibiting women from touching or transcribing Scriptures. The sixth-century Council of Epaone repealed the office of widows, including women called deaconesses [14], replacing a clerical role with a non-clerical role.

The seventh-century Council in Trullo suggested that an ordained priest set aside his wife and she should enter a monastery (canon 48); it prohibited women from speaking “at the time of the Divine Liturgy” (canon 70)[15]. These decisions were based on an assumption that women were somehow unclean.

In the sixteenth century, women such as Katharina Schutz Zell[16] and Argula Von Grumbach[17] preached in support of the Protestant Reformation, even as male Protestant Reformers largely criticized women for speaking publicly. Christian Councils have repeatedly attempted to silence women, but nevertheless, in every century since Christ, women have preached[18].

Conclusion

Men today continue to throw up barriers to women in church leadership. On June 10, 2026, at the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) annual meeting in Orlando, Florida, Seminary President Albert Mohler proposed an amendment to the denomination's constitution to clarify that SBC churches would not affirm, appoint, or endorse women serving as pastors or elders, specifically preaching to the assembled congregation [19]. The SBC has taken several strong steps to reverse pastoral roles that women performed in the SBC in the mid-1900s. Baptist Women in Ministry responded by lamenting and proclaiming that the SBC does not decide who is called to pastor, preach, or minister, nor determine women’s value to God or the church [20].

On July 1, 2026, the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) defied Pope Leo XIV by consecrating four new bishops [21]. The SSPX opposes the Roman Catholic Vatican II reforms, including such things as a modern Mass in today's languages, respect for non-Catholic religions, interfaith dialogue and ecumenical cooperation. Catholics and other Christians have worked together to update the widely-used lectionary readings to include stories of women in the Bible [22]. SSPX opposes updating lectionary readings or the use of inclusive language, women's participation in any roles during worship, such as speaking, reading the Bible, or singing in liturgical choirs. It also opposes blessing same-sex unions. Pope Leo XIV warned that the SSPX's anointing of new bishops was a sin of extreme gravity, that the four new bishops and the two bishops who consecrated them were excommunicated, that any marriages performed by SSPX are not recognized by the Roman Catholic Church, and that any Catholics who formally adhere to the SSPX are excommunicated.

Throughout the centuries, the church has attempted to sideline women. Nevertheless, from the first century to today, ancient art and manuscripts show that women were involved in responsible positions in the early church. They were patrons, deacons, apostles, evangelists, and church planters. They held offices as elders and widows. See how that may have looked in action by reading my historical fiction: Finding Her Voice, from Broken to Bold: A Novel of the Earliest Female Apostles.

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Elaine Ricker Kelly Author is empowering women with historical fiction about women in the Bible and early church and Christian blogs about women in leadership, church history and doctrine. Her books include:

• Forgotten Followers from Broken to Bold, Book 1, A Novel (2022)

• The Sword: A Fun Way to Engage in Healthy Debate on What the Bible Says About a Woman's Role (2023)

• Because She Was Called from Broken to Bold, Book 2, A Novel of the Early Church (2024)

• Walk with Mara on Her Healing Journey: 21 Steps to Emotional Resilience (2024)

• Finding Her Voice from Broken to Bold, Book 3, Acts of Early Female Apostles: A Novel (2025)

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1. Kateusz, Ally. Mary and Early Christian Women Hidden Leadership. Palgrave Macmillan, 2019. https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-11111-3

2. William Bowes, A Religion of “Women and Children”? A Christian Woman’s Place in the Greco-Roman World Before AD 300, October 31, 2021, CBE International, https://www.cbeinternational.org/resource/religion-women-and-children-christian-womans/

3. Matthew V. Brown, “The ‘Woman’ of Augustine of Hippo”, October 30, 1990, CBE International, https://www.cbeinternational.org/resource/woman-augustine-hippo/

4. Brown, ibid.

5. Michael Nolan, "The Myth of Soulless Women", First Things, April 1, 1997, https://firstthings.com/the-myth-of-soulless-women/

6. Tabitha deBruin, David Cruickshank, "Persons Case", Canadian Encyclopedia, February 7, 2006, https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/persons-case

7. Sandra Glahn, "Are the 'Widows' in 1 Timothy 5 Leaders, Needers, or Both?", August 13, 2019, Bible.org, https://blogs.bible.org/are-the-widows-in-1-timothy-5-leaders-needers-or-both/ 

8. Sandra Glahn, “Is having women in ministry really a recent invention?” May 28, 2021, Fathom Magazine,https://www.fathommag.com/stories/is-having-women-in-ministry-really-a-recent-invention

9. Sandra Glahn, "Is having women in ministry really a recent invention?" ibid.

10. Catherine Kroeger, The Neglected History of Women in the Early Church, Christian History Institute, 1988 Issue 17, accessed 7 May 2025, https://christianhistoryinstitute.org/magazine/article/women-in-the-early-church

11. "Religious Policies of Constantine the Great", Wikipedia, Accessed 7 May 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_policies_of_Constantine_the_Great

12. “Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers”, Canon XIX, https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf214.vii.vi.xxviii.html, quoted in Wikipedia, “Ordination of women and the Catholic Church”, Wikipedia, Accessed 3 May 2025.

13. Phyllis Zagano, “Married priests and women deacons: It’s about law, not doctrine”, National Catholic Reporter, October 22, 2019,  https://www.ncronline.org/vatican/just-catholic/married-priests-and-women-deacons-its-about-law-not-doctrine

14. “Council of Epaone", Wikipedia, Accessed 7 May 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_of_Epaone and Fr. William Most "Texts on Ordination of Women" Council of Epaon, Canon 21, EWTN accessed July 14, 2026, https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/library/texts-on-ordination-of-women-11218

15. “Council in Trullo (A.D. 692), New Advent, © Kevin Knight, Accessed 7 May 2025, https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3814.htm

16. Elaine Kelly, September 24, 2021, https://www.elainekelly.ca/post/should-women-preach-katharina-schutz-zell-1497-1562

17. Elaine Kelly, September 16, 2021, https://www.elainekelly.ca/post/woman-preach-1500s

18. Elaine Kelly, January 31, 2024, https://www.elainekelly.ca/post/an-unbroken-chain-of-women-in-ministry

19. Scott Barkley, "Truth and Unity Amendment receives initial two-thirds approval", Baptist Press, June 10, 2026, https://www.baptistpress.com/resource-library/news/truth-and-unity-amendment-receives-initial-two-thirds-approval/

20. "BWIM Responds to SBC Vote to Further Restrict Women from Pastoral Roles in Churches", Press Release, June 10, 2026, https://bwim.info/bwimresponsetosbc/

21. Christopher Lamb, "Breakaway Catholic group excommunicated after defying warnings from Pope Leo", CNN World, July 2, 2026, https://www.cnn.com/2026/07/02/europe/vatican-excommunicates-breakaway-catholic-group-intl

22. Jean P. Kelly, "We need more women in the Lectionary," March 5, 2019, US Catholic, https://uscatholic.org/articles/201903/we-need-more-women-in-the-lectionary/