[Sister Alvear]

Voices from History

The radical change that happened during Constantine’s reign when Christianity became the official religion of Rome meant that Roman culture and pagan concepts would be mixed with pure Christianity. Thus they would try to ban the use of women through their pagan ideas once again.
Secular history supports the fact that women were preachers. Oregenes talks about it in his writing that the women went to far away areas carrying the gospel.
CHRYSOSTOM of the fourth century wrote "the women of those days were more spirited than lions, sharing with the Apostles their labors for the Gospel’s sake. In this way they traveled with them and performed small ministries such as supplying the material needs of their brethren, as well as, participating in missionary work" (See Chrysostom & Theodore).
IRENAEUS, acknowledged the Gifts of the Spirits were liberally bestowed on all ranks of the faithful on women as on elders, on boys as well as on bishops.
DOWELL, in Dissections of Irenaeus says, “the gift of the spirit of prophecy was given to them besides the Apostles: and that not only in the first, second, but in the third century even to the time of Constantine men had these gifts; yea, and women too."
TERTULLIAN, one of the oldest historians was quoted in an article, The Indian Standard (a Presbyterian magazine in India): AIn the Catacombs are found representations of women clergy and they are shown presiding at the Lord’s Supper...."
TERTULLIAN, was in intolerant of women, but he acknowledged that "Holy Priscilla had preached the
Gospel." Tertullian disliked Christian women doing visitation work saying, "What heathen will suffer his wife to go about from one street to another to the houses of strangers, to the meanest hovels, indeed, to visit the heathen? What heathen will allow her to steal away to the dungeon to kiss the chain of the martyr?"
Tertullian went as far as to deny the authenticity of a baptism performed by a woman. This seems to prove that the practice of baptism performed by women was happening in his day. But this early church father came to recognize that even a woman, if she “spoke with the Spirit” had more authority in then that of the greatest bishop. He represented an empty office compared to a woman who represented the Spirit.