The Wynkoop Center for Women in Ministry

Exciting things are happening for women clergy in the Church of the Nazarene! Encouraging statistics reveal that young women are flooding Nazarene schools, preparing themselves for a lifetime of ministry. A surge in the last 20 years has resulted in a 300 percent increase in the number of active women clergy, from 5 percent to 15 percent of total active clergy in the U.S. and Canada. These women, striving to be faithful to God’s call on their lives, need the support and advocacy of their church, as much as their church needs them.

At Tuesday’s workshop, “Women in Ministry: Biblical Foundations and Resources,” Judi Schwanz unveiled a new resource for the support and empowerment of women clergy. Schwanz, professor of Pastoral Care, and director of the Wynkoop Center for Women in Ministry at Nazarene Theological Seminary, led workshop participants in an exploration of the Wynkoop Center’s newly redesigned web site, www.wynkoopcenter.org. The mission of the Wynkoop Center is to equip, empower, and encourage women called by God to serve in and through the church of Jesus Christ.

A featured component of the web site is the new “Bible Studies on Women in Ministry,” a series of 21 lessons designed to educate and raise awareness concerning God’s creative and redemptive intention for gender relations. The lessons are divided into four units: “The Creation Mandate,” “Old Testament Women in Leadership,” “New Testament Women in Leadership,” and “Difficult Passages in the New Testament.” These Bible studies were created for use with small groups of youth and adults in local church and campus ministries.

Also available on the Wynkoop Center web site are academic papers and essays, worship resources, web links, and literature reviews. All material is available for free download. Visit today to learn more about women in ministry.