Women in Ministry: From All Angles
A Conference That Was a Longtime Dream Come True
In the wake of glasnost and perestroika and the dissolution of the Soviet Union, it is increasingly evident that one of the most neglected subjects among Evangelical Protestants is the role of women in the life of the church and in evangelism. By all accounts women constitute the majority, sometimes the vast majority, of worshipers in the former Soviet Union. But little has been written on the particular needs or gifts of women in the church or how women might be assisted in reaching other women for Christ.
Over the past decade East-West Church & Ministry Report editor Mark Elliott had periodic conversations on this subject with Anita Deyneka, director of research for Peter Deyneka Russian Ministries, known in Russia as the Association for Spiritual Renewal. Dr. Deyneka offered encouragement to Dr. Elliott through a number of grant proposals which were unsuccessful, and gave advice in preparing the two grant proposals that ultimately were successful in 1996, one from a U.S. Foundation that prefers to remain anonymous, and one from the British Society for the Promotion of Christian Knowledge. Dr. Deyneka also recommended Mrs. Galina Obrovets as conference coordinator, which proved to be an excellent choice. For a proposed conference on women's ministries Dr. Elliott sought participation from a broad range of Evangelical churches, consisting primarily of presentations by women from Russia and other post-Soviet republics. Mrs. Obrovets, with her energy, organizational skills, and gift of diplomacy, was a tremendous help in realizing both these goals.
Sixty-three women from eight former Soviet republics, representing 12 denominations, met in Moscow, 6--8 June 1997, in what appears to have been Russia's first-ever interdenominational women's conference on evangelism. A total of 32 women shared reports on a remarkable variety of activities aimed at spreading the gospel in Russia and in the other former Soviet republics.
Highlights included an encouraging emphasis upon mutual love and understanding across denominational lines, vocal appreciation for the reduction in the sense of isolation many women felt in their ministries, and an extraordinary eagerness to learn and to share as much as possible about the best means to witness and work for the Kingdom. (Very few women left before the end of the conference, and the vast majority remained for several hours after the program was scheduled to have ended.) Those involved in planning the conference hope that it will serve as a catalyst for ongoing evangelistic networking among women of the former Soviet Union across denominational lines.
Elizabeth Carlson, a journalist who previously resided in Moscow for several years, assisting her husband, Blair, prepare for Billy Graham's 1992 Moscow crusade, served as a media observer at the conference. Her summary of the benefits of the conference reads as follows: 1. the opportunity for participants to establish personal contacts and networks; 2. the cross-pollination of resources, materials, ideas, and information across denominational boundaries; and 3. the energizing effect of sharing personal testimonies and experiences.
Conference presentations ran the spectrum from a woman engaged in a quiet but effective witness to prisoners through letters (who movingly confided she had never spoken in public before), to an array of exceptionally articulate presentations by women of obvious talents and accomplishments, including an actress, a Ministry of Foreign Affairs employee, a Ph.D. in history, an editor, a radio broadcaster, a psychologist, a nurse, and a number of evangelists. Two speakers from Central Asia, one Russian and one Uzbek, told such stories of faith under the fire of blatant persecution that all assembled were in awe of God's work through them. These two courageous women simply have refused to be cowed, and boldly share their witness despite opposition from Muslims, Communists, and some brothers in their own churches.
All in attendance at this conference felt richer for having learned how others are witnessing to their faith and working for the Kingdom in very difficult circumstances. Many more should benefit from the distribution of published papers from the conference. Wheaton College's Institute for East-West Christian Studies and the Evangelical women of the former Soviet Union who participated in this historic gathering hope that readers of the East-West Church & Ministry Report will be encouraged and inspired by the following reports of courageous and creative women witnessing and working for Christ's Kingdom.
Editor's Note: The East-West Church & Ministry Report would like to thank Michael Denner, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Slavic Languages and Literature, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, for his capable translation work for this theme issue.
Women's Conference Papers Published
The 70-page book, Rol' khristianki v sovremennom obshchestve [The Role of a Christian Woman in Contemporary Society], which provides the basis for this theme issue on women and evangelism, includes 28 articles written by women in the former Soviet Union working in a variety of ministries. It is available in Moscow at the Association for Spiritual Renewal Bookstore. For ordering information, please contact:
| Participation by Denomination | |
| Evangelical Christian-Baptist | 29 |
| Evangelical Lutheran | 1 |
| Ingrian Lutheran | 2 |
| Mennonite | 2 |
| Methodist | 8 |
| Nazarene | 2 |
| Nondenominational | 5 |
| Orthodox | 1 |
| Presbyterian | 5 |
| Pentecostal | 7 |
| Salvation Army | 2 |
| Seventh-day Adventist | 2 |
| Participation by Republic | |
| Armenia | 1 |
| Belarus | 2 |
| Georgia | 1 |
| Latvia | 1 |
| Moldova | 1 |
| Russia | 55 |
| Ukraine | 3 |
| Uzbekistan | 2 |
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© 1998 Institute for East-West Christian Studies
ISSN 1069-5664