Smith, Susan E. Women in Mission: From the New Testament to Today. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2007. 234 pp. Paperback, $41.40.
Susan E. Smith is a Catholic sister who began serving the Catholic church through teaching at the grade school level. After Vatican II’s call for religious persons to reassess their apostolic involvement, Smith transitioned into overseas ministry within the countries of Bangladesh, Papua New Guinea, Ethiopia, and New Zealand. Her book, Women in Mission: From the New Testament to Today, reveals elements of her doctoral thesis that she acquired later in life. Within the pages of her book, she illuminates women’s contribution to the church’s history in mission. Smith covers theological, historical, and mission-minded ground, all from a woman's perspective. Her book is honest about reflecting the cultural values of the church during the time in which it resides.
Smith begins unapologetically by naming the Greco-Roman world’s cultural context as “patriarchal, androcentric, and dualistic” (3-4). She then goes through multiple aspects of the biblical text with responsibility and candor. One particular area of focus is how women joined Paul as co-workers. Smith quickly provides context for every biblical text while calling out the patriarchal leanings that biblical translations have chosen in the past. She desires to surface the contributing role of women within history while treading lightly on how this might be accomplished. She warns: “When it comes to explaining how [women’s] involvement occurred, it is important not to turn Paul into a prototype feminist, engaging women to work with him” (21).
Smith divides her book into three parts. In Part 1, she emphasizes the biblical text with an awareness of the surrounding context in which it was written. She takes on the passages that have typically been interpreted to limit women’s roles in the church. For example, Smith argues that 1 Timothy 2:1-15 is guided by the duty to protect the future of the Christian community within its cultural setting. Smith notes that the author attempts to ensure that “the behavior of women does nothing to jeopardize the well-being of the community” (31). Quoting Linda Maloney, Smith emphasizes that women being saved through childbearing “seems to say that Christ’s redemptive work does not extend to women; rather, they must save themselves by a particular mode of conduct” (31). She also illuminates many areas where the authors of scripture were trying to highlight the insight of women, but translation errors and poor interpretation have contributed to misunderstandings. For example, in Philippians 4, Paul references two Gentile women, Euodia and Syntyche, who have “struggled beside me in the work of the gospel” (13), emphasizing the help of these women. Smith points out that the King James Version incorrectly translated Euodia’s name as Euodias, a masculine name. Again and again, Smith provides examples to encourage readers to take another look at scripture. Ultimately, Smith remains balanced. She recognizes that some texts welcome women into places of mission while other texts do not. She admits that “the challenge lies in holding these conflicting texts in a creative tension that allows women to respond to new missionary challenges in a manner that reflects awareness of the insights that feminist hermeneutics offer” (68).
Part 2 of this book focuses on missionary women from the second century to the nineteenth century. With such a large amount of history to cover, Smith does well to share stories of a few to help give an imagination of the experience of many. Such stories include that of the Benedictine women like Hildegard of Bingen and her preaching ministry that flourished from charisma rather than office, Teresa of Avila being praised for rectifying nature’s error of her gender by rising above its “virile” state, and Mary Ward’s work of educating women of Catholic faith to find herself imprisoned, considered a heretic because her work was not considered suitable due to the weakness of her sex (102). Smith highlights ways that women attempted to make multiple inroads of change in their mission areas only to be blocked or thwarted by the church. She paints a broader picture of how the system, which built and structured great churches and basilicas, pushed against the mission movements led by women. During much of the time covered in her work, Smith emphasizes how the church celebrated women but only when they could transcend their “womanly deficiencies” (88). Interestingly, women in mission tended to find creative ways to move in mission with a focus on relieving suffering and offering mercy. Smith provides many opportunities to grieve alongside the women of the past who were unable to see their desires for mission realized. Many mission efforts started by missionary women were accomplished after the female leader had died. In contrast, Smith highlights the strength and fervor of women committed to serving God with their lives and their outpouring to the weak and poor.
Smith honors the work of a large host of women who have found mission for God in unique ways. The book’s research and focus are cataloging the historical activity within the Roman Catholic Church. Yet, one does not need to be a practicing Catholic to appreciate the moorings of women in mission. Although this book might be a bit laborious to some, it is worth reading because of the great detail resulting from Smith’s excellent research. She successfully pulls together two thousand years of history that highlight the tireless work of women in mission. The historical components of this book provide an idea of how the church might move forward in the future.
Part 3, the final section of Smith’s book, focuses on the Spirit and how the church might move forward in healthy ways. To this end, she discusses perichoresis, the mutual giving and receiving of the three divine persons that share mutual presence- “this model of reciprocal presence should be lived out in the church, the sacrament of the triune God” (203). Smith communicates that the Spirit needs to be at the forefront of any work. The Spirit offers the invitation for all to join God in mission. Smith desires the church to consider that “through the Spirit, charisms are given to everyone in the church for the sake of mission” (208). Ultimately, Smith desires the future of mission to be life-giving for all.
Smith’s book is an informative, inspiring, and necessary read for those who crave a deep dive into a historical, theological, and mission-minded narrative of women in mission. Her book conveys a principled nature to it: honesty. She “tells it like it is” but from the framework of historical facts and theological integrity. In the end, the book carries the reader back to a grounding in the work of trinitarian relationality. “The Spirit [is] a Spirit of mutuality and connectedness, and, by extension, these values should be characteristics of the relationships that the missionary builds with those among whom she ministers” (205). Smith’s work is a helpful tool for anyone who desires a greater understanding of how God has moved through the vision and action of women over the past two thousand years.
Evan Tardy
MDiv Student
Abilene Christian University
Abilene, TX, USA