Through the Eyes of a Woman

An article published by UN Women in the last days of the year looking at sixteen defining moments for gender equality in 2021 caught my attention yesterday. We tend to hear more about all the bad news, but some things have been good for women in the past year. I would like to reflect on some of the developments and events. The Political World We already have several women in the leadership of nations, but in 2021 eight more countries elected or swore in their first woman Head of State or Government, with Barbados, Estonia, and Moldova even having women as both President and Prime Minister for at least part of the year. Kaja Kallas took office in January as Estonia’s first woman Prime Minister. Samia Suluhu Hassan became Tanzania’s first woman President in March. In May, Fiamē Naomi Mata’afa was elected Prime Minister of Samoa. June saw Robinah Nabbanja nominated to the role of Prime Minister of Uganda. Najla Bouden Ramadhane was named Tunisia’s Prime Minister in September, making

   This piece was written by my sister, Sinikka Dixon PhD This year is different from any other year before, but I would like us to remember the greatest and most important news ever told to mankind. We have become tired of the constant news of the pandemic and various catastrophes. We used to think, no news is good news, meaning if we hear no news everything is all right. Now we are bombarded by news day and night and none of it is good. With all of this negative messaging, we tend to forget that there is good news in God’s word, the Bible. I would like to remind us of the real meaning of the Christmas message, the good news that can give us hope not just for a few days during this season but for every day of our lives. Isaiah 9:6 “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” In Isaiah 7:14 “The Lord himself shall

Yesterday I found a book in the book exchange booth outside our church that fascinates me. It was written by Lea Rabin in 1997 titled "Rabin  -  Our life, His Legacy." When Rabin was assassinated by a Jewish settler at a peace rally in Tel Aviv on November 4, 1995, the world was horrified. The Oslo Accords had just been signed and we hoped that a lasting peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians could be achieved. Yitzchak Rabin saw only one path for which there was no alternative - the path of peace. He believed that the Palestinians also wanted peace and needed it as much as the Israelis. And yet, this peace is long overdue. Every year, a Peace Light is lit by a child in Bethlehem and it is distributed from the 3rd Advent Sunday.  Austrian radio initiated this beautiful tradition in 1986. The light is then brought to Vienna by plane, and from there, delegations of scouts pick up the light to distribute it in their home countries. When we spent Christmas in an Aust

In my blog of July 8, 2021, titled "We Should do Something," [1] I wrote that things had seemed to be very quiet in recent years regarding women's ordination in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Nevertheless, I was able to point out interesting developments that had taken place more or less quietly. These little waves of change continue, and interesting decisions have since been made. Women have been called to higher leadership positions here and there, and decisions have been made to allow for women's ordination. In various parts of the worldwide church, governing bodies have finally decided to do something to implement Fundamental Belief No. 14: “Distinctions of race, culture, learning, and nationality, and differences between high and low, rich and poor, male and female, must not be divisive among us. We are all equal in Christ, who by one Spirit has bonded us into one fellowship with Him and with one another; we are to serve and be served without partiality o