Through the Eyes of a Woman

 Women’s History Month 2024 As I was browsing through the Adventist Encyclopedia, looking for women to be presented during Women’s History Month 2024, concentrating on missionaries, I found many women who had accompanied their husbands to foreign lands. Most of these women were mentioned as being part of a missionary team, working together to bring the Advent message to the area they were sent to. Both, husband and wife, were important, and both gave their all to serve God and the church they loved. Many even gave their health and life in the process. I also found single women who pioneered in unentered areas, reaching out, particularly to the women in these countries who would otherwise not have been reached. They were intrepid women who showed courage and initiative in bringing the message of salvation to the people they served. Then there were the women whose efforts were listed first, although they had a husband because their work seemed to merit special mention, lik...

                    I first met Heather-Dawn Small in the summer of 2002 when she came to Germany with Ardis Stenbakken for a Women’s Ministries advisory for the German-speaking countries. At that time the department had developed the concept of continuing education courses for women. They presented the material and held some of the seminars.  Then, a couple of years later, Heather-Dawn was invited as the speaker to a large women’s retreat in Burg Wernfels, a castle in southern Germany. The topic was “Don’t let anyone steal your joy!” It was the most memorable retreat I have ever attended, with the women soaking up her message like a sponge, laughing and crying with her as she related her life’s story. Her authenticity and openness, vulnerability, and heart-felt love helped us understand how she could cling to her motto of Joy despite all the difficulties she had met in her life. We were encouraged to hold fast to joy in...

It has been my privilege to be involved in Women's Ministries ever since the Department was (re)created in 1995/6. I have met many wonderful and devoted women who were trailblazers and developed a ministry that makes an impact in the Seventh-Day Adventist Church around the world. So many women's lives have been enriched, and empowered and so many have been reached out to. I have been inspired by every woman who has served as Director of this department and I am deeply thankful for their example, love, and friendship. It has always been a special joy to meet these women who have devoted their lives to mentoring and sharing their expertise, experience, and spiritual insights with their sisters around the world. Women's Ministries has become a veritable sisterhood to which every woman can belong. Last October I had the opportunity to attend the North American Division conference on Adventist Women's History in Washington, DC. It was so good to see one of our pioneers, Ar...

I have often wondered why we do not learn from our history. That is, until I realized that many people do not know our history. Even as a person who has lived more than 75 years on this earth, there are lots of things I do not know, just because I was not an eyewitness. I didn’t experience it myself. That is why we need monuments and museums and information that transmits to succeeding generations what it was like to live in a past era. We need information now more than ever. The last survivors of the Shoah are old and will soon be gone. We need to hear and know their stories. The generation born after the fall of communism needs to hear what life was like for people who lived without freedom. The same could be applied to the whole world with its various experiences of suppression and discrimination. Looking from my perspective in Western Europe, particularly in Germany, it is good to know that our constitution, our Grundgesetz, is based on democracy and equality. No matter what politi...

The old song by Peter, Paul, and Mary, “Where have all the flowers gone?” came to my mind as I listened to the leadership of my church in North America discussing a report by the Ministerial Association on the number of pastors. The number of retired pastors and those eligible for retirement is increasing. The number of pastors who leave pastoral ministry due to attrition, as they call it, is substantial. The young people studying theology and religion majors at Adventist Universities will never make up for these numbers. Where have all the pastors gone? The song repeats the question, “When will they ever learn?” Of course, the song is not about pastors. Nor does it offer answers, because the answers lead to further questions. Where have all the young girls gone? Gone for husbands every one. That’s what women should do, isn’t it? Not preach or teach. So why even think of studying theology and becoming a pastor? I didn’t follow the discussion well enough to find out whether the re...

  Women have so often been overlooked in history. The North American Division of the Seventh-day Adventist Church organized a first conference on the History of Adventist Women and their significant contributions to their church from October 12 to 14, 2023, on the campus of Washington Adventist University. The purpose was to increase awareness of the roles of women in the past and increase scholarly research as papers were presented and keynote speakers showed the larger context of Adventist history. Adventist women were involved in the fledgling church right from the start, even though the culture of the time restricted women’s participation. With Ellen G. White as one of the prominent founders of the church, the pioneers strongly supported and defended the role of women in the ministry of the church in all areas. One after the other, women were presented who devotedly served their church, often in difficult situations, even risking their lives and health to spread the gospel trut...

I had seen the announcement of an upcoming event highlighting Women in Adventist History, asking for papers and submissions. My first impression was, how wonderful it would be to be there in person! But how crazy do you have to be to fly to Washington DC from Europe for just a weekend? After all, I’m not a person who can go anywhere anytime. When I saw the invitation to the Women in Adventist History Conference a couple of months ago I was intrigued. All of these interesting speakers have done research on Adventist history from a woman’s standpoint. Whoa! Could I go? I contacted some friends who live in the area and with whom I have a standing invitation to come and visit. Would they be at home at that time? Yes, and they would be happy to see me. Two days later reason returned. No way was I going to go. But then a friend said she would be interested in going, too! Why not look into flights? And finally, my dream of attending the conference is coming true. I will be at the Adventis...