In WHY THESE WOMEN? author Kathleen Kichline invites us to consider that we are missing something in skipping over the four women in the opening of Matthew’s Gospel—their names, and their stories—something critical to the full appreciation and understanding of the Gospel which follows.
What if we took seriously the anomalous presence of four women in the all-male lineup of ancestors that opens the New Testament? What if we read their colorful stories for more than the titillation they contain, and probed them with sacred questions and expectation?
We might discover that the stories of these women become a part of Jesus’ own story, their experiences and lessons woven into his parables and into his unfailing respect and compassion for women. We might recognize how he was formed by the stories of his people, including the women.
We might see these women as examples of those for whom he came, women who suffer injustice, then and now. Their stories serve as evidence of our failure to notice; their placement redirects us toward addressing that exclusion with all that it implies.
We might find hope that the God who planted their stories within the great larger Story provides purpose and meaning for our stories as well. We might even find that we read the Jesus story that follows somewhat differently, changed by what we have read.
“Thoroughly enjoyable as well as insightful and informative, Kathleen MacInnis Kichline masterfully immerses us in absorbing narrative and scholarship. Combining a sense of justice with love of God, we encounter these women’s characters, faith and circumstances that bring to light certain aspects of their experience and wisdom inherent in Jesus’ persona. An important contribution to recognizing what has been dismissed and/or misunderstood in the feminine heritage of a peoples and a religion. A book to be treasured.”
— Lucinda M. Vardey
Editor, The Flowering of the Soul: A Book of Prayers by Women; Editor, With One Accord,
an online journal (magdalacolloquy.org/en/home)
“Kathleen Kichline pours years of bible study and personal prayer into the text. Her initial question “Why?” begins the exploration of four women named in the opening genealogy of Matthew’s gospel. She notices. Her practice of attending and asking questions encourages the reader to do the same. I found myself engaged, questioning, re-evaluating, praying, and pondering. She uses personal story, biblical background, a power analysis, insights from contemporary realities, stories from her pastoral ministry and prayer in pondering the life of each of these women. In the end, she offers the reader the opportunity to notice, name, remember, and honor women and others who are often forgotten, overlooked, diminished, or oppressed. This book is a gift and a treasure.”
— Sharon Henderson Callahan, Ed.D.
Professor Emerita, School of Theology and Ministry, Seattle University
“We do our best to put God in a box. And we do the same with Jesus. And my confession is that we men tend to tell stories that shrink and confine Jesus’ mission, giving ourselves what we believe to be the best parts. And we miss, as Kathleen Kichline reminds us, the extraordinary gifts of the women we leave out of the story. Yes indeed; the women in the Gospels who spill light and compassion and healing, and are powerful reminders that the story of Jesus’ mission is bigger than any attempt we make to restrict it. And gratefully, the light they spilled can continue to spill today.”
— Rev. Terry Hershey
Author, Sanctuary: Creating a Space for Grace in Your Life and The Power of Pause: Becoming More by Doing Less; Editor, Sabbath Moment, an online newsletter (terryhershey.com)
