January 2, 2011

 

What’s your story?

 

I’m reading a book written by a Generation X clergywoman. In her book, Reframing Hope: Vital Ministry in a New Generation, Carol Howard Merritt ponders the strength of denominational women’s organizations in the 1950s, 60s, and 70s. She offers an insight that I’d like to test among church women who were part of that movement.

     After World War II when the troops returned home, women who had entered the workforce during the War once again resumed full-time domestic duties at home. This was a time when modern conveniences became available, such as washing machines, dryers, and even dishwashers. Household chores now took less time. Women, with more available time, sought education and job skills, and entered the workforce. But society still dictated that “when a woman married or became pregnant, she was expected to go back home and stay there. So what were women doing with all that energy, intelligence, and imagination once their children went to school? They found a place where their gifts could flourish. . . . women began to build the church, with all their talents and volunteer hours.” One result was that women’s groups in the church flourished. Denominations organized structured women’s ministries, “complete with gifted officers, abundant budgets, and full schedules.”

      In the 70s, as more women pursued careers, the volunteer workforce in the church women’s groups rapidly dwindled. (And today, of course, most women don’t have the economic luxury to leave employment when they start families.)

    

Merritt’s observation matches my mother’s story. To some degree it matches mine, too. I quit my job as a legal secretary when I became pregnant in 1980; I resolved to be a stay-at-home mom until my children entered school. After all, I had grown up with that expectation, planted by my mother. But I became so restless at home during those toddler years. I yearned for intellectual stimulation; I longed to contribute my energy to a meaningful cause. And that’s exactly when I jumped into women’s ministries in my church and denomination, eager to volunteer as a leader. 

 

I’d love to hear your story. Send me an email at info@abwministries.org; type Virginia’s Blog as the subject line.

Virginia Holmstrom
Executive Director
American Baptist Women's Ministries

 

(The book I referenced is Reframing Hope: Vital Ministry in a New Generation by Carol Howard Merritt, published by The Alban Institute in 2010.)