March 8 is International Women’s Day. It is a day intended to raise awareness of issues of gender equality and to advocate for parity. The United Nations began in 1946 to host an annual Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), which takes place around International Women’s Day. This year, the Commission’s priority theme is “Women in Public Life – Equal participation in Decision-making”. This will include broad topics of accessible representation in government, business, education; it will seek ways to remove existing barriers such as lack of personal agency, violence, and disempowerment.
The CSW is traditionally the largest of the UN conferences, with as many as 10,000 global advocates attending parallel and side sessions on the theme; seeking new connections and opportunities to work towards equality.
One of the groups that works year-round in this field is Ecumenical Women (EW); during CSW we provide orientation and advocacy assistance, as well as networking, prayer, worship and other spiritual resources. Our work, undiminished by COVID, has merely moved online for this year’s CSW.
As EW worship planning progressed, we discussed how being part of decision-making necessitates being part of the conversation; participation in the public life necessitates being known. As we shared scriptural passages that held meaning for us, we began to name the women in the bible who have been profoundly influential – yet remain unnamed. And, as we know, when people’s names are not shared, they are more easily forgotten, their accomplishments more easily overlooked, their unique contributions more easily minimised.
We can learn so much from the women of the bible; and one of those things can be the importance of keeping their names in the public sphere. Noah’s wife (and daughters, and daughters-in-law) – Pharoah’s daughter – Zarephath’s widow – the Queen of Sheba – the Shunammite woman – the Syro-Phoenician Woman at the Well – the woman whose hemorrhaging was healed by touching Jesus’ hem – Peter’s mother-in-law – the list is extensive!
These are all women whose presence is undeniable, whose ministry is life-changing, whose influence is ongoing. These are women who made a difference in public life – and who impacted decision-making. These are the women who embody the benefit of equal participation in decision-making.
May we be empowered by the nameless women of the bible to name the people of our public life who strive to make decisions for a more equitable world.
To learn more about the UN CSW, please visit https://www.unwomen.org/en/csw
To learn more about Ecumenical Women at the United Nations, please visit https://www.ecumenicalwomenun.org or visit our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/ecumenicalwomen/
