Women's Perceptions of Leadership Roles within a Southern Baptist Congregation

Particular biblical scriptures are used to justify the Southern Baptist Convention's position on leadership, including female ordination. The author uses interviews to examine how women within a Southern Baptist congregation in Southeast Georgia assign meaning to leadership roles and understand particular biblical scripture. The interviews revealed (1) knowledge gaps between the women's stated beliefs and their basic knowledge of their faith, and (2) contradictions between their views and their practices. The interviewees rationalized these gaps and contradictions using explanations of cultural memes and religious male hegemony. The respondents defined leadership in various ways, yet few recognized the power and authority involved in leadership roles.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Arts in Social Sciences (M.A.)

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis (open access)

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Department of Sociology and Anthropology

Year dc:date.available

2009

Author dc:creator

• Hook, Tina Colvin

Contributors dc:contributor

• Pidi Zhang
• Ted Brimeyer

• ETD
• Southern Baptist women
• Ordination of women
• Leadership
• Gender equality
• Knowledge gap
• Religious male hegemony
• Cultural memes
• Baptist women
• Georgia
• Attitudes
• Research
• Baptists

Repository record dc:identifier

https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/etd/612

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu:etd-1612