12th December - Women

Give her a share in the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the city gates.

Proverbs 31:31

And ain't I a woman?

That little man in black there say a woman can't have as much rights as a man 'cause Christ wasn't a woman.

Where did your Christ come from?

From God and a woman.

Man had nothing to do with him.

If the first woman God ever made was strong enough to turn the world upside down, all alone, together women ought to be able to turn it right side up again.

From 'Ain't I A Woman?', Sojourner Truth.

Sojourner Truth was a black slave, who made this speech at the Women's Rights Convention in Ohio in 1852.

Miranda Threlfall-Holmes is vice-chair of WATCH, a campaigner for women's equality in the Church, author of The Essential History of Christianity (SPCK 2012) and co-author of The Teenage Prayer Experiment Notebook (SPCK, to be published in April 2015).

Daily prayer

Sr. Ruth Fox, OSB

May God bless you
with a restless discomfort about easy answers, half-truths and superficial relationships, so that you may seek truth boldly and love deep within your heart.

May God bless you
with holy anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people, so that you may tirelessly work for justice, freedom, and peace among all people.

May God bless you
with the gift of tears to shed with those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation, or the loss of all that they cherish, so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and transform their pain into joy.

May God bless you
with enough foolishness to believe that you really CAN make a difference in this world, so that you are able, with God's grace, to do what others claim cannot be done.

Amen

Lord, in this time of Advent open our hearts to those who feel excluded from Your church.
Help us draw in those on the margins and place them in the centre of our family.