I spent the first 18 years of my life blissfully assuming all Protestant churches allowed women to preach. At my home church, a tiny Presbyterian (USA) congregation in San Antonio, women spoke from the pulpit as often as they brought lukewarm casseroles to Sunday potluck. But when I left home for college, another first-year ambushed me in the dorm kitchen with his mouth full of 1 Timothy, bursting my egalitarian bubble. While I have since memorized the scriptural justifications for my equal existence and participation in the church, a new study by Church Clarity reveals that I am still far from living in a world where all Protestant churches allow women to lead.
According to this study of the 100 largest churches in the United States, only eight churches fall under the category of "Clear: Egalitarian," meaning that their websites indicate that at least one woman or nonbinary person holds the title of pastor, or at least 50 percent of the church's senior leadership team is non-male. Another 18 churches fall under the category of "Unclear: Egalitarian"—they state egalitarian policies on their website, but those values aren't reflected in the composition of their leadership team or behind the pulpit. While these small numbers are discouraging, they are not surprising given that, more broadly, women make up just 15 percent of congregational clergy.
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