Women Spiritual Leaders in Christianity and Buddhism

The above meme has been making the rounds on social media lately, and I am tired of the fallacy and division it is perpetuating and encouraging. It is nothing but a toxic foolish tactic to instigate divisiveness for someone’s personal agenda.

Now, do not get me wrong, there are plenty of things to be concerned about in modern religion. But trying to make your case by citing false, inflammatory narratives is damaging and dangerous.

We will start with Christianity.

Make no bones about it. Jesus absolutely did call women to be his disciples! So, here’s what we often miss about the women disciples of Jesus.

First of all, the Gospels give us the names of several women who were following Jesus around (that’s what it means to be a “disciple” it means to be a “follower”), and we can find those examples here:

Joanna, and Susanna were two of Jesus’s female disciples according to Luke 8:1-3: By their mere presence as disciples makes them leaders.

Not only are we told about the Twelve, and then these women by name, but we’re also told that there were “many others” (meaning, many other women) who not only followed Jesus around (which is the very definition of a Disciple in relation to a traveling Rabbi), but that they also supported Jesus financially.

Joanna the wife of Chuza, the manager of Herod’s household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means. - Luke 8:3

These women were active members of the ministry with significant input, who put their money, resources and time into the cause of Christ.

We’re also told that there were three women who were the first eyewitnesses to the Resurrection of Christ.

“When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, bought spices, so that they might come and anoint Him.” - Mark 16:1-3

Later, it is the same Mary Magdalene who is commissioned by Jesus as the “Apostle to the Apostles” (because “Apostle” means “sent one” and she was sent by Jesus to testify to his resurrection).

In addition, in the famous story of where Martha got upset at her sister for not helping her in the kitchen, we miss the entire point: Mary was behaving like one of the men – she was sitting at the feet of a Rabbi. This is what one did if one intended to become a Rabbi oneself. You may remember story in that Mary (Sister of Martha) ultimately anointed Jesus’ feet with the holy oil of spikenard using her hair to dry his feet.

Yet, the way Jesus responds to Martha’s outrage is especially liberating. Notice what Jesus says about Mary’s choice to adopt the posture of a disciple:

“But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.” --Luke 10:41-42

Jesus emphatically states that Mary has not only made a wise choice, but it’s also one that will never be taken away from her (or, presumably, from any other woman who makes a similar choice).

And let’s not forget Miriam. Miriam was the daughter of Amram and Jochebed and the sister of Moses and Aaron. She is first mentioned by name on the occasion of her leading the women in the chorus of the Song of Moses. The Song of Moses was sung at the time of the crossing of the Sea by the Israelites on dry land when they left Egypt.

Then Miriam the prophet, Aaron’s sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women followed her, with timbrels and dancing. Miriam sang to them:

“Sing to the LORD, for he is highly exalted. Both horse and driver he has hurled into the sea.”- Exod 15:20-21

As you can see, in the earliest Christian Church movement, women continued to be honored and included as Deacons, Elders, Prophets, Teachers, (yes, even as Apostles), throughout the later ministry of Paul and the other Apostles. In short, women were not only included, but they were also honored, revered, appreciated as well as actually and personally named in the Bible.

More examples:

Lydia of Philippi, a wealthy dealer in purple cloth, hosted a gathering of the saints in her home (which we would refer to as a Church or Ekklesia).

From Troas we put out to sea and sailed straight for Samothrace, and the next day we went on to Neapolis. From there we traveled to Philippi, a Roman colony and the leading city of that district[a] of Macedonia. And we stayed there several days. On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there. One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.” - Acts 16:11-15

Phoebe, Chloe and the mother of Rufus are also named by Paul as being among those women who served as Deacons (Diakanous or “servants”) in the early Church.

“I commend to you our sister Phoebe, who is a servant of the church (Deacon) which is at Cenchrea” - Romans 16:1

“For I have been informed concerning you, my brethren, by Chloe’s people, that there are quarrels among you.” 1 Cor. 1:11

And who can forget Junia?

“Greet Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen and my fellow prisoners, who are outstanding among the apostles, who also were in Christ before me.” -Romans 16:7

We also have Priscilla and her husband Aquila, who are referred to by Paul as “my fellow workers in Christ Jesus.

“Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my co-workers in Christ Jesus.” – Roman 16:3

They are always named together and according to custom the more prominent person is always named first. Therefore, it’s likely that Priscilla was the stronger teacher among them (because she is most often named first), and so she would have been known for her gifting within the early Church; especially as she was one who instructed Apollos (another early Apostle) about the Holy Spirit.

“and he (Apollos) began to speak out boldly in the synagogue. But when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately.” -Acts 18:26

That said, unfortunately, a few years later a contingent of male Church leaders would do their best to diminish the role of women in spirituality, and sadly they succeeded for quite some time. And in a sense this meme is correct because these women are usually not venerated in the manner Jesus intended. The problem is with the human interpretation of the Word. It is often corrupted. But ultimately, the truth is there.

Women in Buddhism

Recently, historian Masatoshi Ueki conducted a comprehensive evaluation of the status of women and gender equality in Buddhism grounded in a textual analysis of Buddhist literature from Early Buddhism to the Lotus Sutra. Ueki employed a nuanced interpretation of the terms 'male' and 'female' beyond mere biological characteristics, instead emphasizing their functional roles within society, which he referred to as the 'male principle' or Yang qualities and 'female principle' or Yin qualities. His investigation culminated in the conclusion that Shakyamuni's teachings make no distinction regarding women's enlightenment, thus asserting gender equality in Buddhism.

Below you will find a list of women leaders in Buddhism. This is certainly not comprehensive but makes the point of this article.

Timeline of Women in Buddhism

6th century BCE: Mahapajapati Gotami, the aunt and foster mother of Buddha, was the first woman to receive Buddhist ordination.

5th century: Prajñādhara (Prajnatara), the twenty-seventh Indian Patriarch of Zen Buddhism and teacher of Bodhidharma, is believed to have been a woman.

13th century: The first female Zen master in Japan was the Japanese abbess Mugai Nyodai (1223–1298).

1880: Madame Blavatsky and Colonel Olcott became the first Westerners to receive the refuges and precepts, the ceremony by which one traditionally becomes a Buddhist; thus Blavatsky was the first Western woman to do so.

1928: A secular law was passed in Thailand banning women's full ordination in Buddhism. However, this law was revoked sometime after Varanggana Vanavichayen became the first female monk to be ordained in Thailand in 2002.

1966: Freda Bedi, a British woman, became the first Western woman to take ordination in Tibetan Buddhism.

1971: Voramai, also called Ta Tao Fa Tzu, became the first fully ordained Thai woman in the Mahayana lineage in Taiwan and turned her family home into a monastery.

1976: Karuna Dharma became the first fully ordained female member of the Buddhist monastic community in the U.S.

1981: Ani Pema Chodron is an American woman who was ordained as a bhikkhuni (a fully ordained Buddhist nun) in a lineage of Tibetan Buddhism in 1981. Pema Chödrön was the first American woman to be ordained as a Buddhist nun in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition.

1988: Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo, an American woman formerly called Catharine Burroughs, became the first Western woman to be named a reincarnate lama.(16)

1996: Through the efforts of Sakyadhita, an International Buddhist Women Association, ten Sri Lankan women were ordained as bhikkhunis in Sarnath, India.

In conclusion, let’s not forget those women who were disciples of Jesus, leaders of Christianity and Buddhism or the many women (past and present) who have served as deacons, elders, teachers, evangelists and apostles.

What’s more, let’s continue to make room for women in the work and ministry of the Body of Christ and other spiritual work today – as Jesus clearly celebrated them and welcomed them and honored them and boldly asserted that what they had chosen to do with their lives would never be taken from them.

Clearly through the ages women have enjoyed significant roles in both Christianity and Buddhism. I have not analyzed other religions since this meme was specifically calling out Christianity and Buddhism.

And yes, these women are not venerated like the male leaders of these religions, but that is changing. For example there has been a tremendous surge of interest in Mary Magdalene in recent decades.

Wouldn’t it be better to instead of posting ignorant memes like this meant to be divisive, to better educate people about the significant roles women have actually played in our spiritual and religious world. By doing this, you honor them much more than posting divisive memes meant to push a personal agenda totally dismissing what they did. Please find a way to honor these women in your own way. Also encourage your priests, ministers, and church leaders to do the same.

And yes, no woman in Christianity has been assigned the lofty title of Christ. In Christianity, there can only be one Christ, and I would put forth that in Catholicism, Mary is treated the same or similar as one would treat Jesus. Yes, Christ was male because that was the Divine’s choice. If “Christ” had been female, would it have even mattered? Do you think men would be screaming and clutching their chest if the choen Christ was actually a woman?

And clearly, here have been female Buddhas.

Please quit posting this meme.

- Julie O'Hara 2023

Thank you for reading my poem or article. Please feel free to subscribe to see more content and if you are moved to, please consider tipping. In addition, my books can be found at https: Julie O'Hara Bookshop