Tell Her Story: How Women Led, Taught, and Ministered in the Early Church

Nijay K. Gupta reconstructs the historical landscape of the first-century Mediterranean world to highlight how women occupied public roles in the burgeoning Christian movement. He analyzes specific Roman social structures and Greek domestic customs to prove that women were not confined to private spheres. The text examines the leadership of Deborah in the Old Testament as a precedent before investigating New Testament figures like Phoebe the deacon, Junia the apostle, and Prisca the teacher. Gupta argues that these women held formal authority and provided financial patronage rather than serving as mere assistants.

This book serves students of theology, historians, and church leaders looking for an academic defense of egalitarian ministry. Readers who want to understand the linguistic nuances of the Greek New Testament will find specific translations for titles and offices. By the end, the reader possesses a historical framework to explain how women functioned as overseers and evangelists in the earliest house churches. It provides the data necessary to challenge traditional patriarchal interpretations of Pauline theology and early ecclesiastical development.