Jesus and his earliest followers, including Paul, may have been unusually open  to women playing an important role in the community of the faithful, but it was not long until women's voices and activities came to be suppressed.  It is interesting to see both how that happened, historically, and how some women found alternative ways to find expression for their faith. This is one of the topics I cover in my book After the New Testament (2nd edition; Oxford University Press, 2014).  As I've said, in some ways it may be the most useful book I've published.  It is an anthology of passages from major Christian writings, both proto-orthodox and "heretical" of the second and third centuries, organized thematically, in modern English translations, with introductions both to the themes themselves and to the individual writings. Here is the introduction to the section where I provide excerpts of early Christian writings on women and gender. ****************************** Women played significant roles in the early Christian movement, starting with ministry of Jesus himself.  In Gospel traditions both early and [...]