History of Religious Women Leaders in the Early Days of the Catholic Church

It has always amazed me how some religious leaders can ignore their own history. I grew up Catholic and we were not encouraged to read the Bible. It took me many years to understand how dangerous the Bible could be.

Take for example, Paul's Epistle to the Romans: Chapter 16.

It mentions Phebe, Priscilla, and Mary as well as other women. In the letter, Paul is asking the Roman Catholics to assist Phebe in whatever way she needs help. He states that the woman "hath been a succourer of many, and of myself also."

From those statements, it appears to me that a woman is to be one of the leaders of the Catholics in Rome. It looks like Paul has appointed her to be in charge.

I do not have any degrees in Religion. I'm sure that my conclusions to the passage can be explained away. Perhaps the woman, Phebe, was a helper and not a leader. That is the interpretation or translation of Bible Scripture Net.

Even though Phebe is mentioned as a helper in this version, Paul still asks the Catholics of Rome to give her any help that she asks for. Doesn't that put a woman in a position of authority? Isn't that what a leader is?

BibleTexts.com was created by a biblical scholar who used many respected sources. It mentions that Phebe was actually a Deacon and possibly the president of a Christian Church in Cenchrea. It also appears that Junia was a woman and an apostle in chapter 16 verse 7 of Paul's Epistle to the Romans.

Doctor Helmet Koester who was a professor at Harvard Divinity School explains the different interpretations of Phebe as well as other issues about Paul and women in great detail. There does appear to be biblical evidence that women were leaders in the Catholic Church but is there historical evidence?

I found historical evidence of women leaders in the Catholic Church from the Sojourners website. Sojourners has roots from the Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. It has an award winning website which looks at spiritual renewal and social justice. The article from its website mentions historical mosaics and fresco's in Rome that show women as Catholic priests and bishops.