Seeing is Believing

In the social psychology literature, there is a theory known as stereotype threat, described in Claude Steele's wonderful book Whistling Vivaldi. Steele elegantly goes over the massive evidence that negative stereotypes about our identities can inhibit our performance in a multitude of ways. If white men think they can't jump, the social psychology research shows that it turns out they can't. This phenomenon doesn't just negatively impact white men's athletic performance - it has been shown to explain the academic underperformance of black students and women in math. When psychologically battling a negative stereotype, one vehicle for overcoming a threatening environment is to have what's known as a "critical mass" of others like yourself. If a social setting (like a workplace or classroom) has amassed a large enough number of individuals like you, that will reduce your feelings of threat. For example, scholars have shown women perform better when they take a math test with other women in the room compared to when they take the same math test with only men in the room (Inzlicht & Ben-Zeev, 2000). Sharing the identity of people in your environment makes that environment more "identity safe" and helps you to psychologically dismiss negative stereotypes about your group. Seeing others like yourself succeed helps you to believe you can succeed in that environment.

I have been thinking about this issue of critical mass while reading my children Bible stories. We own The Jesus Storybook Bible, by far the most popular Christian children's Bible these days. And for good reason. Sally Lloyd-Jones, the author, has done an amazing job writing Bible stories in a way that is accessible for young readers. The subtitle of the book is "Every story whispers his name," and she takes the approach of telling stories of Biblical characters and connecting them back to God's story. It's enchanting for my kids, and they bring me the book at bed time frequently (a clear sign that they like a book). However, I've been troubled for some time about the lack of critical mass of women in the stories. There are very few Biblical characters who play the lead role in these stories that are women. In the Old Testament section, the only story that features a woman as a lead character is the story of Leah, and it's entitled "The girl no one wanted." It emphasizes that Leah wasn't loved because she wasn't beautiful on the outside, but that God showed her His love and made her feel wanted. It says, "You see, when God looked at Leah, he saw a princess. And sure enough, that's exactly what she became. One of Leah's children's children's children would be a prince - the Prince of Heaven - God's son" (p. 74). While Leah's story is an important story, it struck me that the only Old Testament story featuring a woman's story reinforces stereotypes that women are only valued by their looks, and that Leah's entire narrative hinges on the issue of external beauty. What of Ruth, whose story centers on her unwavering devotion and kindness to her mother-in-law? What of Rahab, who played a crucial role in a spy adventure in order to save her family? What of Deborah, a judge who led the people of Israel to battle and pronounces to the cowardly men around her that their nation's victory will belong to a woman? What of Abigail, whose wisdom and hospitality cools the many hot heads around her? The same is true in the New Testament section. Absent are the women who prophesy about Jesus' birth, like Anna or Elizabeth. None of the followers of Jesus who were women, like Mary Magdalene, are featured as a lead character in the chapters on the life and teachings of Jesus. None of the chapters on the early church name the women who played important roles, like Lydia, Phoebe, Junia, or Priscilla.

Photo by Saint Joseph

If seeing those like you in a group helps you to believe that you belong there, when our daughters don't see themselves in God's story, I worry they won't believe they are uniquely created and gifted by that God. I put out a call to friends for suggestions, and was pretty disheartened with what is out there to tell the stories of women in the Bible for our youngest readers. Sarah Bessey who wrote Jesus Feminist describes the problem well: "I began to search for faith-based picture books, in particular a few with female lead characters. Most of what I found wasn't that different from the stories for girls in the mass market: pink, sparkles, cupcakes, princesses, dress-up. 'Boy' books featured knights and princes, battles and heroics. There isn't anything wrong with those things--heaven knows we enjoy some of those stories and activities here--but I did long for more than stereotypes about the experiences and adventures of men and women following in the ways of Jesus." (pp. 89-90) 

I ordered a few children's books that share the stories of women in the Bible, but they are all designed for slightly older children. So I drafted a preschool-level book to read to my girls - it's a collection of rhyming tales that share God’s love for every child through the stories of the women in the New Testament. From the mother Mary to the deaconesses in the early church, many women played a special role in the story of Jesus and the church, and I hope my girls will know their names and stories. In the meantime, I am grateful they see a "critical mass" every Sunday as they are surrounded in our church family by women represented in every role from pastoral leadership to worship.