Thesis Abstract and Dissertation Abstracts

There is an increase in the number of churches that license and ordain women to serve on an equal level with men in church ministry. Women who have been licensed and ordained have made a great impact in the growth of their churches because they have used their God-given gifts and talents. However, despite this effort there seems to be a persistence of prohibition of licensing and ordination of women in a number of churches today; one of these churches is the Africa Inland Church (AIC) in Kenya which was founded in 1895 through AIM. Though this church prohibits licensing and ordination of women ministers, its Bible colleges still admit and train women ministers who in turn end up upon graduation in the ministry though without licensing and ordination. This research project therefore sought to investigate challenges that the church faces as a result of not licensing and ordaining women ministers.

 

The descriptive and exegetical research designs were used in this study. A selection of women and male ministers as well as lay leaders was purposely selected for interview from the seven church districts of AIC Nandi Central Region. Both secondary and primary sources were used to collect data. Secondary sources included published and unpublished materials; books, articles, newspapers, magazines, journals and the Internet, whereas primary sources included field data obtained through oral interviews, observation, content analysis and structured questionnaires. The collected data was then analyzed using qualitative method. Qualitatively descriptions and exegesis were made. After the analysis the data was then presented in text form.

The study found out that the doctrinal belief on women ministry in AIC originated from AIM. The study also revealed that women ministers face the following challenges: Restriction from performing certain church ministries, rejection when transferred, denied clerical clothes, temptation from other denominations, held in low regard, not supported in furthering education, denied key leadership positions, filled with doubts and fears, difficulty in getting employment, low remuneration, missing job opportunities and their ideas are not taken seriously. The challenges on the church are: church members questioning the training of women, incurrence of more expenditure, poor leadership, failure to get services at the right time, difficulty in Bible interpretation and pressure from supporters of gender equality. Furthermore, the study showed that the Bible supports full participation of women in church ministry on an equal level with men. The current church’s position on licensing and ordination is negatively affecting both women ministers and the church. The study recommends that AIC should license and ordain women ministers for church ministry.

 

Koech, A. (2012), “Challenges faced by the church in not licensing and ordaining women ministers: a case study of the Africa Inland Church - Nandi Region of Kenya.”  MTh Thesis, Great Lakes University of Kisumu Kenya.