I am a convert to Catholicism from evangelical Protestantism
I agree with those who say that only in the most extreme fundamental Protestant denominations can a woman do “next to nothing.”
Think of Evelyn Christenson (RIP), Anne Graham Lotz, Ann Kiemel, Corrie ten Boom (RIP), Marilyn Hickey, and of course Beth Moore. These women routinely spoke/speak to mixed groups in which men are present. There are others, but honestly, I just can’t think of names at this time; it’s been a while since I’ve been into Protestant celebrity.
There are many other evangelical Protestant women who are not “celebs” like these are/were, but they are often invited to speak to mixed groups. I’m talking about the female academics who teach at the Christian universities and the female missionaries who often speak primarily within their own denomination, and various female pro-life speakers. Again, these women are not “celebs”, but they are often guest speakers at evangelical conferences, seminars, church services, rallies, crusades, etc.
Finally, there are the female musicians who are immensely popular among evangelical Protestants, including and especially men.
In the local evangelical Protestant church fellowships, women generally do everything the men do, except become pastors. Ordination is different in each evangelical Protestant denomination; in some denominations, it means “being sent” and therefore women are "ordained. Catholics need to be careful about this term and make sure that they are communicating clearly with their Protestant friends when the term “ordination” comes up in the conversation.
In many evangelical fellowships, the term “pastor” means “shepherd,” thus women CAN become “pastors” since there were/are shepherdesses. Generally women become “pastors” of either children’s or women’s ministries, and not shepherds of any male ministries. In many evangelical Protestant churches, the term “pastor” is not used other than for the formally-ordained minister who has graduated from college and seminary. Instead, these people are called “directors” or “superintendents” ; i.e., “Director of Children’s Ministries,” etc.
The gist is this–every evangelical Protestant church/fellowship and denomination will do things a little differently when it comes to women, so it’s wise for Catholics to not make any sweeping generalizations, and instead, to find out directly from the specific fellowship what their policies are about women and ministry. This approach will save the Catholic from embarrassment!
