Women’s Leadership in a Moment of Crisis: A Biblical Reflection

Abstract

Women have been holding leadership positions for many years now. They have been leading since biblical times. According to the biblical narrative, when leadership by men proved inadequate for a new era, women rose to the occasion. Nevertheless, this narrative is not the same in some sections of society. Just because the Bible remarks that women are weaker vessels (1 Peter 3:7), many societies regard women as such and many times women have been left out of occupying critical roles and not to talk of leading in critical times. But, this study endeavoured to change the narrative by showing that women are capable of leading successfully in critical moments in that they have been leading since the biblical times and that they can still lead in current times. This study examined women’s leadership in a moment of crisis as a biblical reflection. The study explored women’s leadership characteristics in moments of crisis and evaluated the extent to which women show up in the moment of crisis using the Bible as a point of reference. The study employed a qualitative approach with a case study design, and document analysis, to capture and understand the views and attitudes of women leaders in a moment of crisis. It revealed that women in leadership at different levels and prominence have succumbed to crises and surpassed them. Among the leadership characteristics employed by women leaders, teamwork and situational leadership were prevalent in overcoming crises. They exhibited resilient leadership and dependence on the biblical knowledge system to guide their leadership, especially in times of crisis. The study established that women leadership in Lusaka and Kafue districts of Zambia faced challenges of patriarchal stereotyping to pandemics such as Covid-19. The study recommends that women be given equal opportunities in leadership roles and fair platforms and learn from the leadership roles exhibited by women in moments of crisis.