Resistance to Women in Ministry and the Psychodynamics of Sadness

The relationship between losses within mainline Protestant churches and the resistance to women in ministry is explored. Loss in congregations and denominations awakens an unconscious desire for a “dominant other” that will save the church from real or perceived loss or even the threat of death. Women are not seen as “dominant” and are thus overlooked when leadership for restoration is sought. Loss may also awaken unconscious resentment and hatred against women. Women are associated with the “wombishness” of Jesus, a trait historically rejected, but one that could not be destroyed even as it remained life-giving and nurturing.