Another book on Biblical womanhood??  As Anabaptists, we may consider ourselves to be somewhat removed from the effects of the feminist movement and its damaging worldview.  We might look with astonishment at the fast-growing number of books written by evangelical Christians on the subject of Biblical womanhood, thinking it looks like answers to questions we have not asked.  We would do well to ask questions and to seek Biblical answers, for the ideology of feminism has so thoroughly infected our world that we cannot hope to avoid its influence.   

Voices of the True Woman is a recently-published collection of messages presented at a conference designed to affirm God’s purpose for the lives of women.  It is not, as the compiler makes clear, a comprehensive explanation of Biblical womanhood, but rather a forum for “voices” that speak truth about it.  Many of the insistent voices heard by women today are “loud and seductive” and communicate folly; this book represents the heart of a counter-cultural movement submitted to the authority of the Word of God. 

Nancy Leigh DeMoss is the compiler and shares more than one chapter, but there are several other contributing speakers.  Four main sections cover “Foundations of True Womanhood;” “The Battle for True Womanhood;” “The Refining of True Womanhood;” and “Reclaiming True Womanhood.”   While there is some overlap in the teaching in the four sections, I found it helpful to consider the material from the perspectives suggested.  A “Going Deeper” guide is provided near the end of the book with ideas for small-group study.

An important point made in the opening chapter is that our theology will affect the type of women we become.    John Piper’s thesis states that true womanhood is “a distinctive calling of God to display the glory of His Son in ways that would not be displayed if there were no womanhood.”   While I did not find the style and content of this chapter as challenging as the chapters that followed, there were still some good applications of truth for both married and single women—each of whom is equipped to serve God in ways that the other cannot.

After defining true womanhood, Section Two presents examples of cultural opposition to a Biblical view of woman’s roles.  Beginning with the 1950’s, Mary Kassian demonstrates from the media of the day how the feminist philosophy developed in America and integrated itself into our culture.  It was aided by a worldwide mindset of revolution: equal rights were being demanded with fervor by oppressed classes, workers, college students, blacks.  Feminist ideology had been around since at least the 1800’s, and it didn’t take much for modern writers Simone de Beauvoir and Betty Friedan to touch off a gender revolution.   Women quickly moved from redefining women to attempting to rename the world and eventually even God.  The chapter that follows shows how God used a “true woman” from Bible times (in a culture of genuine oppression) to accomplish His will.   Nancy Leigh DeMoss skillfully presents hope and perspective for modern times using the story of Esther.

The third section illustrates the “refining” of several women through suffering.  We are all familiar with Hannah’s pain over being barren in a time when sons were everything; Janet Parshall elaborates on her story.  Karen Loritts shares her own experience of an unexpected emotional breakdown about the time she became an “empty-nester.”   Joni Eareckson Tada talks about the pain and privileges of her quadriplegic condition and how she has been “polished” as a result of suffering.

Section Four encourages us to reclaim true womanhood through prayer and through “counter-revolution.”  Don’t even begin to picture yourself marching outside the White House and speaking at women’s rallies; this is a revolution of mindset and quiet action.  The closing chapters include the “True Woman Manifesto,” which sounds unpleasantly militant but is merely a statement of belief; a rationale for having such a statement of belief, by Mary Kassian; and a prayer for true women, by John Piper. While I prefer spontaneous prayers to pre-prayed ones, I was challenged by his mention of needs and requests I would not have thought of—some of which are now part of my personal prayers.

As with any mainstream evangelical book, there are perspectives on adornment that not everyone will share.  Yet the book is sufficiently sound and Scriptural to recommend it for any woman who wishes to begin realigning her thinking patterns with God’s Word!