October 12, 2023 — What IF…?

What if Junia Was a Female Apostle?

“Greet Andronicus and Junia, my relatives who were in prison with me; they are prominent among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was.” Romans 16:7

There has been a scholarly debate whether Junia was a man or a woman. Most manuscripts give the name Junia (which is a female name) while some manuscripts give the name Junias (a male name). The reason, as I can understand it, for the confusion is the fact that Paul identifies Andronicus and Junia as “Prominent among the Apostles…in Christ before I was.” I could see that it would be hard for many in the first or second century to name a woman as a “Prominent Apostle” – so the gloss would be to add an “S”, to change the name from a woman to a man. After all, how could a woman be named as an Apostle?

We do know of several women who are among the prominent disciples or apostles or workers within the early Christian church. Aquila and Priscilla are named as early converts of Paul’s. They were tent makers, well-to-do, without children and most likely middle-aged. Junia’s relationship with Andronicus is somewhat ambiguous, but it is generally supposed that they were husband and wife. It is also possible they could have been siblings or simply a team of evangelists. What is important is that Junia is referred to in her own right, not as an attachment to someone else. This means that she earned her title and position on her own merit, rather than it being simply a natural derivation from her husband’s status. Paul refers to Priscilla as another of his “fellow workers in Christ Jesus”. Phebe is also mentioned by Paul as a servant or deaconess of the church.

When we think of women who may have been Apostles or workers for Christ in the early church, we must contend with the Patriarchal society in which the early church developed. There may have been many women who served in the role of Apostle, but their names have been redacted from the canon by men. However, many of our own churches today still struggle to allow women equal status to serve in leadership roles. It is my opinion that without women serving the church of Jesus Christ, many churches will lack leadership and will eventually close due to a lack of people willing to serve the Gospel.

Pastor Dave