Invisible Fences and Women's Agency

Joshua Lewis sits down with Dr. Joy Qualls—Pentecostal scholar, Assemblies of God minister, and author to explore the history, theology, and lived experience of women in Pentecostal leadership. From early Scandinavian pietist revivals and Azusa Street to modern Assemblies of God policy, they trace how Pentecostal theology of Holy Spirit empowerment collided with institutional respectability, evangelical politics, and unspoken “invisible fences” around women’s roles in church leadership.

Along the way, they unpack stories of forgotten Pentecostal heroines like Rachel Sislo, Amanda Benedict, May Eleanor Fry, and Blanch Elizabeth Britton—women who planted churches, prayed in revival, confronted injustice, and literally died on the road preaching the gospel. They also explore how AG policy has officially affirmed women in ministry since 1935, even while local practice has often lagged behind, creating dissonance for called women in Pentecostal churches.

This episode will challenge both complementarian and egalitarian assumptions. It raises hard questions about ecclesiology, spiritual gifts vs. church offices, spiritual warfare over calling, and how movements lose their prophetic edge when they chase institutional respectability.

This conversation provides historical context, theological categories, and pastoral wisdom for navigating the debate of women in ministry without capitulating to cultural pressure on either side.

0:00 – Introduction
2:27 – Book overview
4:59 – The rhetoric versus reality for women in AG
8:39 – Assemblies of God policy
13:31 – National leadership changes
16:54 – Growth in women’s credentialing and leadership
17:00 – Women’s role before Azusa
22:19 – Early female leaders
36:46 – Institutionalization challenges
43:03 – Pendulum swings
51:47 – Influence of respectability and evangelical integration
57:12 – Recent decades: education, policy, and hope for the future
1:03:44 – Final thoughts

ABOUT THE GUEST:
📖BOOK https://a.co/d/ioTgWmb
Dr. Qualls is Associate Professor of Communication Studies and Associate Dean in the Division of Communication at Biola University

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