In 1992 CWM launched the Community of Women and Men in Mission (CWMM) as an important aspect of CWM policy. The emphasis is on partnership between women and men. "Genuine partnership," as Esther Byu from Myanmar describes it, "is a relationship grounded in mutual love, respect and understanding for each other, in the sharing of space, equal rights and responsibility for the benefit of the whole community." So we believe that genuine partnership will benefit the whole community.
The survey
One of the first things the advisory group did was to conduct a survey into the blocks to women's full participation in church and society. The results of the survey would become the basis for a programme of advocacy and awareness raising in the CWM member churches.
The research was carried out in 1993 and 1994 in 10 member churches of the CWM: one in the Caribbean, one in East Asia, one in South Asia, two in Africa, two in Europe and three in the Pacific. People in local congregations and at national leadership level were personally interviewed or filled out a questionnaire. Although the research was by no means scientific or comprehensive, it gave CWM a good idea of the issues it needed to focus on.
Positives
It became clear from the responses that women have made some spectacular advances in the past 20 years or so. In many societies anti-discrimination laws have opened up a whole new range of jobs to women and given them greater economic independence. The number of girls going to school has shot up worldwide and generally women have gained greater access to education. In many societies women have more control over the number of children they have through contraception.
In many places women have entered politics, thus gaining access to decision-making. In the churches more women get into positions of leadership and are valued for the contribution they make. They play significant roles in mission, in developing the spiritual life of the church and its understanding of ministry as a role for the whole people of God.
Negatives
But the research also showed up many issues of concern and areas of injustice. In many societies girls do not get the same educational opportunities as boys and women still receive considerably less pay than men for the same work. And all over the world women make up most of the world's poor, carry the double burden of work inside and outside the home and are the victims of violent abuse, in and outside the home.
In the churches all is not well, either. Although in most churches women make up the vast majority of the membership, their strengths and gifts covering all aspects of the life of the church, only their contributions in the areas of serving, supporting and teaching are used. In many churches theological training is open to both men and women, but for many women it is still difficult to find the necessary funding or to find employment after training.
While several churches are working to encourage women to take up leadership positions, they are still confronted by mindsets, attitudes and practices that are exclusive. In many of the churches surveyed women play a key role in mission, often as the fundraisers, yet have no control over how these funds are used. In all churches surveyed there was a sense that the church does not meet the needs of young women. Churches were also found to be reluctant to tackle the issue of violence against women.
The consultations
The research raised many issues that hinder partnership of women and men in mission. Many issues are common to all CWM regions, but several are particular for one region. Therefore, when the results of the research were presented to the CWM executive committee, it was decided each region should consider these results for itself and work out the most appropriate way towards partnership.
The CWM executive committee proposed the holding of regional consultations, with men and women participating together, to look at the issues raised in the research and others relevant to that region, to search Scripture together for ways forward and to work out what shape partnership should take in that region.
The first pilot scheme was held in Samoa in November 1995. It afforded men and women an opportunity to come together and to share their different contextual situations and experiences. A crucial and controversial issue became the ordination of women for the ministry. Other issues for discussion included theological training for women, the role of women in decision-making, violence against women, different models of ministry, and understanding of mission.
Although views on these issues differed, it was clear by the end of the consultation that the participants had grown in understanding and that real progress had been made. An immediate result of the consultation was that the theological college in Samoa, which had hosted the consultation, expanded the opportunities for women to study theology.
Further regional consultations were held between 1996 and 2000. Each had its particular emphases. The consultation in Africa focused strongly on issues of partnership in the church, in society, and in the home. Violence against women in the family emerged as an urgent concern.
The consultation in the Caribbean (1997) focused strongly on the role (and absence) of men in church and society. The European consultation's emphasis (1999) was on inclusiveness, considering not only the exclusion of women but also the exclusion of refugees, people from ethnic minorities, disabled people and others. The East Asia consultation (2000) looked at the leadership of women in the church.
The consultations led to action at the regional and the national levels, which still continues today. At the global levels an immediate result of the meetings was the launching of a worldwide campaign in 1998.
Women Taking Control of Their Lives
The campaign "Women taking control of their lives" was officially launched in January 1998. A host of campaign materials had been produced and distributed to the member churches. They included a video, action sheets, a study booklet, a worship pack, t-shirts, postcards, and other promotional materials. Members of the by now well developed CWMM network became key campaigners. The campaigners organised a host of activities to raise awareness in the member churches and beyond. They organised official launches, conferences, workshops, worship services, women's rallies and retreats. They addressed church meetings, women's groups inside and outside the church, mission committees and local churches. They managed to get coverage in the media.
About half of CWM's member churches actively adopted the campaign at the national, regional and/or local levels. Most of these were in Europe, Africa and the Pacific. In these regions the campaign concentrated most on the issues of economic empowerment (often in relation to Jubilee 2000) and domestic violence.
The campaign produced some visible results. It helped churches and groups to raise awareness of gender inequality in the churches and society. Several churches examined their life and structures to see if equal opportunities were afforded to men and women. Many women felt empowered by the campaign and for many it became an opportunity to share painful experiences of domestic violence or sexual abuse.
Building a network of women and men in mission
In addition to awareness raising, building a community of women and men in mission also meant establishing a network. The first step towards building this was the launch of a quarterly newsletter in 1993, called Insaka. It is distributed to over 600 women and men and includes feature articles, Bible studies and news from the member churches.
Developing exchange programmes has been another way of building and strengthening a network. Several exchange programmes have been held since 1995, starting with an exchange between Zambia and Malawi. A group of women from Malawi attended the national women's conference of the United Church of Zambia. This was followed by a return visit by the Zambian delegates two years later which became the trigger for some startling changes in Malawi. Not only was it an opportunity for the Zambian group to give the Malawian women skills training, the women ministers in the visiting group were also invited to preach in the Sunday service. A first in Malawi, and the beginning of a quick succession of developments in the Churches of Christ in Malawi. Not only do women now participate in decision-making in the highest levels of the church, they preach in church services and are in the process of establishing a women's desk.
A second exchange programme started in 1996 with a visit by a delegation from the Presbyterian Church of India (PCI) to the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands (RCN). The purpose of the visit was to study the life and work of the RCN, with a particular focus on the partnership of women and men. As a church which has ordained women for several decades, it was felt there would be much to gain from the RCN's experience for the PCI, which as yet does not ordain women. In return it was felt that the RCN could benefit from the PCI's active involvement in mission at home and abroad.
The Way Forward
Much has been achieved in the past eight years. Awareness raising processes in the regions have been started or strengthened through the consultations and the campaign. A network has been built through Insaka and the exchanges. Women's leadership and economic empowerment have been supported through the Women in Mission Fund. The question for CWM now is "what next?"
A global meeting in the Netherlands in 2001 reviewed progress in the area of partnership of women and men in mission within CWM and brought suggestions for the future. It considered what CWM can do to address the important issue of training for women, an area which to date has received insufficient attention. Most of all, it will asked what steps need to be taken to promote true and equal partnership of men and women. For only by living out this kind of partnership will the church's message be credible, its actions effective and its life a visible manifestation that the gospel is reality.