Recent Webinar Recordings:
Coming soon…
View here.
Denomination-wide research study: Learn more here.
The work of Women in Leadership includes:
- Women Doing Theology conferences
- Holding it Together podcasts
- Women in Leadership blogs, written by Steering Committee members
- Laboring Toward Wholeness curriculum for dismantling patriarchy
- Worship resources
The work of WIL is guided by a diverse steering committee. They are committed to intersectionality and centering the wisdom and leadership of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) women.
Women Doing Theology
Women Doing Theology conferences flow out of a history of Anabaptist theologians, ministers, teachers, activists, creatives and many others gathering together to do theological work born out of women’s experiences. Our theology is enriched and more deeply grounded as we listen, hold space, challenge, come into new awareness and practice presence together.
Past Women Doing Theology conferences:
What we need is here is an online webinar series held in 2020 to share a virtual space for theology born out of women’s experiences as an alternative to WiL’s in-person conference. Recordings are available at the above link.
WDT 2018: Talkin’ Bout a Revolution: Dialogue, Practice and the Work of Liberation – built on the foundations laid in previous conferences to explore practices and opportunities for more people to access radical change and liberation.
Women Doing Theology 2016: I’ve Got the Power! Naming and reclaiming power as a force for good – focused on recognizing and embracing the power we have, and acknowledging that the Spirit of God is at work in us and through us as we do.
WDT 2014: All You Need is Love: Honoring the Diversity of Women’s Voices in Theology – created space for discussion and reflection on what it means to love in a world filled with struggle and oppression.
Resources
Holding it(,) Together podcasts: Mennonite Church USA’s Women in Leadership has produced Holding it(,) Together, a podcast that delves into the lives and experiences of people across Mennonite Church USA. It connects with folks from all over the country: people living into the fullness of who God created them to be, people stepping out in faith and standing in their conviction, individuals who are doing their best, one day at a time, to love God and neighbor, midwifing new systems and new ways of being in the world. Podcasts include:
- Episodes 1 – 5: Women in Leadership
- Episodes 6 – 10: Breaking Silences: Infertility, Miscarriage and Infant Loss, Mental Illness, Wholeness, Failure, Singleness
- Women Doing Theology Shorts from 2018 conference speakers: Malinda Elizabeth Berry, Yvette Blair and Carolina Hinojosa-Cisneros
Holding it(,) Together Podcast
I’ve Got the Power! Naming and reclaiming power as a force for good, an essay collection from the 2016 Women Doing Theology Conference.
Created Equal
A persistent question in the church concerns the relationship between women and men. What did God envision? Should women and men work together as equal partners, or have clearly defined roles and responsibilities? And who should take the lead? Although much of church history has assumed male leadership and distinct gender roles, there are also strong voices in the Bible that support equality and mutuality between men and women. There are also many situations in which individual gifts and abilities determined responsibilities more than gender. How are we to understand what the Bible teaches? This resource includes some answers to questions that often come up in these discussions. There are also reflection questions and a list of additional resources, inviting us to further conversation and Bible study.
Steering Committee
Abby Endashaw works for Mennonite Central Committee as the Summer Service National Coordinator, a grant program for young adults of color that approaches leadership development through the lenses of service and justice. Before joining MCC, she earned a BA in Psychology and MA in Professional Counseling. She then went on to become a Licensed Professional Counseling Associate in the state of Texas where she served women and children survivors of trauma. Abby and her cats, Drea and Penny, live in Dallas, Texas, the ancestral lands of the Wichita, Tawakoni, Kickapoo, and Jumanos Indigenous Peoples.
Joanne Gallardo serves as Conference Minister for Indiana Michigan Mennonite Conference. Originally from Northwest Ohio, Joanne lives in Goshen Indiana where she calls home. She is a graduate of Goshen College, Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, and is currently working on her Doctor of Ministry degree at Christian Theological Seminary where her dissertation is titled “Non-Violent Pastoral Ethics: The Cross, Trauma, And the Way of Peace.” Joanne cares deeply about the mental health in the church, the recognition of intersectionality, and disability advocacy. Coming from multiple identities, Joanne sees Jesus as an exemplar of a cross cultural, intersectional minister. In her free time, Joanne loves taking walks, watching documentaries, reading, and listening to podcasts. She lives with her best friend, her dog, Margaux, and her cat, Aliza.
Dianne Garcia began her career running a day camp for homeless children and teaching in marginalized communities. She then ran a gardening business before serving as an Associate Pastor at a Mennonite church for three years. She planted and continues to lead Iglesia Cristiana Roca de Refugio in April of 2023 with a group of women who felt called to create a community of belonging and belovedness in the family of God for other immigrants. The church founded the ministry organization, Nuevos Vecinos, in February of 2024 also led by Dianne, to create community together with immigrant families. Nuevos Vecinos supports families in crisis into stability so that they can become active participants again in their community. Dianne believes fundamentally in our Christian call to hospitality for all and that part of that hospitality requires us to be co-creators in the transformation of our world, adopting an attitude of humility, learning, and empowerment of others, particularly those who have been oppressed.
Dianne earned her bachelor’s in chemistry from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and her master’s in education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She has trained as a mental health counselor at Our Lady of the Lake University and taken courses at Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary. She will be awarded the Rothko Chapel Oscar Romero Award for human rights advocacy in 2026. Dianne is a second-generation immigrant and also has understood the immigrant experience through many other journeys in her life to new lands. She feels unbelievably blessed by the support of her family and the trust placed in her to be the shepherd of such an incredible community of people, especially now, as we are all journeying through such a dense and difficult time.
Katerina Gea is the lead pastor of Pasadena Mennonite Church, located in the Los Angeles River Basin in the Hahamog’na band of Tongva peoples’ unceded territory. Katerina’s ancestors were German-speaking Russian Mennonite refugees who became white settlers near Fresno, California. She was raised mostly in non-denominational churches as a child before attending Wheaton College, where she got her undergraduate degree in Cultural Anthropology and reclaimed the Mennonite faith tradition. Katerina has been involved in interconnected movements for racial, economic and ecological justice that seek to knit bonds of kinship and solidarity between people of faith and those experiencing oppression and displacement. She is passionate about reconnecting humans with the rest of creation and planted a “Wild Church” in Fresno, while also planting gardens alongside incarcerated people in California state prisons. Katerina is an adjunct professor with Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, where she received her M.Div. in Theology and Peace Studies. She loves poetry, hiking, and dancing salsa with her spouse. Her favorite scripture verses come from the prophet Isaiah, chapter 61:1-4, which her grandmother spoke over her as a child.
Daniela Lázaro-Manalo is the Racial Equity Education and Advocacy Coordinator for MCC U.S., where she advances education and advocacy efforts on anti-racism and anti-colonialism. She holds a degree in Communications and a master’s in Chicana/o Studies. In both her professional and activist endeavors in the U.S. and abroad, Daniela is passionate about racial justice, equity, community mobilization, and the multiple, interdisciplinary understandings of identity formation in the U.S. As an educator, she grounds her work in Anabaptist theology, peacebuilding, and restorative justice. She lives in Los Angeles, CA, with her spouse and two sons.
Sue Park-Hur serves as the director of racial/ethnic engagement for Mennonite Church USA (MC USA). She works with the various racial/ethnic entities within MC USA, supports the program agencies in this work and helps denominational leaders to define MC USA diversity, equity and inclusion goals, standards, and desired outcomes. Park-Hur co-directs ReconciliAsian, a peace center in Los Angeles specializing in conflict transformation and restorative justice for immigrant churches. A former co-lead pastor and co-church planter, her passion is to see the church living out the shalom of the gospel. Park-Hur is trained in Intercultural Development Inventory and is a Strategies for Trauma Awareness and Resilience (STAR) practitioner. She has a graduate degree in Christian Formation and Intercultural Studies from Wheaton College in Illinois and a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Asian American Studies from UCLA in California. She attends Pasadena Mennonite Church in Pasadena, California.
Rosalind Young is an ordained minister with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and Interim Pastor at Freeport Mennonite Church in Freeport, Illinois. A spiritual leader, peace practitioner, and founding pastor of Infinite Mercies Ministries- an outreach rooted n Christ’s call to stand with “the least of these” and to confront the systems that marginalize underserved communities.
For more than twenty years, Rosalind has woven pastoral ministry with a commitment to liberation, healing, and community transformation. She serves as Program Director with Mennonite Central Committee Great Lakes, engaging Anabaptist communities in restorative justice, anti-racism, and compassionate service. Her writing appears in For Such a Time as This and I Am a Woman Empowered: Stories of Strength, Resiliency and Triumphs, and her teaching and retreats create spaces where women reclaim voice, agency, and embodied hope.
Rosalind holds a Doctor of Ministry from South University, A Master of Divinity from Ashland theological Seminary, and both a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Education from Cleveland State University.
Contact:
Lorraine Stutzman Amstutz
LorraineSA@MennoniteUSA.org
Lorraine Stutzman Amstutz serves as denominational minister for Peace and Justice for Mennonite Church USA (MC USA). She works to resource conference ministers, conferences and pastors with opportunities to strengthen capacity and engagement in Christ-centered peace and justice, as well as serves as a liaison and coordinator for peacebuilding initiatives throughout MC USA. Stutzman Amstutz graduated from Eastern Mennonite University, Harrisonburg, Virginia, with a bachelor’s degree in Social Work. She earned her master’s in Social Work from Marywood University, Scranton, Pennsylvania. Stutzman Amstutz was the coordinator of Mennonite Central Committee’s Restorative Justice program for over 25 years and has co-authored “The Little Book of Restorative Discipline for Schools” and “What Will Happen to Me?” She most recently served as the foster care supervisor for COBYS Family Services, Lancaster, Pennsylvania. She attends Blossom Hill Mennonite Church, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Brief History of Women in Leadership
- 2009
Mennonite Women USA called for an audit of women in leadership in Mennonite institutions. (Findings from the 2005 survey). When the results demonstrated a need for systemic change, MC USA staff launched the work of Women in Leadership. - 2012
MC USA staff formed the Women in Leadership (WIL) Steering Committee. Joanna Shenk and Hilary Scarsella provided staff time. - 2013
Mennonite Women USA and Women in Leadership met together to discuss their distinctive as well as shared roles and objectives. Participants at that meeting observed that over the years, Mennonite Women has focused on supporting women in the church on their faith journeys, as well as funding mission activities around the world. WIL was formed to address and transform patriarchal and racist structures in the church and society. - 2014-2019
Jenny Castro served as WIL coordinator. - 2019
Sue Park Hur began serving as WIL coordinator. - 2022
Lorraine Stutzman Amstutz began serving as Coordinator