Pushback....

"The early church was 'by, for, about MEN--women were barely even there, much less significant players (and ESPECIALLY not leaders)."

There several indications of this, in the data (NT, archeology, extrabiblical lit, sociology):

1. Numerically, they were a minority in the Greco-Roman world, but a majority in the pre-Constantine church.
   

2. One of the earliest pieces of 'high literature' the church produced--the gospel of Luke--was CLEARLY written with women readership in mind.
   

3. Outside Palestine, Christianity was a "cult" (Galen called it a "philosophical school"!). Cults have ALWAYS spread first through the intelligentsia, and intelligentsia are always closely aligned with patrons. And patrons were mostly women in that day and age...
   

4. The records of the earliest sites and house-churches feature prominent women leaders.
   

5. The earliest pagan reference to Christian leadership (e.g. Pliny) is to women deacons, who were tortured for their faith.
   

6. Early paintings and mosaics show females as a large part of Christian gatherings.
   

7. Women Christians outlived their non-Christian counterparts by DECADES--due to the Christian ethics around abortion, later marriage, non-forced remarriage, medical care-giving...
   

8. Early and Late Church Fathers refer to the large number of women in the church, AND TO their effectiveness at bringing their husbands 'into the fold'.
   

9. We have already noted in many places the widespread female representation in early church leadership positions.
   

10. Even widow-care was an early Christian priority! (Acts 6).
    

11. The church was known to attract a high number of high-status women to its ranks.

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