Hello and welcome to WomenfromtheBook Blog!
My name is Karen Meeker, and I have an ongoing fascination with the scores of women (named and anonymous) who appear within the pages of the Bible. After years of sporadic research (as evidenced by files of index cards, notebooks, photocopies, and numerous file folders), I decided to pull it all together in some organized form. So many hours have been spent in pursuing my personal inquiries that it seems a shame not to share my treasure trove with others who have the same interests. And by what better method than in a blog!
I am blessed to be married to my husband, George (a retired minister), who is unabashedly engaged in an ongoing love affair with the Bible. It has lasted more than 60 years with no end in sight. His formidable library containing resources for just about any topic found within the its pages, including women of the Bible, has seeded and nurtured my own journey of discovery.
In future blogs I plan to write about not only named individuals, but also categories of women–like concubines and midwives, business women and widows. What was everyday life like for them? How did women adorn themselves and make themselves beautiful? The topics are endless, each containing the brushstrokes from which portraits of Bible women gradually emerge on the canvas of their lives.
Many blogs exist that approach the topic of Bible women from an introspective, Christian-living point of view. The focus for this blog, however, will be mainly in establishing a historical backdrop for each woman, as well as including a view of the cultural milieu of her time. The Bible will be my primary source.
Thank you for visiting WomenfromtheBook Blog. Fellow travelers are always welcome!
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WomenfromtheBook Blog 
It does feel very sad that there are only three persons on this awesome woman of God, but as I said in my other comment, that has so much to do with culture. If we want to bring these ladies off the pages of scripture and get to know them, we are going to have to do some digging! But oh I do believe it will be so worth it every time!
K!
You have just acquired a new and avid follower of your blog!
Two pieces of background information on me, will give you insight into who I am and are what led me to your blog.
First: for a number of years I have written character sketches on biblically based characters, with my goal being to take the women off the pages of scripture (where- in keeping with history and culture- they have maybe only a line or two- unless they’ve done something really spectacular or really horrendous!), Let them walk around and talk with us for a while so that we can get acquainted with them, so to speak. I write their story, act it out for a ladies group when the opportunity arises, hope to put these into a book someday. My sources are of course scripture first following that with history and culture- because it would be way too easy to just tell a nice little story that westernizes or americanizes the lives of these women if we do not understand the time and place that they actually lived in, and thereby miss the reasons for and the point of many of the things they did.
Second: My husband and I lead a Bible study every Thursday evening that is a basic overview of the entire Bible. (Since we are both OTR truck drivers again, we do this via conference call.) The lessons in the book we’ve been using are simply written as an overview, a lot of things are summarized or skipped past. So basically it is a starting point for us and I am always digging and researching to fill in the gaps and point our people toward science and history because when you really look at those, they support the biblical world view rather than detract from it! In other words we want our people to be able to trust the Word of God- not just because we say so, but first and foremost because it came from God and secondly because it does make more sense than any other theory or system out there!
All that being said, our lesson this week is focused on Esther, so in my digging for more info to give our class or a better way to explain some of the points of history, ways to make a more clear picture in their heads of how it really was- I came across your blog! Having read two of your pieces, I found them both to be insightful and clear and to present logical historical information not just opinion!
I have been asked to consider writing a blog, which I may well do if we ever slow down enough that I can carve out of the time for it. Meanwhile I am looking forward to following yours and would love to get to know you someday!
K!
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I have just stumble upon your sight and i am very happy.
I am not very computer savvy, I hope to enjoy reading your information on the bible.
Hello Katie,
Thanks for your interest. I cited all my resources in the text of the article and hope you find the links helpful. I worked from what we know today about oils back to the time of Esther. Some of the oils used today are the same oils that the women of Esther’s time found beneficial. Skin softening by massage and oil seem to be effective beauty rituals then as now.
Is there anyway that I could get the resources that were used to write the blog Esther’s Make-over, Fit for a Queen? I am in the process of writing a term paper on the beauty treatments that the virgins had to undergo and would love to use some of the information that was used for the blog post!
Hello, and thank you for your comment. Women of the Bible truly are fascinating, and I too am happy to meet other individuals who share this interest. Best wishes for your book and for your future studies!
Hello, Everybody, I continue to believe there just aren’t any accidents in this world. My name is Dean Robertson (Ms) and I have spent 30+ years teaching, among other things, a course I wrote called The Hebrew Bible as Literature. Many of those years my emphasis was on women in the stories. Having retired from teaching, I spent the past two years volunteering at an assisted living facility for women, teaching the Old Testament, which I already knew, and finally venturing into the New Testament where I have done a huge amount of prep, complete with outlines and other handouts. On July 24th Koehler Books is publishing my first piece of writing ever–I’m nearly 70–called “Looking for Lydia; Looking for God,” which is partly about those Bible studies and very much an exploration of some of the stories about women in both testaments. WOW. This is way too long. I get very thrilled when there’s a chance to meet up with other women interested in the Bible. My blog for the book is pdrobertson.com and koehlerbooks.com has a page with a pretty good summary. Just type my name into their search window. I am so glad you all are here!!!
Actually Mary Hendren and I do all the writing for this blog. However if you have a webpage or have written material on-line, we’d be happy to take a look and furnish links to anything that would have a bearing on a topic we’re addressing. Thanks again for your interest.
Hello again, Karen,
I am not finding your policies for actually posting on your blog. Are you the only contributor or do you encourage guests?
I look forward to integrating your research with my own and sharing it with the rest of the world.
Hello and thank you for your comments! I did check out your webpage and explored it with interest. I find the various perspectives concerning these women only serve to fuel my on-going fascination with them. I’m following your blog, and look forward to your future topics.
I just mentioned your site on my Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/robincohnwomenofthebible
We approach the women of the Bible from different methodologies, but complimentary, in my opinion.
I’m always interested in connecting with others who are as passionate about these women as I am. Drop me a line when you get a chance and let me know what you think of my website and blog at robincohn.net.
Hello. I’m no expert on websites, but WordPress has taken care of all these matters for me. I was able to get a url from them. Karen Meeker
Hi there! I am about to begin my own website and was wondering if you know where the best place to buy a blog url is? I am not even sure if that’s what its called? (I’m new to this) I’m referring to “. How do I go about acquiring one of these for the website I’m making? Thankyou
Thank you so much for stopping by! Glad you enjoy our blog.
What a neat blog and also tribute to your life-long marriage and also relationship with God.
Thank you Ms. Anderson for your kind words and encouragement. I agree that these are indeed remarkable sisters, and I’ve long been intrigued with them. I hope your leadership efforts prove successful, for our young people need all the help they can get in this challenging world we live in.
Hello, my name is Lovie Anderson and I have been fascinated by the awesome women of the Bible for decades. As an minister, educator, and social worker, I am operating a leadership school for young girls (5 – 17 yrs of age) and would like to name it “Daughter of Zelophehad Leadership of Academy”. I have books by Edith Deems and the Women’s bible having commentaries on these remarkable five sisters. I read your research and loved it!!! Please share with me any additional information about these awesome five sisters. I appreciate you.
Thank you Carole, and thanks for joining the journey!
Thank you for sharing….what a treat to benefit from your love and all of your research!
Thank you Maryann. Anna is one of my favorites. I wish there were more than three verses!
Congratulations! This blog will be a big help to a lot of women. Thank you for sharing your love with us. I have especially admired Anna and wanted far more information about her for years. Now you have started this blog with her as your first subject. Thank you so very much