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Cynthia Hester​​

Catalyzing the Conversation on Women, Leadership, and the Church

Dr. Cynthia Hester

Cynthia teaches, writes, and speaks on topics of faith and women, both women in the Bible and church history. She earned her Doctor of Ministry Leadership (D.Min., 2022) and Master of Arts in Christian Education (MACE,  2017, summa cum laude) at Dallas Theological Seminary (DTS). Her dissertation focused on biblical, historical, and theological views on women and church leadership. Studying Koine Greek was a key part of her studies.

In 2021, Cynthia founded Theology of Women Academy®. In her online Academy, she teaches the spectrum of orthodox views on women and the church (see Course tab).

A contributing author for the book 40 Questions About Women in Ministry (Kregel, 2023), Cynthia writes for Engage at Bible.org, blogs (see Blog tab), and her writing has appeared in Fathommag.com, Parker County Today, HeartStrongFaith.com, and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Cynthia has leadership and teaching experience in the workplace, church, and non-profit ministries, including DTS Spiritual Formation Leader (2022—present, Ft Worth; 2015—17, Dallas), Chair & Chair Emeritus of the Association for Women in Ministry Professions (2019—20, awmp.org), international Bible conference teaching in Ajijic, Mexico, Miragoane, Haiti, and at Kyiv Theological Seminary, Kyiv, Ukraine, and as a minister to women in a Bible church (2011—14).

Married to her Baylor Bear sweetheart Lindsey, they have two married sons and three adorable grandkids and live in Weatherford, Texas.

Brand photo w/TOW sign

Blog

Women in the Early Church

NEW BOOK REVIEW: TELL HER STORY: HOW WOMEN LED, TAUGHT, AND MINISTERED IN THE EARLY CHURCH

I fell down an escalator, at a recent Evangelical Theological Conference (ETS), to get Nijay Gupta’s newest book, Tell Her Story: How Women Led, Taught, and Ministered in the Early Church. I’d seen a Twitter announcement about this forthcoming book and couldn’t wait to read it. A word of caution, if you drop something while on an escalator DO NOT bend over to pick it up! When my feet hit the bottom step, I rolled like a bowling ball and landed in a splat. Fortunately, though rattled (and bruised), all my limbs worked. Two gentlemen kindly helped me to my feet. I immediately turned to see if I could recover my lost item. Behold, a guy with a twinkle in his eye handed me the postcard he had seen me drop and perilously attempt to recover. “Thank you,” I said and sheepishly added, “It’s for a free book!” All three men laughed uproariously. They weren’t so much laughing at me (well maybe a little), as with me. ETS conference attendees are book nerds, and we especially appreciate free books! With my feet on firm ground, I redeemed my rock-and-roll postcard for a complimentary advance copy of Tell Her Story. The book’s official release day is March 14th and I’ve written a review for you.

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A Daughter. Theology of Women.
Women in the Bible

A Daughter’s Worth: Rise, Church. Reclaim Your Daughters’ Worth

My article titled “A Daughter’s Worth” was originally published at Fathommag.com in July 2019.

Be a Daniel, not an Esther.” With papercut precision, the church elder’s words sliced to my core. “Unlike Daniel,” he explained, “Esther discredited herself because she hid her faith.” The elder’s criticism of Esther stung with familiarity. Indeed, Esther—the young girl ripped from her home and forced into a king’s harem—exemplified courageous faith despite a huge power differential. Relying on prayer, Esther used her wits and death-defying actions to save the Israelite nation from impending slaughter. But, according to this elder, Esther isn’t to be imitated.

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Historic Women of Faith

‘Bible Women’ Who Founded and Established the Chinese Church

God chose to work largely through women to found and establish the Christian church in China and Cambodia. Nineteenth-century pre-literate Chinese women, evangelized by Protestant women missionaries, were taught how to read Chinese characters thereby enabling them to teach from the Mandarin Bible. These ‘Bible women,’ such as Dora Yu (1873–1931), publicly evangelized and taught the Bible to mixed-sex groups. Peace Lin and her son Watchman Lee, who later were instrumental in forming churches across China, came to faith through the ministry of Dora Yu.

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Cynthia Hester​​

Theology of Women​

Catalyzing the Conversation on Women, Leadership, and the Church