Abstract:

There is a glass ceiling beyond which women in Malawian churches are unable to advance in their Christian ministry, especially for those who are called to lead a local church or denomination. This is due to the pervasiveness of both cultural and ecclesiastical patriarchy in Malawian churches. This article explains how Nellie Chigamba, a Christian woman with leadership gifts in the matrilineal Chewa central region of Malawi and a member of the Nkhoma Synod of the Church of Central African Presbyterian (CCAP), broke the glass ceiling to become the leader of a neocharismatic apostolic network, the Evangelistic New Exodus Church of God and Missions. The study found that a neocharismatic spirituality with its grounding in the filling or baptism in the Holy Spirit has the theological, experiential and liberational resources to aid women to break the glass ceiling in the religious sphere.

Author: Felix Chimera Nyika