Beth Allison Barr is an American historian who is currently the James Vardaman Endowed Professor of History at

Baylor University Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the fir ...

in Waco, Texas. Her specialities include

European women The evolution and history of European women coincide with the evolution and the history of Europe itself. According to the ''Catalyst'', 51.2% of the population of the European Union in 2010 is composed of women (in January 2011, the population of ...

Medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

& Early Modern England, and

church history __NOTOC__ Church history or ecclesiastical history as an academic discipline studies the history of Christianity and the way the Christian Church has developed since its inception. Henry Melvill Gwatkin defined church history as "the spiritual ...

. Her 2021 book ''The Making of Biblical Womanhood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth'' received widespread media coverage.

Biography

Barr graduated from

in 1996 with a Bachelor of Arts in history (with a minor in

classics Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...

). She subsequently studied

Medieval History In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

at the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

, receiving a Master of Arts degree in 1999 and a Doctor of Philosophy in 2004. She returned to Baylor University as a lecturer in 2002, received

tenure Tenure is a category of academic appointment existing in some countries. A tenured post is an indefinite academic appointment that can be terminated only for cause or under extraordinary circumstances, such as financial exigency or program disco ...

in 2014, served as the Graduate Program Director in History from 2016 to 2019, and as an

Associate Dean Dean is a title employed in academic administrations such as colleges or universities for a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, over a specific area of concern, or both. In the United States and Canada, deans are usua ...

in the Baylor Graduate School from 2019 to 2022, and became James Vardaman Endowed Professor of History in 2021. Barr has served as president of two academic societies: the Texas Medieval Association in 2011 and

The Conference on Faith and History The Conference on Faith and History (CFH) is an organization for Christians working in the historical profession. It was founded in 1967 by a group of evangelical Christian historians who had been meeting for several years for fellowship and an int ...

from 2018 to 2020. Barr has written for ''

Christianity Today ''Christianity Today'' is an evangelical Christian media magazine founded in 1956 by Billy Graham. It is published by Christianity Today International based in Carol Stream, Illinois. ''The Washington Post'' calls ''Christianity Today'' "evange ...

'', the ''

Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'', and

Religion News Service Religion News Service (RNS) is a news agency covering religion, ethics, spirituality and moral issues. It publishes news, information, and commentaries on faiths and religious movements to newspapers, magazines, broadcast organizations and religio ...

. She is a regular contributor to ''The Anxious Bench'', the popular

Patheos Patheos is a non-denominational, non-partisan online media company providing information and commentary from various religious and nonreligious perspectives. Upon its launch in May 2009, the website was primarily geared toward learning about re ...

website, on Christian history. Barr is married to Jeb, the pastor of First Baptist Church in

Elm Mott, Texas Elm Mott is an unincorporated community in McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is located near the intersection of Interstate 35 and Farm to Market Road 308, eight miles north of Waco. Elm Mott is part of the Waco Metropolitan Statistical A ...

. She has two children.

''The Making Of Biblical Womanhood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth''

Barr's 2021 book ''The Making of Biblical Womanhood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth'' addressed the ongoing debate over

women in Christianity The roles of women in Christianity have varied since its founding. Women have played important roles in Christianity especially in marriage and in formal ministry positions within certain Christian denominations, and parachurch organizations. In ...

. It received widespread coverage, including in secular media such as

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis (businessman), Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print m ...

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

, and

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

, as well as Christian outlets such as

The Gospel Coalition The Gospel Coalition, or TGC, is a union of evangelical and Reformed churches. History It was founded in 2005 by theologian D. A. Carson and pastor Tim Keller. TGC describe their mission as being “deeply committed to renewing our faith ...

. A reviewer on

Premier Christianity ''Premier Christianity'' is a monthly Evangelical Christian magazine published in the United Kingdom. The magazine was started in 1965 as a newsletter with name ''Buzz''. It was sponsored by the organization Music Gospel Outreach (MGO) and share ...

said "This powerful book is forcing the Church to re-think what the Bible says about women". After The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood criticized the book and the church where Barr's husband serves as pastor, the church received more than $15,000 in donations.

Selected works

* ''The Making of Biblical Womanhood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth'' (2021); Brazos Press; * ''Faith and History: A Devotional Paperback; co-editor with Christopher Gehrz'' (2020); Baylor University Press; * ''The Acts of the Apostles: Four Centuries of Baptist Interpretation; co-editor with Mikeal C. Parsons, Bill J. Leonard, and C. Douglas Weaver'' (2009); Baylor University Press; * ''The Pastoral Care of Women in Late Medieval England'' (2008); Boydell Press;

References

External links

Faculty page

Personal website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barr, Beth Allison American women historians American historians of religion Baylor University alumni Baylor University faculty University of North Carolina alumni American women non-fiction writers Year of birth missing (living people) Living people

Biography

''The Making Of Biblical Womanhood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth''

Selected works

See also

References

External links