They were women of God and were very important in developing the image of God, as well as playing a significant role in the life and mission of Jesus. The women contributed to the movement and expert membership in its community as much as the men. However, some may see the presence of women in the Bible as a bad thing. Elizabeth Cady Scanton has argued that the Bible can be used to exclude women from the public sphere. The Bible promotes marriage and childbirth as the most important things for a woman to do, as these things would keep the woman at home and create a better environment for her husband. The images of women in the Bible, however, can help women connect to God more intimately and see themselves as an image of God. Women were included among Jesus' early followers, and he treated them as equals. Women were seen as ministers, they opened their homes to the less fortunate, and they even witnessed the resurrection of Jesus. From the beginning, women have had roles of power in Christianity. Women gave birth to the men of the Lord, but only if they were women of the