A Tribute To Alvera Mickelsen -- By: Mimi Haddad
Journal: Priscilla Papers
Volume: PP 30:4 (Autumn 2016)
Article: A Tribute To Alvera Mickelsen
Author: Mimi Haddad
A Tribute To Alvera Mickelsen
Mimi Haddad, PhD, is president of Christians for Biblical Equality. She has contributed to nine books, has authored more than one hundred articles and blog posts, and speaks frequently on issues related to faith and gender. She is an adjunct assistant professor at Bethel University and an adjunct professor at North Park Theological Seminary and Fuller Theological Seminary
On Tuesday, July 12, 2016, Alvera Mickelsen was welcomed into the loving arms of Jesus. Our beloved leader, mentor, mother, and friend died at the age of ninety-seven. A founder of Christians for Biblical Equality (CBE), she was CBE’s first board chair in 1987, worked with grassroots CBE chapters, and served for years as a CBE board member. She authored accessible books that remain bestsellers not only in CBE’s community, but around the world.
Alvera and her husband, Dr. Berkeley Mickelsen, a Bible scholar, were among the founders of CBE. They devoted much of their efforts to teaching, writing, and participating in public debates on biblical gender equality.
A gifted teacher, writer, and editor, Alvera attributed her skills to her own mother who taught Bible at their Swedish Baptist church in Indiana. The daughter of Swedish immigrant farmers, Alvera was the first person in her family to earn a college degree, and later, a master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University. Alvera taught journalism at Wheaton College and Bethel University, and began publishing her work as early as the 1980s.
Disturbed by the shallow reading of scripture used by many Christians to marginalize women’s gifts, Alvera frequently wrote for and edited CBE publications, and spoke at CBE events and those of her denomination—the Baptist General Conference.
A key visionary within CBE and a tough debater, Alvera was intensely gracious to all she engaged. She was a sought-after mentor for younger egalitarians, writers, scholars, and leaders. She was in constant contact with her students, and served as a faithful guide to many aspiring movers and shakers.
Early in the egalitarian movement, Alvera contributed vital books like Women in Ministry: Four Views and the now- classic, Woman, Authority & the Bible, published by IVP in 1986. Women, Authority & the Bible remains in print today. She also contributed to Discovering Biblical Equality: Complementarity Without Hierarchy. She served as editor of the Lausanne Occasional Paper: Empowering Men and Women to Use their Gifts Together in Advancing the Gospel.
Her practical wisdom, biblical knowledge, and experience with challenging people problems made her the ideal “Egalitarian Bible Answer Lady,” as we often called her. CBE arch...
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