Womanists Wading in the Word™
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The Rev. Wil Gafney, Ph.D.

Wil GafneyWomanist biblical scholar the Rev. Wil Gafney, Ph.D. is the Right Rev. Sam B. Hulsey Professor of Hebrew Bible at Brite Divinity School in Fort Worth, Texas. She is the author of A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church and translator of its biblical selections; the first two volumes, Year A and W (a stand alone volume) were published in 2021. Volume B was published in July 2023 and C is in press, due in due in July 2024. She is the author of Womanist Midrash: A Reintroduction to Women of the Torah and of the Throne, a commentary on Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah in the Wisdom series; Daughters of Miriam: Women Prophets in Ancient Israel; and co-editor of The Peoples’ Bible and The Peoples’ Companion to the Bible. She has completed the second volume of Womanist Midrash focusing on women in the Former Prophets expected 2024. She is an Episcopal priest canonically resident in the Diocese of Pennsylvania and licensed in the Diocese of Texas and, a former Army chaplain and congregational pastor in the AME Zion Church. A former member of the Dorshei Derekh Reconstructionist Minyan of the Germantown Jewish Center in Philadelphia, she has co-taught courses with and for the Reconstructionist Rabbinical Seminary in Wyncote, PA. She is a preacher, teacher, activist and, an amateur watercolorist. Read Dr. Gafney’s Bio | High Resolution Image

Wil’s Latest Post

Sonya Massey’s Rebuke

“I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.” ~ *the last words of Sonya Massey Every person raised in a certain kind of black church knows the power and gravity of those words. Those are the words to be said when facing the evil that has walked in your door and will soon take your life. It is not a…

Wil’s Latest Books

NEW! A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church: Year C | Preorder Now

A Women's Lectionary for the Whole Church CThe final installment in the critically acclaimed lectionary series that focuses on women’s stories. 

In this third volume of a three-volume lectionary, widely praised womanist bible scholar and priest Wilda Gafney selects scripture readings that emphasize women’s stories. Focusing especially on the Gospel of Luke, Year C of A Women’s Lectionary features Gafney’s fresh, inclusive, and thought-provoking translations of every reading, alongside commentary on each reading. Designed for liturgical use or scriptural study, this resource offers a new perspective on the Bible and the liturgical year.

“Gafney’s paradigm-shifting scholarship will influence biblical preaching and teaching for generations to come.” —National Catholic Reporter

A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church, when completed, will be a three-year lectionary. Order Year C from Amazon. This title will be released  released July 2, 2024.

Follow this link for a complete Lectionary in a single year in a single volume.

A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church: Year A | Order Now

A Women's Lectionary for the Whole Church - A

What would it look like if women built a lectionary focusing on women’s stories?

What does it look like to tell the good news through the stories of women who are often on the margins of scripture and often set up to represent bad news? How would a lectionary centering women’s stories, chosen with womanist and feminist commitments in mind, frame the presentation of the scriptures for proclamation and teaching?

The scriptures are androcentric, male-focused, as is the lectionary that is dependent upon them. As a result, many congregants know only the biblical men’s stories told in the Sunday lectionary read in their churches. A more expansive, more inclusive lectionary will remedy that by introducing readers and hearers of scripture to “women’s stories” in the scriptures.

A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church, when completed, will be a three-year lectionary. Order Year A from Amazon. This title released August 1, 2021.

Follow this link for a complete Lectionary in a single year in a single volume.

A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church: Year B | Order Now

Womanist Lectionary B cover

The second installment in the critically praised lectionary series that focuses on women’s stories.

In this second volume of the three-volume Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church, widely praised womanist bible scholar and priest Wil Gafney selects scripture readings that emphasize women’s stories. Focusing especially on the Gospel of Mark, Year B of A Women’s Lectionary features Gafney’s fresh, inclusive, and thought-provoking translations of every reading, alongside commentary on each reading. Designed for liturgical use or scriptural study, this resource offers a new perspective on the Bible and the liturgical year.

“Gafney’s paradigm-shifting scholarship will influence biblical preaching and teaching for generations to come.”
National Catholic Reporter

A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church, when completed, will be a three-year lectionary. Order Year B from Amazon. This title was released July 18, 2023.

Follow this link for a complete Lectionary in a single year in a single volume.

Womanist Midrash Cover

Womanist Midrash: A Reintroduction to the Women of the Torah and the Throne! Details/Order 

Womanist Midrash, volume 2

Womanist Midrash, Volume 2: A Reintroduction to the Women of Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings (release November 12, 2024) Details/Order 

Dr. Gafney’s commentary on Nahum, Habakkuk and Zephaniah. Details/Order

Select Sermons

Collateral Damage

September 18, 2022
Collateral Damage: A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church, Year A, Princeton
(sermon text)

After Roe: Freedom and Justice for Some

June 26, 2022
Third Sunday after Pentecost, Trinity Episcopal Church Fort Worth
(sermon text)

They Call Us Witches: The Not-A-Witch of Endor

October 3, 2023
Answering the Call for Human Thriving|HBCU Day, Brite Divinity School Chapel
(sermon text)

Saving Joseph and all the Queer Kids

August 13, 2023
Feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary Sunday, Trinity Episcopal Church Fort Worth
(sermon text)