📖 Overview
Carolyn Osiek and Margaret Y. MacDonald are biblical scholars who specialize in early Christianity and women's roles in the ancient church. Their collaborative work examines the social structures and religious practices of the first Christian communities.
Osiek holds expertise in New Testament studies and early Christian history, with particular focus on gender roles in ancient religious contexts. MacDonald contributes scholarship in Pauline studies and the development of early Christian household structures.
Their joint research investigates how domestic spaces functioned as centers of Christian worship and community formation in the first centuries of the church. They analyze archaeological evidence, literary sources, and social patterns to reconstruct the experiences of women in early Christian households.
Their work addresses the intersection of gender, religion, and domestic life in the ancient Mediterranean world. They examine how Christian women participated in and shaped the emerging church through their roles as hosts, patrons, and leaders of house-based congregations.