Question: Why are there so few female saints in the Orthodox calendar?
Answer: There may be many more holy women who haven’t been canonised — women who carried out their obediences in families, hospitals, or convents but who did not demonstrate exceptional feats of faith due to lack of physical strength. Each person has their own place and their own level of ascetic effort and ministry. It just happened when males who were more physically robust and mentally adroit turned to God, they could do something that impressed other people and taught them a lesson. With that said, the majority of those who remained in the Church during persecutions were elderly women. The Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women were the first to come to the Lord’s Tomb, and they weren’t afraid. Anyway, Adam, not Eve, was the first human. That is why women can’t be priests or deacons, and they cannot enter the sanctuary. Nevertheless, the Mother of God is titled more honourable than the Cherubim and more glorious beyond compare than the Seraphim. A woman’s heart is more responsive and faithful. However, all are one in Christ, women and men.
