Women Worth Knowing Podcast
Welcome to “Women Worth Knowing,” a podcast hosted by author Cheryl Brodersen and history teacher Jasmine Alnutt!
We have always loved reading biographies about Christian women through the ages, whether they be missionaries, musicians, reformers, authors, or wives and mothers! Not only do we find their stories fascinating, but their examples have served as a constant source of inspiration to our Christian lives. So Cheryl had an idea: Why not turn these stories into a podcast so others can be as blessed by these stories as we are? And that’s what we did!
While there are certainly many familiar figures with captivating stories of God’s work in and through their lives, there are also plenty of lesser-known women whose lives were truly remarkable as well. We want you to get to know ALL of them! So join us each week for a lively conversation as we explore the lives of well-known—and not so well-known—Christian women in history. Trust us—these are definitely women worth knowing!
Robin has a personal affection for our unforgettable Woman Worth Knowing this week. During the decade that Robin lived on Maui, she saw the name “Ka’ahumanu” on a church, a shopping mall, and street signs. She began researching this extraordinary woman and found conflicting opinions over this powerful woman’s influence in the Hawaiian Islands. She lived during a period of vast change. Known as “the favorite” wife of King Kamehameha the Great, Ka’ahumanu held the role of “Kuhina Nui” or Queen. After his death, she ruled supreme during the reign of two of Kamehameha’s sons. The first company of New England Protestant missionaries arrived 11 months after her husband died, and by and by Ka’ahumanu put her faith in Christ alone. She was born in a cave before the arrival of Western contact, when human sacrifice was still practiced. Right before she died in 1832, she was handed the very first copy of the Hawaiian New Testament. As a result of many of her significant decisions, revival spread through the islands.
- Ka’ahumanu: Molder of Change, by Jane L. Silverman, Friends of Judiciary History Center of Hawai’i, Honolulu, 1987
- The Magnificent Matriarch: Ka’ahumanu, Queen of Hawai’i, by Kathleen Dickenson Mellen, Hastings House Publishers, New York, 1952
Online Sources
- “KA’AHUMANU” (https://paradiseofthepacific.wordpress.com/tag/kaahumanu/)
- “Kaahumanu (1777–1832)” (https://www.encyclopedia.com/women/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/kaahumanu-1777-1832)
- “Kaʻahumanu and the Missionaries” (https://imagesofoldhawaii.com/ka%CA%BBahumanu-and-the-missionaries/)
- “The Woman Who Changed A Kingdom” (http://www.coffeetimes.com/july98.htm)
