How does the media shape women’s identity in Guatemala?

During the lockdown in Guatemala, social media and an increase in the time spent watching television has had a significant effect on women, according to our partner church, the National Evangelical Primitive Methodist Church of Guatemala. While internet access is limited in rural areas, Guatemalan women staying at home generally had more time to use social media and watch a popular national pastime, la telenovela or soap operas.  The President of the Federation of Methodist Women in Guatemala, Zoila Mercedes Mendez Villatoro, said that following a lifting of lockdown restrictions, “Our pastors reported that fewer women were attending church services. And members who have been listening to preaching from different denominations through online church broadcasts on social media streaming platforms, have returned to their churches with doctrines and theologies that are not compatible with Methodism”.

Zoila Mercedes Mendez Villatoro insists that television has always been a huge influence on women and their identity in Guatemala. In the telenovelas,  the characters that are often portrayed are the poor and oppressed person, the rich person living an ostentatious life, the hardened criminal, the fashionable and glamorous woman. All of these portrayals have greatly influenced Guatemalan women. According to Zoila Mercedes,  the standards of the world for women are seriously affecting how Methodist women in Guatemala see themselves in Christ, as well as compounding existing patriarchal views on the role of women in the home and in wider society.

To help Guatemalan women deepen their knowledge of who they are in Christ, the Federation of Methodist Women in Guatemala organised a three day conference for Methodist women in Guatemala, inviting Carolyn Lawrence, vice-president of the Methodist Church in Britain,  as a speaker on the topic of Christian women’s identity and role. Carolyn shared a message on the well-known passage in Proverbs 31 on the virtuous women. She shared how with the help of the Holy Spirit, all women can be transformed and liberated from worldly values so that they may fulfil their God given potential, regardless of their personal circumstances. They might be homemakers, they may be married or single, they may have children or grandchildren, they may be in paid employment or be in active ministry. Whatever their circumstances, each and every women is precious to God and has a unique role to play in God’s kingdom. This session was attended by over 30 women from around Guatemala and included worship and prayer.