For over 170 years, The Wesleyan Church (TWC) has affirmed its long-standing commitment to equal opportunity for women to be ordained and serve in any and all ministerial and leadership capacities.
Beginnings
From its beginnings, TWC has championed the equality of women both in society and in God’s redemptive plan for humanity. In July 1848, the first Women’s Rights Convention was held in Seneca Falls, New York, at the Wesleyan Methodist Chapel.
In 1853, Reverend Luther Lee ordained Miss Antoinette Brown, a Congregationalist believed to be the first woman ever ordained in the modern era. Rev. Lee, not failing to recognize this historical event, stated in his introduction, “The ordination of a female, or the setting apart of a female to the work of the Christian ministry, is, to say the least, a novel transaction, in this land and age. It cannot fail to call forth many remarks, and will, no doubt, provoke many censures. As I have been called upon to deliver the discourse on the occasion, I should deem it out of place, tame and cowardly, for me to deliver an ordinary sermon setting forth the duties and responsibilities of a Christian minister, without taking hold of the peculiarity of the occasion, and vindicating the innovation which we this hour make upon the usages of the Christian World.”1 Rev. Lee’s sermon, “A Woman’s Right to Preach the Gospel,” was based on Galatians 3:28, KJV: “There is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.”
The call
“Over the years, daring women—single, married, and widowed—have pioneered churches, assisted struggling churches, and revived dying churches. They have gone into the ghettos where men feared to walk and pulled the “brands” from the fire. They fearlessly entered the red light districts and snatched prostitutes from their surroundings. They established homes for unwed mothers and refuges for homeless and degraded persons. They even ventured to assist in housing for the worn, weary, and aged workers of the Church. Much of their work took them from their familiar surroundings into mountains, the slums, the strongholds of slavery, and the battlegrounds of drugs, tobacco, and alcohol. They felt the call of God to take the gospel not only to all races and educational and economic levels in North America but also across the oceans to every nation.”2
Weakened resolve
Despite strengthening statements on equality and ministry calls of women over the ensuing years, we confess our inconsistencies in application and practice. Significant decreases and declines of women ministers surfaced in the 1950s and 1960s. Culture, inside and outside the church, pushed against the full inclusion and use of women leaders in subsequent years. We lament these days, years and decades of not living into the fullness of God’s kingdom expressed as women and men lead together.
Renewed commitment
Slow and steady change has been coming in recent years. And we are seeing the renewed commitment for women and men to work together.
The Wesleyan Church Headquarters, districts and local churches are pulling out chairs and extending invitations to women to become part of vital conversations and leading in increasing ways. In the last 20 years, women have taken their place in ministry to serve The Wesleyan Church as General Superintendent, general officers, General Board members, General Conference and district conference delegates, presidents of higher education institutions, district and assistant district superintendents, lead pastors in local churches and serving on ministry boards … and there is room to grow.
We, as your Wesleyan brothers and sisters, recognize, affirm, endorse and commit to walking with you as you live in obedience to God’s call.
In the words of Seth C. Rees, one of The Wesleyan Church founders: “Sisters, let the Holy Ghost fill, call and anoint you to preach the glorious Gospel of our Lord.”3
We invite you to explore and discover the rich history of women in ministry. The following resources are but a few available through the Wesleyan Archives/Historical Library and the broader Wesleyan Church family.
- A Wesleyan View of Women in Ministry, TWC’s position statement
- Brief History of Women in Ministry — The Wesleyan Church: A Brief History
- Celebrate Our Daughters: 150 Years of Women in Wesleyan Ministry
- Declaration of Sentiments, Women’s Rights Convention 1848
- The Church, the Truth and Women in Ministry
- Evangelical Roots of Feminism
- The Ordination of Antoinette Brown
- Wesleyan Holiness Women Clergy, Inc.
- Why Wesleyans Favor Women in Ministry
- Woman’s Right to Preach the Gospel, 1853, Rev. Luther Lee
- Women in Ministry: Challenging the Cultural Obstacles
- Women in Ministry Leadership, Kingswood Learn
- Women in the Holiness Movement
- Women’s Ministry Bibliography, resource list
Rev. Angela Alvarado is the assistant editor for the Communication and Administration Division of The Wesleyan Church, an ordained elder and graduate of Wesley Seminary, Marion, Indiana.
“Celebrating Our Daughters: 150 Years of Women in Wesleyan Ministry,” 2024, used by the permission of Wesleyan Publishing House: Fishers, Indiana.
