wfn.org | [UMNS-ALL-NEWS] UMNS# 583 *REVISED*-Church marks 50th anniversary of

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Editors: This revision clarifies the number of women bishops in the
church who are active and retired.

Church marks 50th anniversary of full clergy rights for women

Oct. 18, 2005

NOTE: Photographs are available at http://umns.umc.org.

A UMNS Feature
By Vicki Brown*

On May 4, 1956, in Minneapolis, the General Conference of the Methodist
Church approved full clergy rights for women. Half a century later, the
fruits of that action are the nearly 12,000 United Methodist clergywomen
who serve the church at every level, from bishops to local pastors.

A yearlong celebration of the 50th anniversary includes worship
services, books celebrating the lives of pioneering clergywomen and
writings of other clergywomen, special observances at annual
conferences, and a banquet and concert on Aug. 15 during the
International United Methodist Clergywomen's Consultation in Chicago,
Aug. 13-17.

"The decision forever changed the face of ordained clergy. Because of
the General Conference action, bishops were required to appoint every
pastor in good standing within the conference. The effect was that any
woman in full connection and in good standing would receive an
appointment," said the Rev. Mary Ann Moman, associate general secretary
of the Division of Ordained Ministry of the United Methodist Board of
Higher Education and Ministry.

"That was the first step in a long journey of acceptance for many
clergywomen. The church's celebration of this anniversary is a reminder
to all of us of both the joys and heartaches clergywomen experience in
the journey toward full acceptance in the church," Moman said.

Bishop Susan Morrison of the Albany (N.Y.) Area, episcopal liaison to
the task force planning the celebrations, says that while the conference
action opened an official door that was embarrassing to have closed,
change was slow. And the anniversary is a reminder of that, as well as a
celebration of the leadership and gifts of women clergy.

"In one way it reminds us that throughout history the church has not
always been open to diversity and inclusiveness," Morrison said.

The Revs. Grace Eloise Huck and Marion Kline, two of the first 27 women
accepted on probationary status in 1956, plan to be at the August
clergywomen's gathering. Both women were received into full connection
in 1958.

Both recalled simply following God's call.

"I didn't know I was a foremother. I never dreamed I'd see women like
this in the ministry. I only thought I was doing what God wanted me to
do with my life," said Kline, who is 94.

Kline, Huck, the Rev. Grace Weaver, and the Rev. Jane Ann Stoneburner
Moore - the only surviving women of those first 27 - all faced
discrimination and resistance in varying degrees.

"At one of my early churches, when the district superintendent told them
he was appointing a woman pastor, one of the men pounded the pew and
shouted, 'There will be no skirts in this pulpit while I'm alive!'" Huck
recalled. She added that the man became one of her staunchest
supporters.

Huck, 89, said the first clergywomen were women ministers, instead of
ministers who happened to be women. "You go in just as a person now.
It's not so unusual," she said.

Weaver, 96, did not consider where the church stood when she answered
her call. "I felt eventually the church will grow up. I just thought a
woman had a perfect right to be there," she said.

The Rev. Patricia Thompson, author of Courageous Past - Bold Future,
noted the path of clergywomen has been complex.

"Although women in the United Methodist tradition have been called to
preach since the early days of Methodism in England, and both the
Methodist Protestants and the United Brethren in Christ began ordaining
women as elders and granting them full clergy rights at the end of the
19th century, full clergy rights for women in the Methodist Church did
not come without a bitter struggle and often tremendous personal
sacrifice on the part of both women and men," Thompson said.

The struggle did not end in 1956, she said. "Many churches were still
not open to women, and women of color have had an even more difficult
time." Her book, published by the Board of Higher Education and Ministry
and available next May, recounts the stories of the women who were the
first to receive full clergy rights.

Still, clergywomen today serve at all levels, from pastors of churches
of all sizes to district superintendents to the episcopacy. Currently,
the church has 16 active and four retired bishops who are women.

"Women had to fight so hard to be accepted as clergy, and there are
still places where they are not accepted," said the Rev. Susan Ruach,
co-chair of the 50th Anniversary Task Force that is coordinating
celebrations. "We hope to celebrate the gains of clergywomen and
recognize the contribution they've made, while hopefully encouraging
women to see ministry as a possibility for themselves."

Many annual conferences have plans well under way. The Minnesota
Conference is working out details for a worship service on the actual
anniversary of the vote. The Detroit Conference Committee on the Status
and Role of Women interviewed women about the joys and challenges of
their ministry, then produced a DVD titled, "Celebrating 50 Years of
Women Ordained in Full Connection in The United Methodist Church." The
Southwest Texas Conference plans include a worship service at annual
conference, a video depicting the journey of women's ordination, and a
book about the history of women's ordination in the conference.

Ruach said worship services written by clergywomen around the United
States for local churches and conferences to use will be posted at
www.gbod.org/worship/50thanniversary and at www.ghbem.org/clergywomen.
In addition to Thompson's book, the Upper Room is publishing a
collection of writings of United Methodist clergywomen, Courageous
Spirit: Voices from Women in Ministry, available Dec. 1. And Huck has
published her autobiography, God's Amazing Grace, by Sand Creek Printers
in Spearfish, S.D.

The United Methodist Commission on the Status and Role of Women and the
Board of Higher Education and Ministry are working together to produce a
poster detailing 50 ways to observe the anniversary. It will be mailed
to all local churches.

Moore, 74, who had just finished seminary when the conference voted,
decided to apply for full clergy rights immediately.

"When I went to annual conference, I was sitting there with my
colleagues, and they could all vote, and I couldn't. I thought, I want
to be a full participant," Moore said.

Now a United Church of Christ minister, Moore believes women must still
enlarge their understanding of power and expand their vision with the
confidence that they can take on more.

"Not to take away from others," she said, "but to make the church truer
to the gospel."

# # #

*Brown is an associate editor and writer in the Office of
Interpretation, United Methodist Board of Higher Education and Ministry.

News media contact: Linda Green or Tim Tanton, (615) 742-5470 or
newsdesk@umcom.org.

********************

United Methodist News Service
Photos and stories also available at:
http://umns.umc.org

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