Ordination of Women within the African Methodist Episcopal Church

Thesis Statement
Women broke through the stained-glass ceiling of the A.M.E church to attain ordination and rose to the episcopacy because of their struggles
Abstract
This research study analyses and provides an account of the role that black women played in the AME church in the quest to break the stained-glass ceiling and achieve equal rights and status with their male counterparts in the leadership and service of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. The research gives an account of the abilities and skills that women brought into the church service and the factors that made it possible for them to overcome the struggles through perseverance and resilience. The research gives an account of the first women to assume the leadership of AME church giving a clear account of their journey, struggles, and efforts towards equality in the church. The research investigates the roles played by AME church women in curving out themselves for the bishopric and the journey to achieving this position[footnoteRef:1]. [1: White and Ahera. Women of power, sisters of faith: A case study of the women bishops of the African Methodist Episcopal church.]
Introduction
The AME (African Methodist Episcopal) church happens to be the largest religious denomination for African Americans living in the United States[footnoteRef:2]. The AME church was started in Pennsylvania, Philadelphia by Americans of African heritage2. The church was begun in 1816 with its name clearly indicating the foundation and struggle that the African American people had to go through as slaves and minorities in the American society. Authors like Richard Robert Wright[footnoteRef:3] capture the biographies of outstanding black women and men who worked as laymen and ministers in the process of establishing the AME church. It was the labor and industry of these outstanding men and women for close to 160 years that made it possible for the AME church to become what it is today. Historians have documented theological, historical, legal, sociological, and such like matters in relation to the African Methodism as well as the general Christian church2. [2: Celucien Joseph, “African Methodist Episcopal Church.” In Multicultural America] [3: Richard Robert Wright, the Encyclopedia of the African Methodist Episcopal Church.]
AME Church vision has always been consistent throughout existence. The church is known for being a strong service oriented and social institution and spiritual community of believers[footnoteRef:4]. The history of the church in Philadelphia is characterized by numerous financial and legal difficulties overcome by the congregation. Pastor Allen was a perpetual supporter of the AME Church to its success and through the journey of overcoming the challenges. In close to about a hundred years the church would blossom to become the social center characterized by efficiency. The ostracized African Americans and the poor in society would congregate in this church in mutual charity, human sympathy and encouragement as they battled for a better life4. [4: Michael Barga, African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) Church]
The evolution of the AME Church was from the eighteenth century from the free African American society4. The AME Church society was formed as a response to widespread discrimination against African American Methodists who placed a request for assistance from the Church’s charitable fund4. Prior to the official organization of the AME church in the year 1794, the first documented AME religious gathering was 9 years prior. Religious oppression was not very severe in Philadelphia for the black community as compared to other American cities. However, the imminent discrimination from white Methodists catalyzed the formation of a new congregation led by Richard Allen4.
For many decades women living in the western culture have been charged with the duty of defining religion, sustaining the spiritual and religious values in their families and teaching the children[footnoteRef:5]. The conventional setting in ancient times was that women had no place in church leadership roles. Numerous religious organizations have been known to deny women the chance to actively participate in its leadership. The Roman Catholic Church, for instance, has for many centuries been opposed to their women members assuming priestly duties and any other roles that have been traditionally perceived as belonging to men. In recent times these perceptions have been scrutinized increasingly both in protestant and Catholic churches. Protestant churches have been more welcoming to the increased role of women in the church even overturning the previous restrictions against women leadership. [5: Jacquelyn Grant, Perspectives on womanist theology. Atlanta: ITC Press. ]
Throughout history, women have tenaciously resisted the presence of discrimination in their church service. They have contended their rightful position with the men leaders in the quest to achieve inclusiveness in every aspect of leadership and service1. Modern women have continually contended with the restrictions currently present in the church and have fought for better inclusion. Due to traditional practices and social traditions some women have appeared to endorse the lack of inclusion by accepting the discriminatory policies. It is for this reason that the relentless women got no sympathy in their quest to force changes to the policies hence making it possible for male dominance in church service and leadership through many centuries. In recent times various denomination and religious institutions that continue to prohibit women from assuming active church responsibilities and leadership have gone through increasing disapproval and sanctioning especially from theologians and religious scholars. Some of the denominations have chosen to respond to these sanctions by enhancing women access in the churches. However, the Roman Catholic Church has continuously restrained women from accessing church leadership[footnoteRef:6]. [6: Gerard Mannion, "Changing the (Magisterial) Subject: Women Teaching-with-Authority—from Vatican II to Tomorrow"]
The African Methodist Episcopal Church happens to be one of the many churches that have experienced significant changes for women in the last few decades. Women in the AME Church have had to endure many obstacles and pressures in their quest to serve in the church. They have had to explain and defend their call into ministry and work extra hard with the knowledge that their failures and/or successes would fundamentally influence the perception of women serving in leadership in that church. AME church women knew that they had to be better than their male counterparts serving in similar positions for any chance to successfully claim their rightful position in the leadership and service of the church[footnoteRef:7]. The pioneer women preachers in the AME church had to endure the public censuring or go through worse encounters for attempting to go into ministry. Elizabeth got threats of arrest in the 18th century in Virginia for preaching to the public. Ordination was denied to Jarena Lee and her continued clamor for inclusion and recognition as a minister in the AME Church challenged. Another woman, Rebecca Jackson, got threats of death and accusations of undermining the authority of the AME Church. This notwithstanding, women from various denominations have never relented in their quest to achieve equality in the church leadership and gain power in church service. [7: Vashti M. McKenzie, Not without a struggle: leadership development for African American women in ministry]
There has been a long-lived social belief that women have no right or capacity to serve in church and ministry. The belief has been there for centuries. Women are perceived as being favorable on the issues of religion and spirituality. This said though, women clergy have been treated as inferior to their male clergy. Women in church leadership have been looked down upon ideally for being too weak and soft the handling of the daily obligations of the church[footnoteRef:8]. The women who sought full inclusion continuously refused to fall or concede to the cultural and social restraints imposed upon them. The stereotypes against women, in their judgment, came from the men and not from God. According to Prathia Wynn, the very same God responsible for making her a preacher was and is the same One who made her a woman. Prathia stated that in neither of the two occasions was God confused[footnoteRef:9]. The call was a concept that women used as a power tool of influence. They were convinced that in obeying the zeal and urge to serve they were being obedient to God hence pushing their way into ministry. To many women it was very fundamental to obey God instead of being overly concerned about women thoughts about whether or not they should be preaching the gospel[footnoteRef:10]. [8: Jacquelyn Grant, Perspectives on womanist theology. Atlanta, Ga: Interdenominational Theological Center] [9: Marcia Riggs, Plenty good room: women versus male power in the Black church] [10: Charles Eric Lincoln and Lawrence H. Mamiya, The Black church in the African American experience]
Women have remained a crucial part of the AME church although in positions and roles that were prescribed by others to them. The quest for greater involvement in the leadership of the church was apparently a natural increment to their participation although the efforts were dwarfed with continued and concentrated opposition from hell-bent on restricting their access to the powerful roles. Due to the scarcity of full time and paid leadership roles in the church institution a good number of women chose to increase their para-church roles through ministries that were not traditional as a way of satisfying their service to God. It was only a matter of time before women got the support they needed for an expanded mandate in the church and official duties. According to the account of McKenzie7 gradual growth to higher leadership positions was achieved through feminist support and other perspectives of women liberation. Initially women would serve in any role that was made available for them even when such roles did not require ordination into church ministry. As women continued to assume a number of church roles and gaining acceptance into quasi ministerial responsibilities, they started moving into conventional auxiliary appointments. In the meantime, women individually pushed for full ordination into ministry and some of them succeeded. Many of them never got ordination though10.
The motivation to accept the minor roles in anticipation for full ordination was their focus on service instead of ordination. Women did not pay regard to the restrictions against endorsement and formal recognition because their objective as to continue their role of making themselves better. The clamor for formal ordination did not relent though. By the time the 20th century was coming to an end close to all mainstream denominations had done away with the stringent restrictions against the ordination of women. In some minor instances, women were able to get ordained earlier. Some American Presbyterian churches began ordaining women formally in the later days of the 19th century7. Soon after the Presbyterian Church started ordaining women the Episcopal Church began ordaining their women into ministry. In actual sense the Episcopal Church ordained 11 women in the year 1974 although the ordination was not viewed as regular hence was not recognized since at the time women were not allowed official ordination.
Recently enough, in the year 2006, a woman, Katherine Schori got elected as the Episcopal Church’s presiding bishop. This made her the ranking leader of the entire episcopal denomination[footnoteRef:11]. Although white women succeeded in breaking the stained-glass ceiling long before the black women ever did, they eventually succeeded in doing so. European American churches were more welcoming to women who wished to join ministry from the beginning of 1800. The AME church ordained its first woman into ministry in 1948. There are recorded instances where white denominations ordained black women into ministry before these rights were accessible in the black churches. Pauli Murray was the first female priest of an African American heritage to become priest in the year 1977 in the Episcopal Church. [11: Neela Banerjee, “A Woman Is Installed as Top Episcopal Bishop]
Women had come up with a way of participating in the church leadership responsibilities long before the limitations against their involvement were lifted hence establishing a norm that would become official today[footnoteRef:12]. Although women were not allowed the opportunity or attention in their quest to preach the gospel or in their attempt to assume leadership roles in the church, through determination and relentless efforts they eventually succeeded in the cultivation of new traditions of participation and service in the denomination notwithstanding official restraint from male dominated leadership. For most women in the past ordination was not their main goal, service was. The women who felt the urge to preach in the 19th century got into ministry without paying any particular attention or desire to get ordained. This is partly because most of their male counterparts also got into active ministry during the same period with only a license even without ordination[footnoteRef:13]. [12: Micheline R. Malson, Black women in America: social science perspectives] [13: Carol M. Nore?n, The woman in the pulpit]
Early women continued to express their desire to get into ministry and continued working as evangelists, missionaries, and exhorters without protesting limitations within which they were forced to operate. To some the urge to put in effort to execute the work of God was more pressing than the need to get approval from people and the church. This was an attitude a good number of women carried with them concluded that God, at the right time, would champion the process of giving them the satisfaction they needed. Women such as Jarena Lee placed petitions to be given the license to practice her preaching although the denial never stopped them from persistently pursuing their call7. Jarena continued with preaching, exhortation, and evangelism for a long time. Smith, An AME Church member, never indicated as having approached the leadership of her denomination for ordination or recognition. Smith continued to enjoy her work of evangelism though[footnoteRef:14][footnoteRef:15]. According to the account of Amanda Smith the ordination question never came up[footnoteRef:16]. Amanda did not think of ordination as anything remarkable or admirable. She believed that the Lord would handle the issue in his own way without having to intervene in any way. [14: Daniel Alexander Payne, History of the African Methodist Episcopal Church.] [15: Daniel Alexander Payne and C. S. Smith, History of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. ] [16: Amanda Smith, An autobiography: the story of the Lord's dealings with Mrs. Amanda Smith, the colored evangelist; containing an account of her life work of faith, and her travels in America, England, Ireland, Scotland, India, and Africa as an independent missionary.]
In her autobiography Amanda Smith continues to state that she would stand still and witness God overruling the devices of men and assert his ultimate and sovereign will. Other women were of the same view. This continued until she experienced suspicion and disrespect due to her sanctification claims. In many instances she was not permitted to worship as she would have wanted. The coming of a new preacher unsettled the status quo. The minister was very disapproving and critical Amanda Smith. This was unlike anything she had ever experienced with her former ministers. The new Reverend ridiculed her badly on his maiden pulpit speech16. The minister spoke about her with contempt and rubbished her claims of sanctification. Eventually Amanda Smith had to leave the Episcopal Church to New York’s Union Church. Albeit the struggles women persistently developed their functional church leadership and service roles from the 18th century to the 19th century. Women started becoming strong managers, teachers, and administrators. In the church they became strong revival leaders, missionaries, and educators.
Women had to endure the obstacles that came their way including public sanctions and threats to their lives. During the 19th century the liberation and inclusion efforts championed by the black women were evidently paying off. By this time women were increasingly becoming prayer leaders, exhorters, and preachers in their local churches. Women assumed more active leadership roles in their churches. Several women became deaconesses and missionaries. The deaconesses had to report to pastors in charge, church board, and superintendent or to their bishops. This said though the ordained women had more autonomy in the church than before. Church women today enjoy great satisfaction in the church responsibilities and as leaders of autonomous women groups within the church. Although African American women have better control and power within the AME church some influential church areas are still under the control of men and women have to seek the approval of men or negotiate for support from their male counterparts.
Women status in the church and the society has been problematic considering their responsibility in the liberation of the AME church and their fight for justice and equality in the American society. The black women have been subjected to the ungodly and barbaric acts of aggression from their churches in history. The gender biases and sexual discrimination has been used to limit the role women play in churches. Despite all this the efforts from women have indeed paid off. Women won ordination rights after centuries of fighting, persistence and resilience. Following the achievement of ordination rights, the African Methodist Episcopal Church introduced the doctrine of prohibiting women from ever becoming Bishop in the episcopacy leadership hierarchy. There was no rule that barred women from becoming Bishop although the traditions and practices espoused then limited the chances of women ever assuming that office.
One hundred and thirty years was the approximate time it took for women to conquer the battle for ordination and another 52 years to achieve final authority and equality in the Episcopal Church. The election of women into episcopacy in the years 2000 and 2004 at a general conference marked the beginning of radical evolution for women in the church1. The new order was expected to impact greatly on the policies of the charge with respect to the empowerment of women for service and leadership. Since a number of women are serving in highly ranking positions in the Episcopal Church the stained-glass ceiling is finally shuttered.
In conclusion women have struggled at many levels to gain equality and justice. Socially, economically, and politically women have been looked down upon, stereotyped, sexualized, and discriminated. With women achieving ordination and episcopacy in the AME Church the African American woman was expected to freely exercise evangelism, missionary work, priesthood, and exhortation responsibilities without limitation. There is still a lot to be done to achieve equality for the black woman in the Episcopal Church but it is worth taking note that a lot has improved since the Episcopal Church begun in1816.




















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