Tag: Ordination of Women

Free Methodism, Free Methodist Deaconess Order, Free Methodist General ConferencesLeave a comment

The Shifting Rhetorical Narrative of Gender: 1894-1911 Part One

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I’ve written a lot on this blog about the 1890 and 1894 Free Methodist General Conference debates on women’s ordination. (I even have transcripts here if you would like to read the debates). However, the discussion did not end in 1894. Despite the 1894 General Conference choosing not to ordain women as elders or even deacons, more women, not less, became evangelists over the next decade. In 1894 there were 48 licensed women evangelists in the Free Methodist Church, and by 1904 there were 307. However, the number of women evangelists appointed to a circuit did not significantly increase. In … Continue reading The Shifting Rhetorical Narrative of Gender: 1894-1911 Part One

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Women’s responses at the 1890 General Conference

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The 1890 Free Methodist General Conference was the first general conference to have women delegates, which added tension to the debate about women’s ordination. Clara Wetherald of the East Michigan Conference and Anna Grant from North Indiana were seated delegates at the conference (Snyder, 2006). In the Passion of the Founders (2003), edited by Gerald Coates, Wetherald speaks up during the debate about women’s ordination. (Yet, Coates records no response on the issue from Grant. I am hoping a trip to the Free Methodist archives will revel that Grant also took a stance on the subject). After listening to her … Continue reading Women’s responses at the 1890 General Conference