In 1970, the first woman was ordained a Lutheran pastor.

In 1972, the first woman was ordained a Reform rabbi.

In 1974, the first woman was ordained an Episcopal priest.

Many other faith traditions can also mark when they first accepted women ministers (though others still do not).

“I am really grateful for those who went before me and who paved the path for me and made it way easier for me,” said Janine Shearer, pastor of Emanuel Lutheran Church in Napoleon, Ohio. “I can’t imagine having to be the ones to be the first, so I’m grateful for those who have been the first.”

In both churches Pastor Shearer has served at — first in the village of Convoy near Van Wert, Ohio, and now in Napoleon — she was not the first woman pastor. Even in her more conservative part of northwest Ohio, Pastor Shearer said, about half of Lutheran clergy members are women.

For her seminary experience about 10 years ago and Pastor Brenda Peconge’s in the ’90s, they both estimated an even split of students studying for ministry, if not even a majority women.

“There were more older women, interestingly, at that time,” said Pastor Peconge, of Grace Lutheran Church in Toledo. “I think they were just realizing that it was a place for them as well. But in seminary, we were equally valued, and I never felt that we were approached differently or taught differently.”

Rabbi Lisa Delson, of Temple Shomer Emunim in Sylvania, similarly said that 70 percent of students in her rabbinical school were women. There are more than 800 ordained women rabbis in Reform Judaism, she said, but they remain about one-third of the Reform rabbinate.

“I don’t feel like I’ve been discriminated against; I don’t believe my job opportunities have been diminished because of my gender,” Rabbi Delson said. “But I know that generations of women rabbis before me have had that experience.”

Called to serve

Many of these women didn’t consider being a clergy person until they encountered their first female minister. For some, that encounter was at a young age; for others, it wasn’t until they were older.

“I found out that I was baptized by a woman. So it never was outside of my understanding of what I could do,” Pastor Shearer said. At age 8, a female pastor told her she should be a pastor, and again in high school, a female intern encouraged her to consider going to seminary.

Rabbi Delson hadn’t thought about becoming a rabbi until her temple had its first female rabbi.

“It was really a case of having the example to know that I could also do that,” she said. “I didn’t know that women could do it, or that they would want to do it. And it turned out that you can live a deeply Jewish life, have a family, and be be a part of a community.”

That’s a common hesitation about women clergy: “They feel that women cannot take care of their home and balance ministry,” said Bishop Pat McKinstry of Worship Center of Toledo.

Bishop McKinstry started her ministry career at age 11, soon becoming a licensed Church of God in Christ missionary and evangelist. The denomination does not allow women to be pastors. She served the United Methodist Church for 19 years before going independent in 2008. Today, Bishop McKinstry sits on the board of the Joint College of African-American Pentecostal Bishops, which is primarily male.

She’s felt supported among the many male and female pastors in Toledo. In times where she might feel intimidated or disrespected, Bishop McKinstry said she leans into her calling.

“We have the grace to be a woman,” she said. “I’m still going to remain who God made me and what God made me.

“Whether you’re male or female, just be who you are and walk the way that you’ve been called,” she continued. “Just do the ministry and let your work speak for you.”

Karen Do’on Weik, priest and co-founder of the Buddhist Temple of Toledo, said there weren’t many women teachers, if any, when she began her Zen training.

“In Zen, famously, it doesn’t matter if you’re male or female. The practice is the same. … Same training. Same experience,” she said. “You keep your focus on what’s happening for you internally. There wasn’t a lot of concern about, ‘There’s no women here in leadership.’ It was more like, ‘I have to awaken. I have to realize myself. I have to do this impossible thing.’”

As she rose into positions of power and being in relationship with others, not just with herself, her gender and ways of seeing the world would play a greater role in certain dynamics, she said.

Reverend Weik was initially studying to be an Episcopal priest. She was raised Roman Catholic, but couldn’t go on to be clergy. “It’s like a dead end; the road just stops. So you have to go somewhere else,” she said.

The ordination of women as priests or deacons is not recognized by the Roman Catholic Church. Church teaching that ordaining women is not aligned with Scripture and tradition is rooted in the idea that Jesus called men as his apostles.

Struggles and strength

While they hesitated to conform to gender norms, Rabbi Delson and Pastor Peconge expressed ways a woman clergy member might relate or interact differently with her congregation than a man would.

Women are perceived as more nurturing, compassionate, and empathetic listeners, they said. Since she’s gone through similar family and other life experiences as members of her congregation, Rabbi Delson said other women feel more comfortable opening up to her.

Women “bring in that instinct of a mother,” Bishop McKinstry added, but emphasized that all people are given individual gifts to support their roles in ministry.

Meanwhile, Pastor Peconge said people are much more likely to comment on a woman’s hair, clothing, or family. “That might be one of those lingering vestiges of not quite knowing what to do with women in that role,” she said.

Some religious sects continue to not allow the ordination of women, such as the Catholic and Orthodox churches, the Southern Baptist Convention, the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, Orthodox Judaism, and Islam.

Even in denominations that do allow women clergy, “there is still some level of reluctance,” Pastor Peconge said.

Deliverymen will sometimes ask for “the real pastor” when she comes to the door, she said. And in church leadership circles, “[Men] will be ‘Pastor So-and-so,’ and I'll just be Brenda.”

Some Jewish men cannot shake hands with women, so Rabbi Delson has been left uncomfortable in certain situations. There have been times where she’s been asked not to officiate a funeral or wedding because it’s not the “picture” of a rabbi they have in their mind, she explained.

Despite these challenges, there are growing opportunities for these women to find support.

Rabbi Delson is co-president of the Women’s Rabbinic Network, which offers resources for Jewish professionals and advocates for Jewish women. The entire senior staff at the temple is run by women, which she said is “very strengthening and empowering.”

Pastor Peconge is part of a recently formed interdenominational women’s clergy group, which is a place for women clergy members to process their unique position together.

Tiffany Lewis, a Toledo life coach and daughter of two ministers, launched in 2023 the First Ladies Network to support lady pastors and pastors’ wives.

The top challenges these women experience are feeling lonely, being overlooked, and finding the strength to tap into their gifts, Lewis said. So, she aims to give them the tools to carry out their calling through conversations around leadership, intentionality, growth, trust, love, and investing in oneself. “It’s a nice safe haven for them,” she said.

First Published March 20, 2025, 11:00 a.m.