This week in Christian history: Synod of Pistoia, first US female minister ordained, Spanish inquisitor assassinated

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor Sunday, September 15, 2024

Antoinette Brown Blackwell ordained – Sept. 15, 1853

Antoinette Louisa Brown Blackwell (1825-1921), the first woman in the United States to be ordained in a Protestant denomination. | Public Domain

This week marks the anniversary of when Antoinette Brown Blackwell, a women’s rights activist and author, became what is believed to be the first ordained female minister in the United States.

Blackwell was ordained a minister at the Congregational Church in Butler and Savannah, New York, dividing her time among ministry work, family life and social activism.

“Antoinette remained active in the ministry all her life. She was a prolific writer of philosophical, social and religious treatises and an author of eight books,” noted the Antoinette Brown Blackwell Society.

“A tireless advocate for women’s rights, Antoinette Brown Blackwell was friends with suffragists Susan B. Anthony, Lucy Stone, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. She was also active in the abolitionist cause, but always considered herself primarily a minister of God’s word.”