Radical Religious Women is a symposium offered by Indiana Voices for Women in West Lafayette, Indiana. The Rev. Jacqueline Means will join other women leaders to share stories about their ministry and vision for the Church.
Sister Tahera Ahmad, a prominent Muslim leader, and Rabbi Sandy Sasso, the first woman ordained in the Jewish Reconstructionist movement, are the other presenters. The three speakers will also be part of a free conversation the same evening, titled The Power of Women’s Stories.
The Lafayette Journal & Courier writes about the upcoming event, and quotes Barbara Kerkhoff, orchestrator of Indiana Voices for Women:
“At least for me, hearing the different voices, stories and visions causes me to reflect on my own — how I experience my own role in religion and continue to integrate those stories with mine,” she said.
The symposium is a one-day event held on Wednesday from 1 to 4 pm at Temple Israel in West Lafayette, with the free evening session at a public library. Will you be in attendance? Do you have a similar event upcoming in your town or city?
Posted by David Streever





Where does Rev. Helen Havens in Texas stand if anyone knows?
Means was ordained in January of 1977, and she was the first woman ordained after women’s ordination was approved by General Convention in 1976. The Philadelphia 11 and Washington 4, of course, were the first women ordained, but they were done prior to GC’s approval and their ordinations, at the time, were considered irregular. No matter the precedence though, The Rev Means is true pioneer and role-model.
Jacqueline Means is not the first woman ordained priest in the Episcopal Church, unless you mean the first woman in Indiana. Please correct this. The first women ordained in this country were the Philadelphia 11 in 1974.
Hi Judith,
As Jon explains, she is the first ordained with the approval of GC; that’s why I specified by TEC. Although, I have a typo (forgot to capitalize The and Church in my headline!) Thanks for commenting.