Eve Pitts (née Sewell) is a British priest who was the first black woman to be ordained as a

vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pr ...

in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

. She is known for being outspoken against discrimination. She is a supporter of

Emancipation Day Emancipation Day is observed in many former European colonies in the Caribbean and areas of the United States on various dates to commemorate the emancipation of slaves of African descent. On August 1, 1985, Trinidad and Tobago became the f ...

Personal life and education

Pitts was born in Jamaica and her parents, Kathleen and Stanley Sewell, moved to England in 1956. Her father worked in a chemical plant in Nottingham and died aged 35. Pitts initially attended a boarding school but came to England after her father died. She was a committed Christian from childhood, and taught in Sunday School when she was seven. She worked in the civil service for many years before responding to a call to ministry. She married Anthony Pitts, a civil servant, and they have a daughter and two sons. She trained at the Queen's Foundation in 1988.

Ministry

Pitts was ordained as a deacon in 1989. In 1994, Pitts was one of the first black women ordained priest in the Church of England, and went on to be the first black woman to become a vicar. She spent three years at her first church in

Bartley Green Bartley Green is a residential suburban area and electoral ward in Birmingham, England, south west of the city centre. The ward is part of the Birmingham Edgbaston constituency and is represented in parliament by Labour Co-operative MP Preet G ...

, Birmingham. She then moved to Saint Nicolas' church in

Kings Norton Kings Norton, alternatively King's Norton, is an area of Birmingham, England. Historically in Worcestershire, it was also a Birmingham City Council ward within the Government of Birmingham, England. The district lies 6.5 miles south-sout ...

, Birmingham. In 1997, after she had experienced being marginalised through sexist and racist attitudes for some time, she spoke about this during a service. This led to controversy and the

Bishop of Birmingham A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

asked her to resign. The Association of Black Clergy supported her. As a consequence, Pitts began ministry in a community hall and was then offered a new parish at Immanuel church in

Highter's Heath Highter's Heath (often Highters Heath) is a district and ward lying on the southern boundary of the city of Birmingham, UK. The district of Highter's Heath lies immediately east of the Maypole. The first recorded use of the name dates from 1495 ...

in mid-1998. Relationships became better in this new church and she stayed there for more than a decade. Among other things, Pitts and the congregation raised substantial amounts of money needed for repairs to the church building. In 2010 she moved to

Holy Trinity church Holy Trinity Church may refer to: Albania * Holy Trinity Church (Berat), Berat County * Holy Trinity Church, Lavdar, Opar, Korçë County Armenia * Holy Trinity Church, Yerevan Australia * Garrison Church, Sydney, South Wales, also known as ''H ...

in the inner city parish of Birchfield, in the

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...

diocese. This church building also needed repairs and was able to obtain funding from the

National Lottery Heritage Fund The National Lottery Heritage Fund, formerly the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), distributes a share of National Lottery funding, supporting a wide range of heritage projects across the United Kingdom. History The fund's predecessor bodies were ...

. She considers that history should be remembered and commemorated, including the transatlantic slave trade. Otherwise: Since 2015 she has held a series of commemorative services for remembrance of ancestors on the third Sunday in September. This follows from her study and prayer around racism and the legacy of slavery, including within the Church of England. Pitts is noted for being a "fierce critic" of the Church of England. She is also promoting recognition within the Church of England of 1 August as

, since it was the day that the

Slavery Abolition Act 1833 The Slavery Abolition Act 1833 (3 & 4 Will. IV c. 73) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which provided for the gradual abolition of slavery in most parts of the British Empire. It was passed by Earl Grey's reforming administrati ...

, the law which abolished slavery in Britain's overseas possessions, came into force in 1834.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pitts, Eve Living people Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century Church of England clergy Women Anglican clergy 20th-century English Anglican priests Alumni of the Queen's Foundation Jamaican clergy British clergy