Jacqueline Allene Means was an American

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

priest. On January 1, 1977, she became the first woman to be regularly

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

a priest in the

Episcopal Church in the United States of America The Episcopal Church (TEC), also known as the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America (PECUSA), is a member of the worldwide Anglican Communion, based in the United States. It is a mainline Protestant denomination and is ...

. The

Episcopal Church's General Convention The General Convention is the primary governing and legislative body of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. With the exception of the Bible, the ''Book of Common Prayer'', and the Constitution and Canons, it is the ultimate autho ...

had approved the

ordination of women The ordination of women to Minister of religion, ministerial or priestly office is an increasingly common practice among some contemporary major religious groups. It remains a controversial issue in certain religious groups in which ordination ...

to the priesthood in September 1976, and this had come into force on

New Year's Day In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Day is the first day of the calendar year, January 1, 1 January. Most solar calendars, such as the Gregorian and Julian calendars, begin the year regularly at or near the December solstice, northern winter ...

1977. Women had been ordained in 1974 and 1975 (the

Philadelphia Eleven The Philadelphia Eleven are eleven women who were the first women ordained as priests in the Episcopal Church on July 29, 1974, two years before General Convention affirmed and explicitly authorized the ordination of women to the priesthood. Ba ...

and the

Washington Four The Philadelphia Eleven are eleven women who were the first women ordained as priests in the Episcopal Church (United States), Episcopal Church on July 29, 1974, two years before General Convention of the Episcopal Church in the United States of ...

), but as this was without the approval of the General Convention, their ordinations were declared irregular. Rev. Means served as rector in

Plainfield, Indiana Plainfield is a town in Guilford Township, Hendricks County, Indiana, Guilford, Liberty Township, Hendricks County, Indiana, Liberty, and Washington Township, Hendricks County, Indiana, Washington townships, Hendricks County, Indiana, Hendricks ...

from 1986 until 1998. Since 1999, she has directed prison ministries in the Office of the Bishop for the Armed Forces, Health Services and Prison Ministries. In 2001, Rev. Means received an honorary degree from the

Church Divinity School of the Pacific Church Divinity School of the Pacific (CDSP) is an Episcopal seminary in Berkeley, California. It is one of the nine seminaries in the Episcopal Church and a member of the Graduate Theological Union. The only Episcopal seminary located in the ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Means, Jacqueline Living people 20th-century American Episcopal priests 21st-century American Episcopal priests Women Anglican clergy Year of birth missing (living people)