The Lived Experiences of Women in Christian Ministry in Canada

Abstract

The entrance of women into ordained ministry positions is a relatively new phenomenon in the North American Christian church, and has yet to be given adequate scholarly attention. This thesis probes the experiences of several pioneering women, presenting both the substantial and theoretical contributions emerging from a qualitative study of female pastors ministering in Protestant congregations across Canada. Data collection and analysis were approached through the lens of symbolic interactionism and grounded theory. The main findings emerging from 44 qualitative, in-depth interviews have been organized into three distinct papers to constitute a sandwich dissertation. The first paper outlines how some women experience a “call” to ministry and how this change in trajectory impacts their identity and constructions of the past, while the second two papers address different facets of performing the pastoral role once within it. Paper 2 explores the dilemmas women encounter in the area of clothing and appearances, a concern many of the women identified as influencing their performance of the pastoral role. Paper 3 explores in greater depth the ways women feel they perform the pastoral role differently than their male counterparts, and raises questions about the impact this may have on changing the role in the future. Taken together, the three papers contribute to a broad range of debates in the theoretical literature about key facets of the human experience, including: changing career trajectories, role making and performance of self, and microlevel influences on institutional change. The dissertation also encourages a new direction for sociological research – human interactions with the divine.