Living letters (June 9, 2024)

In 1876, Anna Oliver became the first woman to graduate from a Methodist seminary with a Bachelor of Divinity from Boston University School of Theology. After accepting her first call to a struggling church in New Jersey, she quickly increased membership by 500 percent, only to be replaced a year later by a male-ordained minister. Anna sought ordination within the Methodist Episcopal Church but faced staunch resistance. Eventually, she was...