Marjorie Swank Matthews (July 11, 1916 – June 30, 1986) was an American bishop of the United Methodist Church and the first woman to serve as a Methodist bishop.
Bishop Marjorie Matthews | |
|---|---|
| Church | United Methodist Church |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 1965 |
| Consecration | 1980 |
| Personal details | |
| Born | July 11, 1916 |
| Died | June 30, 1986 (aged 69) Grand Rapids, Michigan |
Early life
She was born July 11, 1916, in Onaway, Michigan, to Jesse Alonzo and Charlotte Mae (Chapman) Swank.[1] She married young and divorced after World War II.[1] She had one son, William Jesse Matthews.[2] She worked at Lobdell-Emery Manufacturing Company in Alma, Michigan to support herself and her son.[2]
Education
Matthews graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor's degree from Central Michigan University in 1967.[2] She then went on to receive a Bachelor of Divinity degree from Colgate Rochester Divinity School in 1970.[3] Completing her schooling at Florida State University, she received both a master's in religion and a doctorate in humanities in 1976.[2]
Ministry
While Matthews was completing her education, she served as an elder in churches in her home state of Michigan, as well as New York and Florida.[2] She was the second female district superintendent in the United Methodist Church.[2] She served as superintendent of the Grand Traverse District from 1976.[4]
Ordained ministry
During July 1980, the North Central Jurisdiction of United Methodist Church met for an annual conference.[5] There were only 23 female clergy in attendance out of 460 delegates.[5] The delegates in attendance represented the states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.[5] During the conference, there were 13 delegates, Matthews included, who were running for three bishop seats.[5] After twenty-nine ballots, two bishops were elected by acclamation on the thirtieth ballot at the North Central Jurisdictional Conference on July 17, 1980.[5] Matthews was elected the first woman bishop at the United Methodist Church North Central regional conference in Dayton, Ohio.[2] She served as bishop for the Wisconsin area for four years before retiring in 1984.[3] On June 30, 1986, Matthews died of breast cancer in Grand Rapids, Michigan.[5]