This article is within the scope of WikiProject Biography, a collaborative effort to create, develop and organize Wikipedia's articles about people. All interested editors are invited to join the project and contribute to the discussion. For instructions on how to use this banner, please refer to the documentation.BiographyWikipedia:WikiProject BiographyTemplate:WikiProject Biographybiography
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Women's History, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of Women's history and related articles on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.Women's HistoryWikipedia:WikiProject Women's HistoryTemplate:WikiProject Women's HistoryWomen's History
Mary Simpson (priest) is part of WikiProject Anglicanism, an attempt to better organize information in articles related to Anglicanism and the Anglican Communion. If you would like to participate, you can edit the article attached to this page, or visit the project page, where you can join the project and/or contribute to the discussion.AnglicanismWikipedia:WikiProject AnglicanismTemplate:WikiProject AnglicanismAnglicanism
This article is within the scope of WikiProject United States, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of topics relating to the United States of America on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the ongoing discussions.
This article is within the scope of the Women in Religion WikiProject, a collaborative effort to improve Wikipedia's coverage of Women in religion. If you would like to participate, you can visit the project page, where you can join the project and see a list of open tasks.Women in ReligionWikipedia:WikiProject Women in ReligionTemplate:WikiProject Women in ReligionWomen in Religion
The first woman to be regularly ordained in the American Episcopal church was Jacqueline Means (who also needs an article). She was ordained on January 1, 1977. See [1] and [2], for example. Mary Simpson and several other women were also ordained in January 1977 shortly after Jacqueline Means, and the irregular ordinations of several women prior to 1977 were also regularized later that month. I've changed the lead accordingly. Note also that NYT obituary does not say that she was the first woman. Nor do the other sources in the article.Voceditenore (talk) 06:37, 30 July 2011 (UTC)[reply]
Ooops. I must have been looking at an old version of the article. It's already fixed. Anyhow, I'll be away for the next month but am leaving useful links here for anyone who wants to expand the article and/or add some of them to External links. They provide information on her early life and on her life in the Order of Saint Helena. She never stopped being a nun, even though she became a priest as well
Writngs by Mary Simpson
OSH and Change. The Rev. Canon Mary Michael Simpson, OSH. Paper for the History of Women Religious Conference delivered June 19, 2001 at Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
"Dual Thrust". Mary M. Simpson. Women's Studies Quarterly, Vol. 21, No. 1/2, Spirituality and Religions (Spring - Summer, 1993), pp. 153-158 (first page readable without a subscription)
"Vocational and Pastoral Aspects" Mary Michael Simpson in Yes To Women Priests (Bishop Hugh Montifiore ed.). Mayhew-McCrimmon Ltd., 1978. Republished on womenpriests.org with permissions. Links to the other chapters in the book on the same website are here
Bangor Daily News - Jun 7, 1979 via UPI on her being the first woman ever to be nominated for Bishop (she was beaten out by the male candidate).
I also have a subscription-only copy of her entry in Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia. If anyone wants me to email them a copy before I leave on Tuesday, drop a note an my talk page and make sure your email is enabled. Voceditenore (talk) 07:50, 30 July 2011 (UTC)[reply]
