The First Ordained Women in the Church of Sweden

On Palm Sunday 1960, three women knelt in front of an altar to be ordained as the first female priests in the Church of Sweden. During the 1960s, 54 women were admitted into the priesthood. This book tells the story of these pioneers through an analysis of their own personal narratives.

Viewed through the dual analytical lens of the theological concept of vocation and the social theorist Axel Honneth’s concept of recognition, these narratives provide a rich and complex picture of a groundbreaking reform that complements and challenges established historical narratives and contributes to the understanding of similar processes of change in other churches.

Frida Mannerfelt is an Associate Professor of Practical Theology at the Centre for Theology and Religious Studies, Lund University
Alexander Maurits is an Associate Professor of Church History at Lund University