The role of women in the church has evolved over the years.

While the occupation of pastor is still a predominately male field, women have made great gains in entering the profession.

While certain denominations and people have not and may never accept women in the pulpit, others have begun to see the number of women grow.

New pastor at Hawkins United Methodist Church Sally Bevill said the Methodist church has been ordaining women for 50 years.

“While it’s still not probably 50/50, it’s so much better than it was when I started 26 years ago,” Bevill said. “The United Methodist Church just selected bishops and we elected more female bishops than we ever have on one election.”

She said a woman replaced her in her previous church on the coast, and she herself is replacing a woman at Hawkins.

“Usually we’re the first female, but now for the first time churches are starting to experience female being followed by a female,” she said.

This has been a benefit to the women, she said, because they don’t have to break down barriers as much and are more readily accepted. However, she said the local Methodist ministers meet for a weekly luncheon and she is the only female at the table at this time.

“I’ve always had a wonderful, close support group of female clergy, and I’m looking forward to meeting the ones who are in this area,” she said. “And it doesn’t just have to be Methodist.”

Linda Sweezer of House of Peace Worship Church said she has been in the ministry for 21 years.

“This is what I was created to do and I love it,” she said.

While at first she wasn’t sure God was truly calling her, she finally realized she was meant to preach.

“I tried to have a conversation with God to make sure he knew that he wasn’t suppose to use women, and once he made it clear to me I had the facts wrong, I began to do my own research, and I began to understand a lot of things,” Sweezer said.

She said God has always used women even though society has shunned women in some areas.

“What I found out is that women have always preached the Gospel,” Sweezer said, as she also referenced Galatians 3:28. “We’re all one in Christ Jesus.”

She was licensed and ordained in the Baptist church; however, House of Peace is nondenominational, and she is open to preach in any denomination.

“It’s not about what denomination you’re in, it’s about embracing Jesus Christ,” she said.

Sweezer said both men and women leaders are needed for a healthy and whole church.

“It’s important to have both perspectives. It makes a church balanced,” she said.

Beth Palmer at The Church of the Holy Trinity said many people don’t accept women in the ministry based on certain scriptures in the Bible.

“Jesus never said that, and we know that there were women following Jesus from the get go,” she said.

Palmer, who started at Holy Trinity in June 2012, is the first woman rector at the church. She said she has faced situations where people have told her they didn’t want a woman at their church — even women themselves.

“It’s not necessarily just the guys who are uncomfortable with women as pastors,” she said.

In the beginning of her career, Sweezer was hurt by the adversity she faced, but now days she doesn’t let it get to her.

“You can’t (hurt me) because I’m too focused,” she said. “I’ve been affirmed and confirmed by God so much.”

All three woman said they had encounter difficulties along the because of their gender and their occupation.

“I really don’t like to focus on that because I know that God’s bigger than that, and I believe that relationships are powerful tools for change,” she said.

Upon arrival to her first appointment 26 years ago in North Mississippi, the district superintendent met her in the parking lot of the church and told her the congregation was not going to accept her appointment because of her gender.

She decided early in her career she would not get angry with anyone for their opinion on her right to be in the ministry and instead she put her focus on God.

“If it’s a problem, then it is a problem I need to deal with as best I can with love,” Bevill said.