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Other Women Ministers from the Past
convictions. The Lanes sold their home and entered the ministry. Mr. Lane immediately
received a license to preach.
After two years, the Lanes moved to the Indiana Mission. Their lives were not
without pain. Their infant child died, and Mrs. Lane contracted a serious case of typhoid
fever. Nevertheless, they continued in the ministry. They worked in several states and
then returned to Michigan.
When the Michigan Conference issued a ministerial license to Mrs. Lane in 1878, she
became one of th e earliest Seventh-day Adventist women to receive such a license. Later
that same year, on October 7, her preaching license was renewed during the Michigan
Conference meetings. Since the General Conference Session was being held on the same
grounds simultaneously, it cannot be said that this licensing of a woman to preach was
carried out in a hidden corner of the young denomination. The wife of an ordained
minister, Ellen Lane had given proof of her own distinctive calling to the ministry.
Sometimes Mrs. Lane held meetings on her own. At other times she assisted her
husband. Just before Elder Lane was scheduled to start an evangelistic campaign in
Bowling Green, Ohio, he suffered a severe attack of diphtheria and sent for his wife.
Mrs. Lane opened the meetings; as her husband recovered, he spoke when he was able,
and she preached at the other services.
The Lanes were each conducting an evangelistic series in different parts of Ohio when
Mr. Lane became seriously ill. He was hesitant to let his wife know about his condition
because he did not want to interrupt her meetings. Finally he did consent for the message
to be sent. Unfortunately, he was more sick than he realized; he died almost immediately.
After Mrs. Lane had mourned the passing of her companion, she took up her ministerial duties alone. (“Notices—Eld. E.B. Lane,” Review and Herald (August 23, 1881); Bert
Haloviak, “Route to the Ordination of Women in the Seventh-day Adventist Church: Two
Paths,” March 18, 1985, unpublished paper, p. 8.)
Sarah A. Hallock (Mrs. John) Lindsey
Licensed 1872

A convert to Adventism, young Sarah Hallock wrote thoughtful theological questions
to the Review. During the Civil War or immediately afterward she married a young
Adventist lay minister, John Lindsey. The understanding that time was short brought
urgent requests from denominational leaders for wider participation in the work by lay
ministers. With this encouragement, Sarah Lindsey began preaching in 1867. Six people
were baptized as a result of her first meetings. Early in 1869 Sarah and John began
holding efforts together.
The Advent cause was beset with apostasy and moral problems during the late 1860s.
However, new strength in the form of the dynamic husband and wife preaching team of
Sarah and John Lindsey brought courage to church leadership.

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