Ordaining women as priests
in the Church of England
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Ordination of women as priests in the Church of England:
The General Synod of the Church of England voted in favor of the ordination of
women priests in 1992. The first group of 1000 women were ordained in 1994. About 470 male clergy left the church in protest
soon after; 58
subsequently returned. 1 Many
were accepted by the Roman Catholic Church even though
they were married. By 2005, some sources estimate that a total of 720 priests
had left.
Acceptance of women priests:
By late 2001, about 20% of the ordained clergy were
women. Stephen Bates, religious affairs correspondent of The Guardian,
assessed how completely women had been integrated
into the priesthood. Some female priests complained that they are
heavily discriminated against. Some claimed that they have been accused of
being Witches. Some male candidates for the
priesthood refused to be touched by female priests during
ordination, believing them to be tainted.
An organization, the Group for the Rescinding of the Act of Synod
(GRAS) reported that there were many reasons for this rejection: "...fear of conflict,
misogyny, the bishops' wish to present a united front to the world, a
devotion to the old boy network or, in some cases, to a closeted gay
network, laziness, indifference, an excessive concern about what Rome thinks
and a habitual stance of not taking women seriously." GRAS coordinator,
The Rev Mary Robins, said: "We live in a country which supports human
rights but has a state church which discriminates against women."
At the time that female ordination was approved, the synod made special
allowances for those clergy who were opposed to the action. Three "flying
bishops" were "nominated by the archbishops as provincial episcopal
visitors to undertake episcopal duties in those parishes who have petitioned
their bishop for alternative arrangements in the light of their opposition to
the ordination of women." GRAS wants these
arrangements rescinded.
Christina Rees, a member of the archbishops' council - the church's
executive - said: "There is deep prejudice against women and it seems to
be perfectly all right for certain people to behave towards women in ways
that would not be acceptable in other professions. They are called witches
and priestesses with the tribal, pagan connotations that implies."
In 2001, Vivienne Faull, the Provost of Leicester
Cathedral, was interviewed by The Telegraph. She was one of the first group of
women to be ordained in 1994. Some have suggested that she might become the
first female bishop of the Church of England. She commented on her experiences
in the seven years since she was ordained:
"If we received anonymous letters with
satanic or violent content, we took them straight to the police and we
received a fair number at Coventry."
"No allowances are made for family life. Many women priests have small
children or elderly relatives to care for, but this is never taken into
account. The jobs are shaped around the lives of men with wives who will
perform the role of entertaining guests, keeping home and providing meals."
"I think the priesthood will become a profession dominated by women,
particularly if the Church becomes more marginal," she says. "Men will be
less attracted to working in the Church because it offers less social
status. Women worry less about this. Also, being a good priest demands the
feminine traits of caring and nurturing. I predict that once initial doubts
about women clergy are dispelled, parishes will actively seek women as their
priests." 3
Current status:
As of the year 2000, there were about 1,000 congregations in the Church
of England who refused to accept the authority of women priests. 2 We are trying to get a current estimate of this number. They are
led by one of three "flying bishops" who guides conservative
congregations throughout England.
"Anglican Church of England Synod considers women bishops; Could be
further obstacle to future union of Christians," Archbishops.org, 2000,
at: http://archbishops.org/church.htm
Stephen Bates, "Church of England Takes Cautious Step Toward Female
Bishops. England's Anglican branch has resisted the trend toward women bishops
accepted in the U.S., Canada, and New Zealand," Guardian Unlimited,
2000-JUL-10, at: http://www.beliefnet.com/
