Sunday, October 12, 2008

Seeking the Ordination of women in Sydney

Anglican women renew push for ordination

Images of female priests were projected on to the walls of St Andrew's Anglican Cathedral in Sydney last night, after advocates of women's ordination were banned from meeting in the cathedral's square.

The Sydney Movement For The Ordination Of Women wanted to mark its 25th anniversary by meeting in the square of Australia's oldest cathedral, but says it was banned by the cathedral chapter and the Dean Phillip Jensen.

Instead, it projected pictures of some of Australia's 450 female Anglican priests on to the cathedral's sandstone walls.

But none of the women lead churches in the city's diocese, because it refuses to ordain female priests.

The group's convener, Patricia Brennan, says the diocese has systematically suppressed debate on the issue, but the group has vowed to again push it to the top of the church's agenda.

She says 50 women have left Sydney to be ordained in other Anglican dioceses in the past 16 years.


2 comments:

Lynne said...

And this Sydney Anglican woman, and middle-agede recent theology graduate, has just posted off an enquiry email to join MOW.

The oppression here is not just functional and technical, it is very spiritual, and an emotionally abusive environment for any woman who is gifted to teach. And of course it is just one symptom of a deeper malaise which we locals call Jensenism or Matthianism (Phillip Jensen, now Dean of the cathedral, and in charge of all ministerial appointments in the diocese, and brother to Archbishop Peter, was for many years the rector of St Matthias, and founder of the St Matthias press)

There are so many stories of what is going on here ..

Suzanne McCarthy said...

I wish you well. Yes, it is very oppressive, IMO. Stories here too. It is uneven because the Anglican Network includes both ordained women and those who are against ordained women.