Home › Episcopal women in ministry envision an outward-looking church

Episcopal women in ministry envision an outward-looking church

Episcopal women in ministry envision an outward-looking church

By staff writers
5 Oct 2006

Episcopal women in ministry envision an outward-looking church

-05/10/06

As the Episcopal Church in the USA prepares to receive Katherine Jefferts Schori as its first woman Presiding Bishop in November this year, a pioneering gathering of women in Anglican ministry was told that ìThe church is here to be a voice of justice-making ... of compassion, of peace, of reconciliation.î

Expansive visions of what the Episcopal Church might become echoed through a discussion at the ëImagine: Claiming & Empowering Ordained Women's Leadershipí conference, writes Mary Frances Schjonberg for Episcopal News Service.
.
Inclusion, healing and hope for the world, ministering outside of a hierarchical system while transforming that system, and overcoming obstacles and fears were themes heard in those visions.

The session was part of the first church-wide gathering of ordained women in the 32 years since women were admitted to the orders of priest and bishop. The conference, which also includes some lay presenters, runs until 6 October 2006 at the Kanuga Conference Centre in Hendersonville, North Carolina.

Presenters at the session included House of Deputies president Bonnie Anderson; retired Episcopal Divinity School professor Carter Heyward; Episcopal Church Black Ministries Missioner Angela Ifill; and Dean Tracey Lind of Trinity Cathedral in Cleveland.

Presiding Bishop-elect Katharine Jefferts Schori responded to the presentations and received a warm reception.

Carter Heyward told the gathering that the priesthood of all believers is a call to help one another.

"It's the work of healing. It's the work of liberation. It's what we're put here by our maker to do; to be a priesthood of believers, to be not primarily focused on ourselves but sharing a passion - and by passion, I mean energy as well as a willingness to suffer - with and for the world," she said.

Concluded Heyward: ìThe church doesn't exist for itself, we all know that. We're here in the world, for the world. The church is here to be a voice of justice-making ... of compassion, of peace, of reconciliation.î

[Also on Ekklesia: Joy greets the first-ever Anglican woman leader; First female Anglican leader prepares to weather the storm - by Simon Barrow; Anglican women worldwide thrilled at new US Episcopal head; US Episcopal Church turns down ban on gay bishops; Ecumenism not hit by woman presiding bishop, say observers; Archbishop sympathises with those fed up with Anglican rows; Divided opinion on the meaning of ECUSA stance on gay bishops; Archbishop of Canterbury rejects politicking over Anglican covenant]

Episcopal women in ministry envision an outward-looking church

-05/10/06

As the Episcopal Church in the USA prepares to receive Katherine Jefferts Schori as its first woman Presiding Bishop in November this year, a pioneering gathering of women in Anglican ministry was told that ìThe church is here to be a voice of justice-making ... of compassion, of peace, of reconciliation.î

Expansive visions of what the Episcopal Church might become echoed through a discussion at the ëImagine: Claiming & Empowering Ordained Women's Leadershipí conference, writes Mary Frances Schjonberg for Episcopal News Service.
.
Inclusion, healing and hope for the world, ministering outside of a hierarchical system while transforming that system, and overcoming obstacles and fears were themes heard in those visions.

The session was part of the first church-wide gathering of ordained women in the 32 years since women were admitted to the orders of priest and bishop. The conference, which also includes some lay presenters, runs until 6 October 2006 at the Kanuga Conference Centre in Hendersonville, North Carolina.

Presenters at the session included House of Deputies president Bonnie Anderson; retired Episcopal Divinity School professor Carter Heyward; Episcopal Church Black Ministries Missioner Angela Ifill; and Dean Tracey Lind of Trinity Cathedral in Cleveland.

Presiding Bishop-elect Katharine Jefferts Schori responded to the presentations and received a warm reception.

Carter Heyward told the gathering that the priesthood of all believers is a call to help one another.

"It's the work of healing. It's the work of liberation. It's what we're put here by our maker to do; to be a priesthood of believers, to be not primarily focused on ourselves but sharing a passion - and by passion, I mean energy as well as a willingness to suffer - with and for the world," she said.

Concluded Heyward: ìThe church doesn't exist for itself, we all know that. We're here in the world, for the world. The church is here to be a voice of justice-making ... of compassion, of peace, of reconciliation.î

[Also on Ekklesia: Joy greets the first-ever Anglican woman leader; First female Anglican leader prepares to weather the storm - by Simon Barrow; Anglican women worldwide thrilled at new US Episcopal head; US Episcopal Church turns down ban on gay bishops; Ecumenism not hit by woman presiding bishop, say observers; Archbishop sympathises with those fed up with Anglican rows; Divided opinion on the meaning of ECUSA stance on gay bishops; Archbishop of Canterbury rejects politicking over Anglican covenant]

del.icio.us  Digg it  Tailrank  Reddit  Newsvine  Now Public  Technorati  StumbleUpon  Facebook
Creative Commons LicenseThis work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0 England & Wales License. Although the views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent the views of Ekklesia, the article may reflect Ekklesia's values. If you use Ekklesia's news briefings please consider making a donation to sponsor Ekklesia's work here.