List of the first 32 women ordained as Church of England priests

Last updated

On 12 March 1994, the first 32 women were ordained as Church of England priests. The service was officiated by Bishop Barry Rogerson at Bristol Cathedral. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5]

Contents

Rogerson ordained the women in alphabetical order, so Angela Berners-Wilson was the very first woman to be ordained. [6] [7] [8]

The youngest woman to be ordained was Karen MacKinnon at age 30, with Jean Kings being the second youngest. The oldest was 69. [9]

In 2004 the tenth anniversary of the ordinations was celebrated at Bristol Cathedral and, by then, one of the priests had died and 14 had retired. [10] [11]

The 32 women ordained on the day were (list copied from the order of service):

Ordination of women plaque, 2022, Bristol Cathedral Ordination of women plaque, Bristol Cathedral.jpg
Ordination of women plaque, 2022, Bristol Cathedral
  1. Angela Berners-Wilson, a university chaplain [7]
  2. Waveney Bishop
  3. Christine Clarke [9] [12]
  4. Judith Creighton
  5. Faith Cully
  6. Brenda Dowie
  7. Carol Edwards, of St Christopher's, Brislington [13] [14]
  8. Margaret Embry
  9. Annis Fessey
  10. Jan Fortune-Wood [7]
  11. Susan Giles [2] [10]
  12. Jane Hayward
  13. Jean Kings, part-time parish deacon who was also chaplain at University of the West of England [9]
  14. Karen MacKinnon, full-time parish deacon [9]
  15. Audrey Maddock
  16. Charmion Mann
  17. Helen Marshall
  18. Glenys Mills, Christ's Church, Clifton [13] [15] [16] [17]
  19. Jillianne Norman
  20. Clare Pipe-Wolferstan
  21. June Plummer
  22. Susan Restall, St Mary's, Yate [5] [13]
  23. Susan Rose
  24. Susan Shipp [14] [18]
  25. Margery Simpson[ citation needed ]
  26. Sylvia Stevens
  27. Judith Thompson
  28. Anita Thorne [2]
  29. Sheila Tyler [2]
  30. Pauline Wall
  31. Rosemary Dawn Watling, at the time a 61-year-old Anglican nun and deacon in a vicarage in Bristol [2] [7]
  32. Valerie Woods, Vicar of Wood End in Coventry [2] [10]

In 1994 a plaque was installed in Bristol Cathedral to mark these first 32 women ordained as priests in the Church of England. In 2022 it was replaced with a new plaque that listed the names of the women rather than only the names of the men who carried out the ceremony. Both plaques were carved in Welsh slate. The plaque is located on the north side of the nave where it meets the transept. [19] The women contributed to the cost of the original plaque. The new one, carved by Robyn Golden-Hann, was unveiled by the Bishop of Bristol, Vivienne Faull. [20]

The officiating bishop believed it would take 10 years before the first woman would be ordained as a bishop. [21] In fact, it took 21 years until Libby Lane became the first female bishop in the Church of England as Bishop of Stockport (a suffragan see in the Diocese of Chester) in January 2015 (announced on 17 December 2014). Lane had also been ordained as a priest in 1994. [22] The first woman to be appointed diocesan bishop was the Right Reverend Rachel Treweek, Bishop of Gloucester, appointed on 26 March 2015. [23] Treweek had been ordained as a priest in 1995.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holy orders</span> Sacraments in some Christian churches

In certain Christian denominations, holy orders are the ordained ministries of bishop, priest (presbyter), and deacon, and the sacrament or rite by which candidates are ordained to those orders. Churches recognizing these orders include the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Anglican, Assyrian, Old Catholic, Independent Catholic and some Lutheran churches. Except for Lutherans and some Anglicans, these churches regard ordination as a sacrament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ordination of women</span> Womens ordination in religious groups

The ordination of women to ministerial or priestly office is an increasingly common practice among some contemporary major religious groups. It remains a controversial issue in certain religious groups in which ordination was traditionally reserved for men.

Graham Douglas Leonard was an English Roman Catholic priest and former Anglican bishop. His principal ministry was as a bishop of the Church of England but, after his retirement as the Bishop of London, he became a Roman Catholic, becoming the most senior Anglican cleric to do so since the English Reformation. He was conditionally ordained to the priesthood in the Roman Catholic Church and was later appointed a monsignor by Pope John Paul II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anglican ministry</span> Leadership and agency of Christian service in the Anglican Communion

The Anglican ministry is both the leadership and agency of Christian service in the Anglican Communion. Ministry commonly refers to the office of ordained clergy: the threefold order of bishops, priests and deacons. More accurately, Anglican ministry includes many laypeople who devote themselves to the ministry of the church, either individually or in lower/assisting offices such as lector, acolyte, sub-deacon, Eucharistic minister, cantor, musicians, parish secretary or assistant, warden, vestry member, etc. Ultimately, all baptized members of the church are considered to partake in the ministry of the Body of Christ.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anglican Diocese of Armidale</span> Diocese of the Anglican Church of Australia

The Anglican Diocese of Armidale is a diocese of the Anglican Church of Australia located in the state of New South Wales. As the Diocese of Grafton and Armidale, it was created by letters patent in 1863. When the Anglican Diocese of Grafton was split off in 1914, the remaining portion was renamed Armidale, retaining its legal continuity and its incumbent bishop.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anglican Diocese of The Murray</span> Diocese of the Anglican Church of Australia

The Anglican Diocese of The Murray is located in the south-eastern region of South Australia. Founded in 1970 as part of the Province of South Australia, it takes in the Fleurieu Peninsula, Riverland, Adelaide Hills, Murraylands and the southern suburbs of Adelaide. In 2011 the diocese had 22 parishes or pastoral districts. The cathedral church of the diocese is the Cathedral of St John the Baptist, Murray Bridge. The most recent bishop is Keith Dalby, who has served from June 2019 but stepped aside in December 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barry Rogerson</span>

Barry Rogerson was the first Bishop of Wolverhampton from 1979 to 1985 and, from then until his retirement in 2002, the Bishop of Bristol. He holds Honorary degrees from Bristol & the West of England Universities. He was made a Freeman of the City and County of Bristol in 2003.

Angela Veronica Isabel Berners-Wilson is a Church of England priest and chaplain. She is considered to be the first woman to be ordained as a priest in the Church of England. She was chaplain at the University of Bath from 2004 to 2016, and is now rector of a multi-church benefice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ordination of women in the Anglican Communion</span> Women becoming Anglican clergy

The ordination of women in the Anglican Communion has been increasingly common in certain provinces since the 1970s. Several provinces, however, and certain dioceses within otherwise ordaining provinces, continue to ordain only men. Disputes over the ordination of women have contributed to the establishment and growth of progressive tendencies, such as the Anglican realignment and Continuing Anglican movements.

The Movement for the Ordination of Women (MOW) was the name used by organisations in England and Australia that campaigned for the ordination of women as deacons, priests and bishops in the Anglican Communion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rachel Treweek</span> Anglican bishop in England

Rachel Treweek is an English Anglican bishop who sits in the House of Lords as a Lord Spiritual.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rose Hudson-Wilkin</span> British Anglican bishop (born 1961)

Rose Josephine Hudson-Wilkin, is a British Anglican prelate, who serves as Suffragan Bishop of Dover in the diocese of Canterbury - deputising for the Archbishop - since 2019: she is the first black woman to become a Church of England bishop. She was previously Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons from 2010 to 2019, having trained with the Church Army before entering parish ministry.

The Anglican Group for the Ordination of Women to the Historic Ministry of the Church existed from 1930 to 1978. By research, education, publicity, and memorials to the church, it pushed the Church of England and the whole Anglican Communion to admit women to the historic three-fold ministry. By the time the organization disbanded in 1978, women had been ordained priests in four provinces of the Anglican Communion.

Judith Karen French is a British retired Anglican priest. From 2014 to 2022, she was the Archdeacon of Dorchester in the Diocese of Oxford.

Robert Wilfrid Springett is a British Anglican bishop. He has served as the Bishop of Tewkesbury since his consecration as a bishop on 30 November 2016. He previously served as the Archdeacon of Cheltenham in the same diocese from 2010.

Marion Elizabeth Mingins, was a British Anglican priest and former social worker. A canon residentiary of St Edmundsbury Cathedral from 1993 to 2002, she became the first Anglican woman to become a Chaplain to the Queen when she was appointed in 1996.

This is a timeline of notable moments in the history of women's ordination in the world's religious traditions. It is not an exhaustive list of all historic or contemporary ordinations of women.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eleanor Sanderson</span> Associate bishop in Anglican Church of Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia

Eleanor Ruth Sanderson is an English Anglican bishop who has served as Bishop of Hull, a suffragan bishop in the Church of England Diocese of York, since 2022. She previously served as an associate bishop in the Diocese of Wellington within the Anglican Church of Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia. She became the first woman bishop in the Wellington diocese when she was consecrated on 2 June 2017. At the time, she was the fourth woman to be elevated to the position of bishop in the New Zealand Anglican church. Prior to becoming a bishop, she served as an Anglican priest for eleven years, also in the Wellington diocese.

Susanna Pain is an Australian Anglican priest, former Dean of St Paul's Anglican Cathedral, Sale in Victoria, Australia and spiritual director. She was one of the first women ordained as an Anglican priest in Australia in 1992, one of the five women ordained in Adelaide, and the first female dean of St Paul's, Diocese of Gippsland. The features of her ministry have been pastoral care, leading spiritual retreats and contemplative prayer, and encouraging use of the creative and performance arts for worship.

References

  1. ↑ Andrew Brown (13 March 1994). "'Send down your Holy Spirit upon your servant Angela': History is made as the Church of England ordains its first women priests". The Independent . London.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Orizio Riccardo (13 March 1994). "le sacerdotesse di Sua Maesta'". Corriere della Sera . p. 5.
  3. ↑ John Darnton (13 March 1994). "After 460 Years, The Anglicans Ordain Women". New York Times .
  4. ↑ "A female Archbishop? The contenders". The Guardian . London. 25 July 2002.
  5. 1 2 Walter Schwarz (12 March 1994). "Day of reckoning: First women priests embraced as equals". The Guardian . London.
  6. ↑ Meet Sue – the first woman in 400 years of tradition at King's [ permanent dead link ], Worcester News , 18 September 2007.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Anne Senior (7 March 1994). "Church of England fulfilling women's rites". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . p. a.1.
  8. ↑ Ian Jones (2004). Women and priesthood in the Church of England: ten years on. Church House Publishing. p. 35. ISBN   0-7151-4035-3.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Andrew Brown (7 March 1994). "Women take difficult journey into priesthood: Andrew Brown talks to two of the female ministers in the first group to be ordained this week". The Independent. London.
  10. 1 2 3 "Our journey isn't over, say women priests". Church Times (7357). 12 March 2004.
  11. ↑ Jonathan Petre (13 March 2004). "Women priests still held back after 10 years". The Daily Telegraph . London.
  12. ↑ Sue Leeman (8 March 1994). "Church Of England To Ordain Women -- Action Marks End Of Spiritual Struggle". Seattle Times .
  13. 1 2 3 Joe Joseph (28 March 1994). "Congregations sing praises of their new women priests". The Times. p. 9.
  14. 1 2 "Church appointments". The Independent . London. 21 May 1994.
  15. ↑ "A new priest and her congregation". The Times. 14 March 1994.
  16. ↑ Doreen M. Rosman (2003). The evolution of the English churches, 1500-2000. Cambridge University Press. p. 331. ISBN   0-521-64556-5.
  17. ↑ Andrew Brown (14 March 1994). "Quiet revolution as women celebrate first communions: Catholics round on Belgian priest who publicly criticised Rome's attitudes at Anglican ordination". The Independent . London.
  18. ↑ "Women Lead Anglican Services". New York Times . 14 March 1994.
  19. ↑ "A Service of Celebration of Women's Priestly Ministry". Bristol Cathedral. Retrieved 6 March 2022.
  20. ↑ Matthew Weaver (6 March 2022). "Bristol Cathedral replaces men-only plaque remembering first female priests". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 March 2022.
  21. ↑ Keith Gilley (25 September 2004). "The ministry of women". The Guardian . London.
  22. ↑ "First female bishop named as the Reverend Libby Lane". BBC News. 17 December 2014. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
  23. ↑ "Dioces of Glocuester: Venerable Rachel Treweek". Prime Minister's Office. 26 March 2015. Retrieved 5 January 2021.

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.