Anglican Church of Australia - General Synod 2001 Media Service
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Background to the Women Bishops Issue in the Anglican Church of Australia

Introduction

In 1992 the General Synod of the Anglican Church of Australia removed legal barriers to the ordination of women as priests with the passing of a canon (church law) and since then 18 of the church's 23 dioceses across Australia have adopted this canon.

Five dioceses - Sydney, Ballarat, North West Australia, The Murray and Wangaratta - have not passed the canon and one, Armidale, has passed it but it is no longer in force.

About two-thirds of all Anglicans in Australia now live in dioceses where women are accepted as priests and there are more than 260 women priests in active duty nationally.

The 12th General Synod, to be held in Brisbane from July 21-27, 2001, will debate a new canon which could remove all the legal obstacles to the consecration of women as bishops.

The canon was the result  of wide consultation throughout the church by a working group formed at the last General Synod in Adelaide in February 1998.

The canon is modeled on the Law of the Church of England Clarification Canon 1992 - the church law which removed any possible legal obstacles to the ordination of women as priests.

The General Synod recognises that there are differences of opinion in the church as to whether a woman can or should perform the duties of a bishop, but also recognises and affirms the essential unity of the church under God within a tolerable diversity.

Importantly, the proposed canon includes a protocol relating to the provision of episcopal (bishop) oversight and ministry for those unable to accept the ministry of a female bishop.

The canon states: "In any diocese in which a women is appointed bishop, the bishop of the diocese must ensure that appropriate episcopal pastoral oversight and ministry is provided for persons whose conscience precludes them from accepting the ministry of a bishop who is a woman .... No member of clergy or lay member of this church shall suffer any discrimination or prejudice because he or she in conscience accepts female bishops, priests or deacons or does not accept them." (Sections 6.1,8)

At a local level, parishes will be able to vote to have a bishop from another region or diocese minister to them, if they wish to have episcopal ministry by a bishop other than a female bishop. This facility, known as "alternative episcopal oversight", currently operates in other sections of the worldwide Anglican Communion which have women bishops.

As a "special Bill", the women bishops canon will require a two-thirds majority of the General Synod at the final voting stage. If passed, it becomes a "provisional canon" and must them be considered by each diocese. If, at the next General Synod in 2004, the provisional canon is passed by two-thirds majority at the final voting stage, it will become a "canon" and go back to the dioceses to consider and adopt or not adopt.

The General Synod may vote on the canon as one body, but it may be the case that a sufficient number of members (five bishops or ten clergy or laity) call for a vote by "Houses". This would mean the House of Bishops, House of Clergy and House of Laity would vote separately, and to pass, the bill must pass each house.

There are 11 bishops in the worldwide Anglican Communion, including one in New Zealand (Bishop of Dunedin, Penny Jameson).

Summary of Arguments

Arguments often used against the consecration of women as bishops:

• The Bible clearly disallows women as elders and bishops (St Paul's First Letter to Timothy 2:12). This is a teaching necessary to salvation.
• Marriage incorporates a Scriptural commitment to the headship of the male and St Paul uses the imagery of marriage to describe the relationship between Jesus Christ and the church. To admit women to the episcopate or to headship in marriage reverses the balanced pattern of imagery and related social realities.
• Jesus chose 12 male apostles, which determined the future ministry of the church. This does not suggest that women are inferior to men as bearers of the image of God.
• Men and women in their equality before God have different ministries to fulfill.
• The catholic churches of eastern and western traditions have never admitted women to the threefold order of ministry. It is difficult to claim that the ordination of women is a genuine development of doctrine led by the Holy Spirit.
• The bishop is the focus of unity. To have some church members support the bishop and some oppose her in good conscience would make the bishop the focus of disunity.
• A bishop cannot be seen to have a limited authentication within the national church. Her episcopal acts, such as ordination and confirmation, would have limited applicability.
• To oppose in good conscience a woman priest is easier in practice than to oppose a women bishop. One can move to another parish with ease, but one can't move to another diocese as easily.

Arguments often used for the consecration of women as bishops:

• The Bible speaks of women appearing in positions of leadership and of Jesus calling women to various ministries.
• St Paul writes in his letter to the Galatians: "There is no longer male and female ..." (often cited as a classic text of women's equality.
• God transcends maleness and femaleness.
• Women have historically exercised oversight within the church. For example, the Queen bears the title "Defender of the Faith" in England.
• Baptism is the basis of every Christian's ministry and no subsequent ordination should be denied in principle, on the grounds of gender, to any Christian so called and empowered.
• The episcopate without women fails to reflect diversity and inclusiveness in the ministry of the church.
• With almost 10% of active clergy now women and their numbers increasing, the exclusion of women from the episcopate will become increasingly symbolic of a fundamental division in the body of Christ.
• The threefold ordering of ordained ministry - bishop, priest and deacon - is impaired when one gender is excluded.
• A number of other churches with which the Anglican Church of Australia is in communion already have women bishops.
• Society is sensitive to discrimination on the grounds of gender.
• Opposition to women priests has declined. The Gamaliel principle of reception ("if it is of God it will prevail, if not it will fail") should operate.