Historically the church owes much to women, none more so than to Mary: "Behold, the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word." Luke 1:38. Her Son honoured their gifts assuring women of an enhanced status in the church from earliest times. Over the centuries Christian women have responded with selfless giving, ministering to those in need while nurturing their families as well as the wider family of the church. Indeed it is difficult to imagine how the church could have survived without their devotion but ironically it is because of a vociferous minority of women that the church is now in peril. Not satisfied with being deacons they have realised their ambition to be ordained as priests and now demand ordination to the episcopate to satisfy their lust for power in the name of equality.
There are many thousands of non-Christian women in the world who are treated as mere possessions, often suffering appalling cruelty and abuse but instead of tackling this obscene inequality, the church is targeted with claims that the ordination of women will rid the world of misogyny, homophobia and the brutalization of women. Considering that many of the worst excesses occur under Sharia law it is not clear how this is to be achieved especially when Christian men as well as women are considered by Muslims to be inferior to them.
The blunt fact is that these women are not representative of their sex but have bamboozled a gullible House of Bishops into believing their cause. In consequence the church is in turmoil. Each so-called 'liberation' has led to another resulting in the current demand for same sex unions. We live in a world of delicate balance, in a thin film surrounding a pale blue dot in the vastness of space. There are many dependencies which secure our existence, none more so than the nature of male and female, each with a complementary role to play for the benefit of each other and most importantly to secure the future of our children. That balance has been upset in society and is being extended to the church with devastating consequences.
The revisionist changes have done nothing to secure the future of the church. On the contrary, it has been estimated that at the present rate of decline the Church of England will be dead within a generation. Women have sustained the Church for two thousand years but now we are witnessing her painful death because of the selfish few.
It does not go unoticed Ancient Briton that comments on your blog are very far and few between. Apart of course, from those excellent
ReplyDeleteswipes at 'His Darkness'. Bravo!
Instead of touting for publicity, like a window cleaner looking for work, this blog now guarantees him prime time. Such a delight. Your reward is great old friend!
I have yet to meet a woman priest who has a 'lust for power'
ReplyDeleteI find their vocation entirely convincing in that I have received Christ through their ministry.
This begs the question...
'If God has called these women to be priests, who are we to question'
The women priests I know well (seven in total)- simply seek to serve their fellow men and women selflessly,with humility and Christ-like love.
The phrase used was directed at the agitators in WATCH and GRAS who are demanding ordination to the episcopate purely on their own terms. There is nothing selfless, humble or Christ-like about actions which are designed to smear opponents with false charges of misogyny and discrimination simply for holding a different conscientious belief.
DeleteThere will always be those who cannot control impassioned outbursts on issues which are so emotive to them.This happens on both 'sides.' I have been guilty of the same offence I regret to say. But these minority groups should not cloud the vision of what can be achieved together in mission and if we genuinely seek Gods will, instead of our own,in all this - I feel sure we will be shown the way.
ReplyDeleteLets treasure our heritage of tradition yet be open to some refreshing streams of change...a church fit for purpose - alive and well in the present age.Helen