Comparison of the Role of Women in the Catholic and Anglican Churches There are many different Christian denominations that each have their own structure. Each of these Churches have their own doctrine and set of beliefs that are all based off of the original Christian faith. Two of these religions, however, have very different opinions on one important topic. The Catholic Church and the Anglican Church have opposite views on the roles that women should be allowed to have in the Church. While the Catholic Church is strongly against women becoming ordained ministers, the Anglican Church allows women to become deacons, priests, and bishops. While these two religions branched from the same set of beliefs, their reasoning behind this decision
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One of the most common reasons for not allowing women to be ordained is due to, “the ability of the priest to represent Christ in this form goes back according to Catholic teaching, to the infusion of grace in the priest’s ordination, or more exactly, the imprint of the sacramental nature of ordination” (Raming 118). A belief within the Catholic Church is that priests need to represent Christ, and he was male. God created people with two distinct genders, and He chose to make his only begotten son a male, and religious officials feel as though there is significance in this decision. Furthermore, all of the apostles that Jesus chose were male. Again, religious leaders think that this action of Christ should have an impact on the role of women in the Church. If Christ did not appoint women as one of his apostles, then they should not be worthy to perform any action of religious authority (van der Meer 60). Many members of the Church, however, think that if, “the priesthood could be conferred and freely regulated by the Church, then prohibition of priestly office to women would be a clear case of prejudice” (Poindexter 146). It is a conscious decision made by the Catholic Church to not allow women to become ordained, and that is something that could be seen as a prejudice. Nowhere in the Bible is it stated that priests have to be men, …show more content…
As of, “2008 a majority of Anglican provinces admitted women to the orders of deacon and priest” (Pui-lan 67). In the Anglican Church it is extremely common to see ordained women in a parish. Due to this, women are able to have a large impact on their Church and the decisions that are made. Unlike the Catholic Church, they are not forced to follow the strictly male Church leadership. As of September 26, 1976, Anglican women were given the opportunity to become deacons, priests, and bishops (Pui-lan 14). However, women have continued to struggle to gain equal authority within the Church. While becoming ordained has been accepted by the Church for the past forty years, many of the Church members and officials are still against this concept. Adjusting a hierarchy is always controversial and, “although more and more provinces are open to women’s ordination, there are still many bishops and Church members who refuse to accept women priests” (Pui-lan 14). This, however, should not be the case due to the Anglican Churches beliefs. While there has been more widespread acceptance over the past forty years, this controversial decision is still not entirely welcomed. It will take more time in order for female ordination to no longer be a topic of controversy, but rather a common and accepted
One of the most common reasons for not allowing women to be ordained is due to, “the ability of the priest to represent Christ in this form goes back according to Catholic teaching, to the infusion of grace in the priest’s ordination, or more exactly, the imprint of the sacramental nature of ordination” (Raming 118). A belief within the Catholic Church is that priests need to represent Christ, and he was male. God created people with two distinct genders, and He chose to make his only begotten son a male, and religious officials feel as though there is significance in this decision. Furthermore, all of the apostles that Jesus chose were male. Again, religious leaders think that this action of Christ should have an impact on the role of women in the Church. If Christ did not appoint women as one of his apostles, then they should not be worthy to perform any action of religious authority (van der Meer 60). Many members of the Church, however, think that if, “the priesthood could be conferred and freely regulated by the Church, then prohibition of priestly office to women would be a clear case of prejudice” (Poindexter 146). It is a conscious decision made by the Catholic Church to not allow women to become ordained, and that is something that could be seen as a prejudice. Nowhere in the Bible is it stated that priests have to be men, …show more content…
As of, “2008 a majority of Anglican provinces admitted women to the orders of deacon and priest” (Pui-lan 67). In the Anglican Church it is extremely common to see ordained women in a parish. Due to this, women are able to have a large impact on their Church and the decisions that are made. Unlike the Catholic Church, they are not forced to follow the strictly male Church leadership. As of September 26, 1976, Anglican women were given the opportunity to become deacons, priests, and bishops (Pui-lan 14). However, women have continued to struggle to gain equal authority within the Church. While becoming ordained has been accepted by the Church for the past forty years, many of the Church members and officials are still against this concept. Adjusting a hierarchy is always controversial and, “although more and more provinces are open to women’s ordination, there are still many bishops and Church members who refuse to accept women priests” (Pui-lan 14). This, however, should not be the case due to the Anglican Churches beliefs. While there has been more widespread acceptance over the past forty years, this controversial decision is still not entirely welcomed. It will take more time in order for female ordination to no longer be a topic of controversy, but rather a common and accepted