Australian Anglicans Vote to Ordain Women to the Priesthood
Episcopal News Service. December 3, 1992 [92239]
Following a day-long debate, the General Synod of the Anglican Church of Australia approved legislation on November 21 allowing its 24 dioceses to ordain women to the priesthood.
The legislation, adopted provisionally last July, received the required two-thirds vote in each of the synod's chambers: the House of Bishops, House of Clergy and House of Laity. The vote was
| In Favor | Opposed | |
| Bishops | 16 | 4 (2 abstentions) |
| Clergy | 67 | 32 |
| Laity | 69 | 30 |
The vote -- ending nearly 20 years of discussion on the matter -- came 10 days after the Church of England approved similar legislation.
"We need to take this step if we are going to go forward as a church," Archbishop Keith Rayner, primate of the Anglican Church of Australia, told reporters prior to the vote. He dismissed speculation that a vote in favor of the measure would split the Australian church. "If there are those who feel they can no longer remain with us in the Anglican Church, we shall grieve over that, we shall miss them very much and they must make a decision of conscience."
Rayner called for silence before the results of the balloting were announced.
"It is a very great relief and joy. My hopes have been down so many times," said the Rev. Caroline Pearce, a deacon from the Diocese of Melbourne.
The Diocese of Sydney -- the largest diocese in the Anglican Church of Australia -- voted against the measure. Archbishop Donald Robinson of Sydney, who will retire soon, said that his diocese would pursue an "isolationist" policy in relationship to other dioceses in the church. "Dioceses like my own will, I believe, not be able to recognize [women] as priests of our church, and therefore, we will have a basic division of the kind we have never ever had."
Robinson said that it grieved him to find himself "out of communion with fellow bishops, even within his own province." Yet, Robinson would probably not support a breakaway church in Australia, according to a press release issued from his diocese.
Observers report that the first ordinations of women as priests will likely occur during Advent, and that by Christmas there may be as many as 90 women ordained to the priesthood. Ten women were ordained as priests in the Diocese of Perth by Archbishop Peter Carnley prior to the adoption of the legislation by the province.
Based on a report by James Rosenthal of the Anglican Communion News Service.