Additional Information on Women Clergy Shows a Mixed Picture in Latin America
Episcopal News Service. January 15, 1993 [93008]
Since ENS published a story on statistics regarding the status of women in the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion ("Support for women priests is gathering steam in the Anglican Communion," ENS, December 3, 1992), additional information has become available.
The Church Pension Fund reports the following statistics on women clergy: 859 women priests and 211 women deacons (total 1,070) are enrolled in the fund's pension programs. That number does not include the nonstipendiary clergywomen, nor women ordained under Canon 9.
The Diocese of Georgia has reported that, in addition to several women in the ordination process, three woman have been licensed by Bishop Harry Shipps to serve in the diocese. However, the diocese has not yet ordained any women to the priesthood.
The following dioceses within Province IX or other parts of Latin America have ordained women as priests: Panama, Central Ecuador, Litoral (Ecuador) and the Dominican Republic. The dioceses of Colombia, Honduras and Mexico have licensed women, but have not ordained any women to the priesthood. Colombia and Cuba have women deacons.
The dioceses of Nicaragua, El Salvador, Northern Mexico, Western Mexico, Cuernavaca and Southeastern Mexico do not have women priests. However, the bishop of El Salvador has recently said that he would be willing to ordain women as priests.
The Diocese of Puerto Rico, an extraprovincial diocese to Province IX, has ordained women to the priesthood. The dioceses of Venezuela and Costa Rica, also extraprovincial dioceses to Province IX, have women seminarians, but have not yet ordained women to the priesthood.
The dioceses of the Virgin Islands and Haiti (both part of Province II) have women seminarians, but do not have women in the priesthood.
Julie Wortman of the Witness magazine contributed to this report.