42
edits
Changes
no edit summary
===Arguments against===
:''In Orthodoxy the all-male priesthood is not based on the idea that women can't represent [[Jesus]]; if replication of the specifics of the Incarnation is the goal, only a first-century Jew could come near that. In Orthodoxy, it's not Jesus, but the Father whom those serving at the altar represent, and whatever else a woman can be (and, in Orthodoxy, she can be anything else: choir director, [[Reader |lector]], teacher, head of the parish council) she cannot be a Father. She can be a Mother, of course, and so there is a recognized and honored role for the priest's wife, with a title: [[Khouria]] (Arabic), Matushka (Russian), or Presbytera (Greek).'' —[[Frederica Mathewes-Green]] in "Prologue: In the Passenger Seat" from her book ''Facing East: A Pilgrim's Journey Into the Mysteries of Orthodoxy''
:''As a man I cannot conceive... is that unfair? By divine decision... there is this difference.'' —([[Roman Catholic Church|Roman Catholic]]) Archbishop John Paul Foley, President of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications in Rome [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/crossing_continents/4119254.stm]
==Altar girls==
Generally, Orthodox [[parish]]es do not allow females to serve liturgically in the [[sanctuary]] of the church. In October 2004, a statement was issued by the [[Chancellor ]] of the OCA forbidding this practice and citing the position of the OCA's [[Holy Synod]].[http://www.oca.org/Docs.asp?ID=104&SID=12]
In March of 2005, the ''St. Nina's Quarterly'' website published a response mainly consisting of messages in favor of females serving in the sanctuary, stating that there is "there is '''no good theological reason''' for such a practice" (emphasis in original).[http://www.stnina.org/node/733]
==External links==
*[http://www.stnina.org/node/376 ''An Interview] with Bishop [[Kallistos (Ware) of Diokleia|Kallistos Ware]]'' ([[GOARCH|Greek Orthodox]]) from the St. Nina's Quarterly, Vol. 1, No. 3.
*[http://www.amazon.com/dp/2825413364 ''The Ordination of Women in the Orthodox Church''] by Elisabeth Behr-Sigel & Metropolitan Kallistos Ware of Diokleia, WCC Publications, Geneva
*[http://jbburnett.com/resources/schmemann/schmemann-ord-women.pdf Concerning Women's Ordination: A Letter to an Episcopal Friend] (PDF) by Fr. [[Alexander Schmemann]], previously published in the ''St. Vladimir's Theological Quarterly'', Vol. 17, No. 3, 1973, pp. 239-243
*[http://www.orthodoxytoday.org/articles4/MorrisFeminism.php ''Thoughts on Women's Ordination''] by Fr. John Morris (previously published in ''Word Magazine'' (January, 2004) of the [[Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America|Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese]])
*[http://www.stnina.org/node/736 ''Newness of Spirit: The Ordination of Men and Women''] by Maria Gwyn McDowell (previously published as a response to Fr. John Morris in ''Word Magazine'' (May 2004) of the [[Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America|Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese]])
*[http://tasbeha.org/content/hh_books/ordofwom/index.html ''Homosexuality, The Ordination of Women''] by HH Pope [[Shenouda III (Gayyid) of Alexandria|Shenouda III]]
*[[Categoryhttp:Clergy]//frederica.com/writings/womens-ordination.html ''Women's Ordination'']by Frederica Mathewes-Green
[[Category:Church Life]]
