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When compromise goes bad…

By Dave F in Reader

Posted in faith, Men and Women on July 7, 2008 at 12:47 pm

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I’ve always been keen on compromise. It seems a grown up way to settle things and admits everyone may have a bit of the truth. Consequently I have quite admired the way the Church of England have held it together over the ordination of women. Obviously I have ridiculed them a (un)fair bit too. The truth is so easy to see here (though some may see if differently!) and most of the opponents seem to go out of their way to make themselves targets. If there is a media equivalent of wearing a sign saying “kick me” it must be something like defending the power base of the status quo in plumy accent whilst sounding arrogant and hard done by at the same time. If you can do it about the unsuitability of woman kind whilst dressed in an outrageous frock all the better.
However, if you devote your life to promoting a faith within an organisation and the organisation moves the faith out from under you I have some sympathy.  So I did quite admire the deal done that said a faith that encompasses the ordination of women and one that doesn’t are  both valid within the Anglican communion. All those who had signed up under the old regime could work out there time without having to move their faith whilst (parts of) the church could move on.
All very good, I thought, before this weekend, when I found that my friend is training for ordination alongside people who aren’t going to accept her ordination. Yes, the mad lot are still taking on new priests who won’t accept the ordination of women. Der, an accommodation for those already there is a nice move. The problem will work itself out in a generation (a long time when it is your generation but short in church or world history). To continue to take people on… But I guess that was part of the compromise, if you accept that their view is valid then how can you deny new people with that belief?
Fortunately faith has a lot more going on than church politics, unfortunately the politics not only gets in the way it gets most of the headlines.

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Comments

Comment by Sharon Jackson - July 8, 2008 on 4:52 pm

Reading about this in the news it has struck me - which other British employer is allowed to discriminate against women?

I recently learned that our recently ordained female vicar had been wanting to be a vicar since she was 19yrs old. She’ll be 60 later this year and only was able to realise her dream three years ago. Talking to her you come to know what a loss to the church that was for all those years. Times change and the men that are holding out need to realise that this society is very different from the one into which Jesus was born therefore what may have been interpreted then in one way would not necessarily stand so today.

Comment by davef - July 8, 2008 on 5:39 pm

Yeah, cultural context is a bit of an issue. My favourite example was I think David Watson talking about women keeping their hair covered. That was because only the prostitutes of the time had uncovered hair so on the Solomon(?) islands where only the prostitutes wore western dress the translation was women should stay topless in church!

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