EWC News

The hottest item at the Columbus gathering were these buttons celebrating the election of Katharine Jefferts Schori. They quickly sold out, but now you can order them online. Click the button to go to the order form.

• Episcopal Women's History Project
  
  The Rev Bindy Snyder, from the Episcopal Women's History Project, is in charge of planning a liturgy commemorating the anniversary of Women's Ordination, to be held at the ECW Triennial Meeting on Wednesday, June 14 in the afternoon and she has asked for our help to spread the word.
  
  She would like to gather ordination photos from everyone possible to make a poster/PowerPoint thing. Please send them to her by May 20 - electronically (revbindy@bellsouth.net) or to her home address 539 Cherry, Memphis TN 38117. Include names and ordination date - deacons and priests.



• The Consultation
  
  "The Consultation" an umbrella organization that meets to converse about their interests in the life of the Episcopal Church and to support each other. It considers a range of concerns which are urgent for the mission and witness of the Church. The Consultation has developed a platform to be presented at the 2006 General Convention in Columbus, Ohio. Please take the time to examine the platform here.
  
  
• Women And Ordination In The Christian Churches: International Perspectives

12-14 July 2006

Lincoln Theological Institute for the Study of Religion and Society, University of Manchester, UK.

CALL FOR PAPERS:

The growth of women's ordained ministry has been amongst the most remarkable and significant developments in the recent history of the Christian churches. This international conference aims to bring together leading contributors from both academic and church contexts to explore Christian experiences of ordaining women in theological, sociological, historical and anthropological perspective. Short papers of 20 minutes are invited on the following themes:

How have national, denominational and ecclesial cultures shaped the different ways in which women's ordination is debated and/or enacted?

What differences have women's ordained ministry, and debates on women's ordination, made in different church contexts? What 'unfinished business' remains (in both congregational, denominational and sector ministries) and how can progress be made?

How have Christians variously conceived ordained ministry with both women and men included? How have ordained women and men worked together in practice? What have been the particular implications for female clergy? And for male clergy?

What distinctive issues are raised by women's entry into senior ordained/leadership positions? How do episcopal and non-episcopal traditions differ in this?

Contributors are encouraged to relate their findings either to one particular national, regional, denominational or ecclesial context, or to draw comparisons between different cultures. A number of bursaries are available. Papers will be considered for publication.

Please submit a short outline of your proposed paper (max. 200 words, by 10 March 2005) to:


	Dr. Ian Jones
	Lincoln Theological Institute for the Study of Religion and Society
	School of Arts, Histories and Cultures, 
	University of Manchester,
	Oxford Road, MANCHESTER. M13 9PL, UK. 
	ian.jones@manchester.ac.uk 
	(0161) 275 8596



For further information, please see this website


• Women as Bishops in the Church of England?
  
  Church of England moves a step closer to accepting women bishops
  
  Anglicans told to accept women bishops or leave



• The Windsor Report of the Lambeth Commission on Communion Is Now Available
  
  Click here to go to the report website. If the site is unavailable, download the PDF version of the report directly here.



• 30^th Anniversary Celebration
  
  On behalf of the Women's Commission of the Diocese of Newark, Marge Christie, Janet Broklesby and Elizabeth Kaeton have created a Eucharistic liturgy worthy of the celebration of thirty years of ordaining women to the priesthood in the Episcopal Church. It may be downloaded, either in Word or in Adobe Acrobat format by clicking the links below. Plan a celebration of this most significant anniversary, either on July 29, 2004, or on a date that will be effective for people in your community. The file contains not only the liturgy, but also a detailed history of the steps leading up to and putting into effect the ordination of women.
  
  The "Thirty Ways to Celebrate Thirty Years of Women's Ordained Ministry" document, from the national Church's Committee on the Status of Women, is also found at the end of the file.
  
  Download the Pearls 30^th Anniversary as an Adobe Acrobat PDF or Microsoft Word document.

• The "Lambeth Commission" Letter
  
  As first reported in a recent EWC alert, we have learned that the American Anglican Council has published a sign-on letter to Archbishop Robin Eames, chair of the "Lambeth Commission". As you know, the Commission is responsible for reporting, by October, concerning the maintaining of communion within the Anglican Communion.
  
  The AAC letter, seeking a severe disciplining of the Episcopal Church, can be seen at this link. Interestingly, the AAC is only allowing clergy to sign their letter. Is that to be taken as a comment on their theology of who are the Church?
  
  Our own Elizabeth Kaeton, EWC Board Member, has written a response, which is posted here. She has also assembled over a dozen co-sponsoring organizations. As you might expect, all persons, lay and clerical, are invited to sign this letter. Please follow the link and consider whether or not your name and your voice need to be visibly/audibly behind this effort. Please also pass on this information to your friends. We are hoping our list of signers will overwhelm the list of signers of the AAC letter, and give the Lambeth Commission a clear picture of how little the AAC represents the people of the Episcopal Church.
  
  The deadline for signatures on both letters is May 11, so please get the word out quickly.
  
  Yours in Christ,
  Bill Fleener, Sr.
  Business Manager of the Episcopal Women's Caucus, Inc.
  

• Response to the AMiA
  
  The executive board of the EWC has read and responded to the much-anticipated report from the Anglican Mission in America on the Ordination of Women. Read their reponse here.

• The comprehensive history of the Episcopal Women's Caucus has been revised and expanded for 2003. Find a link at the bottom of the history page or read it directly here



• Two new brochures are now available on the Publications page, "The Angel Project" and "Male Only Priesthood". They are available in both html and PDF format.



• Newsbriefs from the Christmas 2005 Ruach



• Newsbriefs from the Summer 2005 Ruach



• Newsbriefs from the Winter 2004 Ruach



• Newsbriefs from the Fall 2004 Ruach



• Newsbriefs from the Summer 2004 Ruach



• Newsbriefs from the Winter 2004 Ruach



• Newsbriefs from the Spring 2003 Ruach



• Newsbriefs from the Winter 2003 Ruach



• Newsbriefs from the Fall 2002 Ruach