Movement for the Ordination of Women in the Anglican Church in Australia

Movement archives

This page contains an archive of news items relating to the movement. You can also download recent editions of MOWatching, the magazine of the national Movement. If you have questions about us or want to get involved, please contact us. We can give you information and share our experiences with you.

MOWatching archives

News archives

2008 MOWatch AGM with guest speaker The Venerable Kay Goldsworthy

The Annual General Meeting of MOWatch Inc will be held on Saturday 9 February at St Luke's Anglican Church, 11 Stanmore Rd, Enmore, Sydney NSW, commencing at 12 noon with a light buffet luncheon. Limited parking is available in church grounds, and there also in nearby side streets and a public car park on Edgeware Rd.

Agenda:
11.30 am: Registration
12.00 noon: Light Buffet Luncheon
12.15 pm: AGM
1.00 pm: Guest Speaker: "Between Already and Not Yet", The Venerable Kay Goldsworthy, Archdeacon of Perth/Registrar
1.30 pm: Question time
2.00 pm: Conclusion

We hope to see you there!
Updated 4 February 2008

2008 MOWatch Conference announced with keynote speaker Dr Esther Mombo

The 2008 conference of the Movement for the Ordination of Women, MOWatch, will be held from 25-29 August at the Burswood-on-Swan, situated on the banks of the Swan River, with easy access to Perth City. Click here or on the link at the left to express your interest and get all the latest news. After the success of last year's conference, where one highlight was the energy of the women from WA, I think we're all looking forward to this one!
Updated 28 November 2007

2007 General Synod

See pictures and read Judy Little's report!
Updated 10 November 2007

Women bishops now a possibility in the Australian Anglican Church!

We received the news yesterday that the Appellate Tribunal has ruled that there is no legal barrier to women being Diocesan Bishops. Have a look at the media release from the office of the Primate and today's article in the Sydney Morning Herald.
Updated 29 September 2007

Sydney Synod, here we go again

From Elaine Peterson (Sydney MOW Committee member):

"The SMH report of the Sydney Anglican Synod (6th Sept. p.6- Fresh Offensive as Anglicans Fail on Conversions) missed the real reason why this "mission" will fail. A glance at the agenda will reveal a motion towards the end, put forward by two leading members of the diocese - a woman, seconded by a man - whose first clause is :- "Synod a.) affirms that the relationship of loving, sacrificial leadership of a husband and the intelligent, voluntary submission of a wife is the Biblical pattern of marriage and..." Five clauses follow, saying that this belief should not be used to justify domestic violence.

On the principle that if a problem is being discussed, it already exists, the motion actually suggests that the Male Headship theory of Sydney diocese is in fact responsible for some domestic violence. Disapproving noise would be better replaced by a reconsideration of this strange doctrine.

Whether this motion finally is discussed or whether it is amended by deleting the opening clause, and leaving the "motherhood" statement of opposition to domestic violence, is not the point that Sydney Anglicans need to understand. While our church continues to teach that women are subordinate souls, a more enlightened society, built on Christian values, will not flock to join us."
Updated 22 September 2007

AGM of the Sydney branch of the Movement for the Ordination of Women and some news...

The Annual General Meeting of the Sydney branch was held today, and featured a talk from Val Webb, who is promoting her newest book about naming God. Download Christine's Convenors' Report.

We also had an update about what's coming up in the life of the national movement. Firstly, there will be a few MOWatch people attending General Synod in October as "observers", and we hope to have wall space for a display - if anyone is interested in volunteering to help out with this, either for one day or longer, please let us know. We can also try and organise accommodation for you. Secondly, plans are going well for the 2008 MOWatch conference to be held in Perth. The venue has been selected, and the dates are sometime in August. Keep your ears to the ground for details! Also, 2006 conference proceedings are to be published soon and will be sent to all financial members with a letter from Val.
Updated 1 September 2007

Would women bishops be allowed without a change to the constitution? Appellate tribunal hearing begins

A number of people are taking the push for women bishops to the next level by asking the Anglican Church of Australia's Appellate Tribunal whether there are any constitutional barriers, and the hearings were this week (though the Tribunal is expected to take several months before they make a decision). Amazingly, some claim that the word "person" in the constitution means males only, at least when it comes to "who can be a bishop" (presumably not when it comes to the question of "who is a member of the church"!). For more info see the article in the Age or listen to an interview with Muriel Porter on Radio National.
Updated 3 April 2007

Sydney Movement for the Ordination of Women supports Keith Mascord's call for inclusive church

Following various events in the parish of South Sydney, one brave Minister wrote an open letter to the Sydney diocese basically saying that there needs to be more room for diversity. The Sydney branch of MOW supports the points made in his letter - our beliefs often run counter to the dominant theology here, which is strongly opposed to women's ordination (to take just the most obvious point of difference!) Read a modified version of Keith Mascord's open letter to the diocese, and keep visiting this site for updates as we hope to work with others on this issue.
Updated January 2007

Sydney Synod, the pressure is on

Thanks to everyone who joined us at the opening of the 2006 Sydney Synod, where we will be moving that women be allowed to be priests in this diocese, the first time the issue has been on the agenda in 6 years. Peter Jensen's speech demonstrated how women's ordination is somehow threatening to "sexuality" (whose sexuality exactly?). Someone suggested that to ensure sufficient time for debate, our motion be scheduled for 4.30pm next Tuesday. We're looking forward to making our presence felt yet again, so please join us and/or keep us in your prayers on the 24th!
Updated 19 October 2006

Back from Melbourne and ready for action

In August a group from Sydney went to the MOWatch conference in Melbourne. It was a great chance for us to get to know each other and the issues facing the Church at the moment. We returned from our conference with renewed energy, ready for the upcoming Sydney Synod!
Updated 5 September 2006