Resolution #3: 

50th Anniversary Triennium of the Ordination of Women
and Local Commemorations

Status

The 175th Convention passed this resolution as presented on Saturday, October 26, 2024.

Resolved, That the 175th Convention of the Diocese of California affirms General Convention Resolution 2024-D055, 50th Anniversary Triennium of the Ordination of Women, and calls for its celebration and observance in our diocese;

Resolved, That as part of our triennium observance, this Convention acknowledges these local ordinations held in the Diocese (Grace Cathedral) which will be commemorated:

• the 60th Anniversary of the service in which the Rt. Rev. James Albert Pike, Fifth Bishop of California, recognized the Rev. Phyllis Edwards as an ordained deacon on September 13, 1965, making the Rev. Edwards the first ordained woman in The Episcopal Church;
• the 50th Anniversary of the ordination of the Rt. Rev. Bavi Edna “Nedi” Rivera, D.D. as a deacon by the Rt. Rev. Victor Manuel Rivera (III San Joaquin) for the Diocese of California on June 28, 1975, making the Rev. Nedi Rivera the first female transitional deacon of Latin American descent. She was subsequently ordained by the Rt. Rev. Chauncie Kilmer Myers, Sixth Bishop of California, to the priesthood on May 5, 1979.  Later the Rev. Dr. Rivera would become Bishop Suffragan in the Diocese of Olympia on January 22, 2005, and the first Latina bishop in The Episcopal Church;
• the 40th Anniversary of the service in which the Rt. Rev. William Edwin Swing, Seventh Bishop of California, ordained the Rev. Fran Toy, D.D. as a priest on June 8, 1985, making the Rev. Dr. Toy the first Asian American female priest in The Episcopal Church;
• the respective ordinations of the Rev. Barbara Bender-Breck, J.D. on June 1, 1994 (31st Anniversary) and the Rev. Katherine Ward, Ed.D. on June 1, 1995 (30th Anniversary) by Bishop Swing marked the first Afro-American female priest and the first Afro-American female rector in the diocese;
• the 20th Anniversary of the service in which Bishop Swing ordained the Ven. Cn. Carolyn Bolton as a vocational deacon on December 3, 2005, making Archdeacon Bolton the first Afro-American female vocational deacon in the diocese; 

Resolved, That this Convention asks the Bishop to create and appoint an advisory group of six to nine members, comprised of deacons, priests, and laity who represent the diverse constituencies of the Diocese to assist in coordinating and planning these and other possible commemorations in DioCal as well as communicating with other Dioceses, Communion Partners, and the Episcopal Church Center as necessary; and

Resolved, That the advisory group shall have renewable 1-year terms, sunsetting on May 31, 2027 at the end of the commemorative triennium before the 82nd General Convention.

Explanation:

Summary

A commemorative triennium of the ordination of women to all orders of ministry provides a means to communicate and celebrate these significant events as well as to acknowledge the history of mutually supportive efforts by people of all genders, ordained and lay, to create a more just and demographically representative structure of ministry in the church; taken together it seeks to inspire new generations to continue efforts toward ministerial formation that more closely responds to the demographic diversity of the Episcopal Church.

General Convention Resolution D-055 was crafted for congregational and diocesan leaders to revisit the Women’s Ordination Movement (1944 – 2006) through local and churchwide commemorations.    For DioCal we have decided to include milestone commemorations of local deacons and priests.  We hope to learn and draw upon personal stories and struggles, especially in the historical context of those turbulent times.

This triennium project will offer ample opportunity for the planning and development of liturgy and worship, various events, programs, and materials involving discernment, formation, and education.  It also offers opportunities to celebrate ways that women from diverse social locations have sought to transform unjust or inequitable structures in the church and society, both in varying diocesan contexts and churchwide. Observing and celebrating this history can further inform and inspire us to join with people of all marginalized genders to transform unjust structures within and outside the church.

Just as the ordination of women has involved collaboration, commemorative efforts should value and reflect principles and practices of mutuality and inclusivity in mission, ministries, and outreach; local and diocesan collaboration is especially encouraged where feasible; funding can help support such efforts where assistance is most needed.

Chronology

The 173rd Diocesan Convention in 2022 affirmed the Diocese’s participation in programs commemorating and honoring in 2024 the 80th anniversary of Rev. Florence Li Tim-Oi’s ordination to the priesthood (1944), which occurred at Grace Cathedral on January 25, 2024. The following timeline illustrates a range of commemorative events that may be honored throughout this triennium.

1944     The wartime ordination of Rev. Florence Li Tim-Oi 李添嬡 to the priesthood in 1944 as the first female priest in Anglicanism and her post-World War II speaking engagements in New York and the San Francisco area awakened some Episcopal women to the possibility of ordination to the priesthood. 

1965     The service in which the Rt. Rev. James Albert Pike, Fifth Bishop of California, recognized the Rev. Phyllis Edwards as an ordained deacon on September 13, 1965, making the Rev. Edwards the first ordained woman in The Episcopal Church.

1966     Following the 1966 House of Bishops report supporting the ordination of women to the priesthood as well as the diaconate, the 10th Lambeth Conference’s (1968) Resolutions 34-38 collectively titled “The Ministry—Ordination of Women to the Priesthood” requested that provinces carefully study the question of the ordination of women and report their findings to the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC) and to consult with the ACC prior to ordaining women to the priesthood.

1970     In 1970, the 63rd General Convention (1970) approved women’s ordination to the diaconate in both Houses but fell short of the required majority in the House of Deputies clergy vote to open all ordained orders to women.

1971     Following the 1971 Anglican Consultative Council’s statement that provinces allowing the ordination of women to the priesthood would be acceptable (ACC-1 Resolution 28b), two women were ordained in the jurisdiction of Hong Kong and Macao, adding further momentum for the ordination of women to the priesthood to be voted upon at the 64th General Convention (1973).

1973     Resolution 1973-D008 at the 64th General Convention in Louisville KY was defeated, precipitating the irregular ordinations of eleven female deacons to the priesthood at Philadelphia’s Church of the Advocate on July 29, 1974, and four female deacons to the priesthood at Washington D.C.’s St. Stephen and the Incarnation parish on September 7, 1975.

1975    On June 28, 1975, the Rev. Bavi Edna “Nedi” Rivera, was ordained as a deacon by the Rt. Rev. Victor Manuel Rivera, Third Bishop of  San Joaquin, for the Diocese of California, making her the first deacon of Latin American descent in DioCal.  Later Bishop C. Kilmer Myers (VI California) ordained Rev. Nedi Rivera to the priesthood on May 5, 1979.  From 1994 to 2004, the Rev. Dr. Rivera was the rector of St. Aidan’s in San Francisco until her 2004 election as bishop suffragan of Olympia.

1976     The 65th General Convention in Minneapolis MN amended Canon Title III.9.1 to open the ordination of women to all orders (1976-B300) and adopted the House of Bishops resolution (1976-B300) to regularize women irregularly ordained to the priesthood; further ordinations of women to the priesthood began in January, 1977.  The 81st General Convention just passed a resolution (A065) rendering that canon (now III.1.3) gender expansive.  The provisions of these Canons for the admission of Candidates for the ordination to the three Orders: Bishops, Priests, and Deacons shall be equally applicable to all persons in the process.

1977     On January 1, 1977, Jacqueline Means became the first woman to be ordained to the priesthood in the Episcopal Church, and Pauli Murray became the first African American woman to do so. About 100 women were ordained that first year. The opening of the priesthood to Black women, non-binary, and trans people was achieved by the pioneering lawyer, civil rights and women’s rights activist, scholar, and priest the Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray.  (Murray also had been part of the six-member Joint Commission on Ordained and Licensed Ministries that put forth the 63rd General Convention’s (1970) resolution on the ordination of women.)        

1985     The Rev. Fran Toy, D.D., formed by her Chinese American community and supported by Bishop Swing was ordained on June 8, 1985, making her the first Asian American female priest in The Episcopal Church.

1989     The further opening of ordained ministry to women, particularly the episcopate, was made possible by the ordination of the Rt. Rev. Barbara Clementine Harris, bishop suffragan in the Diocese of Massachusetts and the first woman bishop in the Anglican Communion on February 11, 1989, the 35th anniversary of which was commemorated in 2024.

2006     The still further opening of ordained ministry to women made possible the election of the Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori as Presiding Bishop and Primate (2006-2015), the 20th anniversary of which is to be commemorated in the upcoming triennium.

The 75th General Convention in Columbus OH passed Resolution 2006-A139 Celebrate Women in Ministry, expressing thanksgiving for all women in lay and ordained ministry and encouraging dioceses to celebrate women’s ministries according to local context, including the recognition of pioneers in the ordination of women, their witness, and courage, creates a precedent for the 50th-anniversary triennium.

Reference:  50th Anniversary Triennium of the Ordination of Women

Submitted by:

The Rev. Dr. Paula Nesbitt, Assisting – All Souls, Berkeley (Alameda Deanery)
The Rev. Dr. Cameron Partridge, Rector – St. Aidan’s SF (San Francisco Deanery)
Warren J. Wong, Delegate – St. James SF wjwstjames@gmail.com (San Francisco Deanery)

Endorsed by:

The Very Rev. Bruce O’Neill, Regional Dean – Alameda Deanery
The Very Rev. Dr. Deborah White, Regional Dean – Contra Costa Deanery
The Very Rev. Kirsten Spalding, Regional Dean – Marin Deanery
The Very Rev. Rebecca Goldberg, Regional Dean – Peninsula Deanery
The Very Rev. Eric Metoyer, Regional Dean – San Francisco Deanery
The Very Rev. Jeff Dodge, Regional Dean – Southern Alameda Deanery