Regional church says no to women bishops
(Jamaican Gleaner): A bid to allow women to become ordained bishops in one of Jamaica’s most populous Christian denominations has failed, reinforcing a tradition that has stimulated vigorous debate within church circles. The New Testament Church of God, which has allowed women to be licensed ministers but barred them from the roundtable of bishops who administer the denomination, blocked the bid at its general assembly in Florida last month. Bishop Barrington Brown, who leads the New Testament Church of God in Jamaica and the Cayman Islands, believes that it will take some time to convince both laity and clergy that women should have equal footing with men.
He emphasised that God’s favour – not prejudice for male leadership – should be the consequential arbiter of who oversees church matters. Brown said he doubted that a woman would be ordained chief bishop of the Jamaica diocese for at least a decade. "In terms of church politics and church culture, I don’t see it happening before the next 10-15 years. I don’t see it as an immediate thing, considering where we are in terms of church politics," he added.
Category: World News
