The seven women bishops of the Provinces of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa New Zealand and Polynesia and the Anglican Church of Australia met last month to focus on issues of gender justice and women’s leadership in the Anglican Communion.
It is the first time the women bishops, who have served in the Anglican Episcopate for various lengths of time ranging from less than 2 years to more than 23 years, have met together.
They met at The Abbey on Raymond Island, in the Diocese of Gippsland, Australia.
The bishops issued a communiqué which expresses their general concern “for the well-being of girls and women across the Anglican Communion and the opportunities for them to live into the fullness of their humanity.”
They also affirmed the statement developed by the Anglican delegation to 61st Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women which calls (among other things) for “the God-given empowerment of all God’s children.”
The women bishops went on to say that they see “commitment to the effective inclusion of female voices in decision-making at all levels as vital for the world and the church.
The bishops attending the meeting were:
- The Rt Rev’d Genieve Blackwell, Bishop of the Marmingatha Episcopate, Diocese of Melbourne
- The Rt Rev’d Kay Goldsworthy, Bishop of Gippsland
- The Rt Rev’d Dr Helen-Ann Hartley, Bishop of Waikato
- The Rt Rev’d Dr Sarah Macneil, Bishop of Grafton
- The Rt Rev’d Victoria Matthews, Bishop of Christchurch
- The Rt Rev’d Alison Taylor, Bishop for the Southern Region, Diocese of Brisbane
- The Rt Rev’d Kate Wilmot, Administrator, Diocese of Perth
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