Communique’ Fall 2014
Table of Contents
*Only select articles are posted from our archive. The entire publication is viewable within this pdf.
From the President’s Desk -Pilgrimage to the Holy Land By The Reverend Deacon Nancy R. Crawford
COVER STORY THE PHILADELPHIA ELEVEN: A Day of Celebration and Remembrance By Kathy Mank
Women in Ministry Celebrate 40 Years by Jane Banning
40th Anniversary Remembrances by Jane Banning
Episcopal Women Faith in the 21st Century by Cecily Morgan and Esther H. Moon
Episco Mom – Bridging the Generational Gap by Kristen Pratt Machado
A Day of Celebration and Remembrance
Commemorating an event that mapped a path for change
Five of the Philadelphia Eleven, one of the Washington Four, Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori, Bishop Barbara Harris, and a host of other women who were the first to be female and ordained at various times and places were celebrated and honored in Philadelphia on Sat., July 26, 2014. The 40 Years of Women’s Ordained Ministry and 2000 Years in Ministry Symposium at Temple University provided speakers and panelists the opportunity to share their own history and God’s calling to us now. Inspired by Dr. Fredrica Harris Thompsett, who stated that “we study history in order to intervene in it and that we look backward in order to move forward,” the 200+ men and women attending were challenged to make more history in the days ahead in ministry that cares for the least, lost, and left out. […]
Reporter Jane Banning offers her first-hand account of the day’s proceedings.
By Jane Banning
On Saturday, July 26, the 40th anniversary celebration of the ordination of women to the priesthood was observed in Philadelphia, PA, where the first ordinations took place. A morning symposium was held on the Temple University campus, featuring Dr. Frederica Thomsett as the keynote speaker. A panel of diverse clergy included the Very Rev. Katherine Hancock Ragsdale, the Rt. Rev. Dr. Carol Gallagher, the Rev. Miguella Howell, the Ven. Dr. Pamela Nesbit, the Rev. Sandye Wilson, and Ms. Nokomis Wood. Each panelist shared her story and mentioned her challenges before and since her ordination. The meditation was led by the Rev. Dr. Nancy H. Wittig. […]
By Kristen Pratt Machado
The author reflects on her decades-long friendships, and how they inspire her relationship with the ECW.
In the Gospel of Luke, we learn that the post-menopausal Elizabeth has become pregnant against all odds. She meets with Mary, a young and engaged—but unmarried—woman who may need refuge against angry family members who did not understand that a miracle was underway. When the two women meet, Elizabeth’s baby, John the Baptist, moves in her womb, and Elizabeth is called to give Mary a blessing: […]