A Commemoration of the 25th Anniversary of the

Ordination of Women in Canada, ELCIC

Worship Resources

Pentecost 20, Year C, October 21, 2001
Jeremiah 31:27-34
Psalm 119:97-104
2 Timothy 3:14-4:5
Luke 18:1-8

The texts assigned for Pentecost 20, Year C invites reflection on the new covenant, the authority of scripture and the graciousness of God. The prophet Jeremiah announces a new day to come when God will make a new covenant with Israel and Judah, written on their hearts and sealed by God's forgiveness. The covenant is one of belonging and knowing God and God's ways without barrier. It is a new covenant, meaning that God turns us away from old ways that are not God's ways. The church has turned from centuries of limiting the ordained ministry to men to recognize the call of women as legitimate and good in the eyes of God.

St. Paul charges Timothy, a young pastor, to practise ministry that is grounded in God's Word with sound doctrine and to be persistent in witnessing to the message of salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. One preaching angle is to highlight the text as admonishment to all ministers of the Word, ordained women included. Another approach is to recall the study process for the churches as they considered the possibility of ordaining women. The conclusion for the Lutheran Church in America (1968), the Executive Committee of the Lutheran Council in the USA (1969) and the American Lutheran Church (1970) was that there were no biblical or theological reasons for denying the ordination of women.

The parable of the persistent widow and the unjust judge should not be presented as an allegory pitting women against men in power. Jesus told the parable to impress upon his listeners the need to pray to our gracious God always and not to lose heart. In the 1960s and 70s, women and men were persistent in beseeching the church to open ordination to women based on careful reading of scripture and faithfulness to the gospel of Jesus Christ. The church acted in faith that God was calling women into the Ministry of Word and Sacrament and so granted the changes necessary for the church to receive their ministry. For some women the experience of preparation, call, ministry and service in the wider church still parallels that of the widow who kept coming to seek justice. This text turns us to our gracious God who calls the church to act in faith for the sake of the gospel.

For Further Reading

Clergy Women: An Uphill Calling, by Barbara Brown Zikmund, Adair T. Lummis, and Patricia Mei Yin Chang. Published by Westminster John Knox Press, Kentucky, 1998.

Lutheran Women in Ordained Ministry 1970-1995: Reflections and Perspectives, Gloria E. Bengston, Editor. Published by Augsburg Fortress, Minneapolis, 1995.

The Ordination of Women: Challenge for Canadian Lutheran Unity, by Walter Freitag, 1978. May be available from Lutheran Theological Seminary, Saskatoon.

With Many Voices: Twenty-five Years of Ordained Ministry by Women in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada 1976-2001, by Dianne K. Kieren. Published by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, 2001. (Available from Augsburg Fortress Canada, Fall 2001)

Women of the Cloth, by J. Carroll, B. Hargrove, and A. Lummis. Published by Harper & Row, San Francisco, 1983.

Prayers of the People

The following prayer was part of the commemoration during the ELCIC convention on July 5, 2001.

Gracious God, we give you thanks and praise for the insight of those who have gone before us, who recognized that you call and gift both men and women to serve your church through the Ministry of Word and Sacrament. We ask you to continue to give us wisdom and openness to your grace so that the gifts of all may be encouraged and exercised in your church for the sake of the gospel. Bless the ordained women of the ELCIC and all who serve in Christ's most holy name that your mission may be accomplished and your people renewed in faith. Through Christ Jesus we pray. Amen.

Hymn Suggestions

From Lutheran Book of Worship

459 O Holy Spirit, Enter In
393 Rise, Shine, You People!

From With One Voice

756 Lord, You Give the Great Commission
769 Mothering God, You Gave Me Birth
710 One Bread, One Body
692 For All the Faithful Women

Bulletin Announcement

On the Sunday(s) prior to the Day of Commemoration, the following announcement may be inserted in church bulletins:

October 21, 2001, has been designated in the ELCIC as a Day of Commemoration for the 25th Anniversary of the Ordination of Lutheran Women in Canada. Our congregation will take part in church-wide observances of the day. Join us!

Other Ideas

• Invite an ordained woman to be the guest preacher for the day.
• Ask a liturgical dancer to present a dance with the prelude, gospel procession or offertory.
• Display the poster of Twenty-five Years of Lutheran Women's Ordination in Canada 1976-2001 (order form enclosed) and invite the Sunday school or the Children's Lesson or the Youth Group to consider what it was like when women weren't pastors.
• Ask an ordained woman to share her experiences with an adult and/or youth discussion group.
• Ask members to share their experiences of women in ordained ministry in small discussion groups.
• Use the enclosed study resource as a guide for reflection and a prelude to further discussion on the upcoming study on ordained women, With Many Voices: Twenty-five Years of Ordained Ministry by Women in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada 1976-2001.