Ordination of women in Christianity

In Christianity, the ordination of women has been taking place in an increasing number of Protestant and Old Catholic churches, starting in the 20th century.

Ordination is the process by which people are consecrated by a Christian denomination, that is, set apart as clergy to perform various religious rites and ceremonies such as celebrating the sacraments.

Most (although not all) Protestant denominations ordain church leaders who have the task of equipping all believers in their Christian service (Ephesians 4:11–13).

Protestant churches have historically viewed the Bible as the ultimate authority in church debates (the doctrine of sola scriptura); as such, the debate over women's eligibility for such offices normally centers around the interpretation of certain Biblical passages relating to teaching and leadership roles.

They also quote John 20:17–18, and argue that in talking to Mary, Jesus is calling for women to evangelize In turn, those who argue for a male only ministry say that the claims to contexts that change the apparent meaning of the texts at hand to one supporting female ordination are in fact spurious, that the passages that appear to show women in positions of authority do not in fact do so, and the idea that the good news of Jesus brings equality before God only relates to salvation and not to roles for ministry.

Some provinces within the Anglican Communion, such as the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America, ordain women to the three traditional holy orders of bishop, priest and deacon.