Ellen Barrett: Difference between revisions
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'''Ellen Marie Barrett''' (born on February 10, 1946 in [[Lawrence, Kansas]]) was the first openly lesbian priest to be properly ordained by the [[Episcopal Church in the United States of America|Episcopal Church]], shortly after the [[General Convention]] approved the [[ordination of women]] in 1977. Barrett's candor about her [[homosexuality]] caused great controversy within the church. Even prior to her entry into the priesthood, she was a prominent spokesperson for the rights of [[gays]] and [[lesbians]] in the church, especially in regards to ordination. |
'''Ellen Marie Barrett''' (born on February 10, 1946 in [[Lawrence, Kansas]], to [[Linton Lomas Barrett]] and Marie Hamilton McDavid) was the first openly lesbian priest to be properly ordained by the [[Episcopal Church in the United States of America|Episcopal Church]], shortly after the [[General Convention]] approved the [[ordination of women]] in 1977. Barrett's candor about her [[homosexuality]] caused great controversy within the church. Even prior to her entry into the priesthood, she was a prominent spokesperson for the rights of [[gays]] and [[lesbians]] in the church, especially in regards to ordination. |
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== Education and ordination == |
== Education and ordination == |
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Revision as of 19:30, 5 January 2011
Ellen Marie Barrett (born on February 10, 1946 in Lawrence, Kansas, to Linton Lomas Barrett and Marie Hamilton McDavid) was the first openly lesbian priest to be properly ordained by the Episcopal Church, shortly after the General Convention approved the ordination of women in 1977. Barrett's candor about her homosexuality caused great controversy within the church. Even prior to her entry into the priesthood, she was a prominent spokesperson for the rights of gays and lesbians in the church, especially in regards to ordination.
Education and ordination
Prior to her ordination, Barrett served as a deacon in the New York diocese. She was a founding member and the first co-president of Integrity, a group formed to advocate for the full participation of lesbians, gays and bisexuals in the church.[1] Her record at the General Theological Seminary was considered exemplary, and she was well-regarded academically, professionally and spiritually by the faculty.[2]
Barrett was ordained in 1977 by Bishop Paul Moore at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine.[2] Bishop Moore was aware of her sexual orientation and did not feel it should prohibit her from entering the ministry.[1] He was strongly convinced that her commitment to a vocation far outweighed her commitment to the "gay movement".[2]
Personal views
Barrett drew upon the example of Rosa Parks, finding it as apt for feminism as for civil rights, stating: "I remember Mrs. Rosa Parks' answer about why she sat down that day on that bus: 'I don't know, just tired I guess.' Yes, tired.... Tired of being second-class, good girl, virgin-whore, defective by nature. Tired of being told that the omnipotent God can't call me to the priesthood."[3]
Impact and reaction
Barrett's ordination was met with widespread criticism and protest within the Episcopal Church. Bishop Moore stated that of 42 letters he received from other bishops, ten were supportive and thirty-two were critical. Bishop William Frey of Colorado stated that there were better ways to minister to homosexuals than to "bless that which God offers to redeem". Moore related his belief that it was not so much Barrett's sexual orientation that his fellow bishops found disturbing, but rather her candor as a lesbian.[1]
The ordination of Ellen Barrett brought the ordination of homosexuals into the public eye, along with the ordination of women. Many homosexuals in the church have followed her example, abandoning the practice of having a "closeted" private life that contradicts one's public actions and statements.[2]
In the months following her ordination, Episcopal magazines and newspapers wrote about the matter, often condemning it. The House of Bishops met in Port St. Lucie nine months later, passing a resolution condemning homosexuality as unbiblical and reasserting the heterosexual confines of marriage. However, they failed to pass a measure censuring Bishop Moore for ordaining Barrett. This was in large part defeated by some of Moore and Barrett's strongest detractors, who wished to retain a right of dissent. This led to the passage of a "conscience clause", permitting bishops the right to decline to anoint women into the priesthood. This same principle of conscience led a growing number of bishops to ordain "out" homosexuals throughout the 1980s.[4]
See also
Notes
References
- Oppenheimer, Mark. Knocking on Heaven's Door: American Religion in the Age of Counterculture. Yale University Press (2003). ISBN 0300100248.
- Prelinger, Catherine M. Episcopal Women: Gender, Spirituality, and Commitment in an American. Oxford University Press (1992). ISBN 019510465X.
- Pritchard, Robert W. A history of the Episcopal Church. Morehouse Pub (1999). ISBN 0819218286.
- Sears, James T. & Williams, Walter L., editors. Overcoming Heterosexism and Homophobia: Strategies that Work. Columbia University Press (1997). ISBN 0231104235.
- Hein, David, and Shattuck, Gardiner Jr. The Episcopalians. Praeger (2003). ISBN 0313229589.
Further reading
- Moore, Paul. Take a Bishop like me. Harper and Row (1979). ISBN 0060130180.