Women bishops.

Edinburgh

(ACNS)--The General Synod of the Scottish Episcopal Church, meeting in Edinburgh in June, voted to accept women bishops. At last year's General Synod, a vast majority of the 156 members supported the motion, which also gave churches throughout Scotland the opportunity to spend a year discussing the issue further in their own dioceses.

This year, the motion received 124 votes in favour, out of a total of 153. All seven bishops of the Scottish church voted in favour. In 1993 and 1994 the Scottish synod agreed to allow women to be ordained as priests and the first ordinations took place in December, 1994.

Currently, the Anglican or Episcopal churches in the United States, Canada and New Zealand have elected women as bishops. The churches in Ireland and South Africa have also voted to allow women bishops but have yet to appoint one. In 1992, the General Synod of the Church of England voted to open the priesthood to women, but does not currently allow women to become bishops.

Responding to the decision, the Scottish primus (senior bishop), Archbishop Bruce Cameron, said, "The decision is a momentous one. For some it will be received with great joy, for others pain, but I know that most of us will want to be members of the same family in the Episcopal church. We must seek to be sensitive to all people in our church."