The Ordination of Women in the LCA
Introduction
On July 24 and 25, 1998, a symposium was held at Luther Seminary (now Australian Lutheran College), Adelaide, South Australia on the question whether also women should be admitted to the public office of the ordained ministry of word and sacrament. The aim of presentations and workshops at this event was to clarify issues in the debate at present being conducted in the Lutheran Church of Australia, under the guidance of the Commission on Theology and Inter-Church Relations (CTICR). There was no intention to reach any conclusions during the symposium.
Most of the essays read at the symposium are here offered in written form to those who participated in the discussions and debates of the two days, and to any others in the church who may be interested in the proceedings. Naturally, each written contribution represents the stance and opinions of the author. While the Faculty of Luther Seminary was happy to organise the event and to provide about half of the contributors, the papers here offered are not issued with Faculty endorsement. They are simply contributions to an ongoing debate. That to which we are committed is the search for a consensus and the glorification of God’s holy name.
While the essays have undergone minor changes at the hands of the authors and of the editor, they largely reflect their original character as oral presentations in which detailed argumentation and documentation had to be limited. The Faculty trusts that the two hundred participants of the symposium, as well as others who could not be present, will find this record of proceedings instructive.
Most of the essays read at the symposium are here offered in written form to those who participated in the discussions and debates of the two days, and to any others in the church who may be interested in the proceedings. Naturally, each written contribution represents the stance and opinions of the author. While the Faculty of Luther Seminary was happy to organise the event and to provide about half of the contributors, the papers here offered are not issued with Faculty endorsement. They are simply contributions to an ongoing debate. That to which we are committed is the search for a consensus and the glorification of God’s holy name.
While the essays have undergone minor changes at the hands of the authors and of the editor, they largely reflect their original character as oral presentations in which detailed argumentation and documentation had to be limited. The Faculty trusts that the two hundred participants of the symposium, as well as others who could not be present, will find this record of proceedings instructive.
List of Contributions
The following essays link to the archived pages from the symposium now stored on Internet Archive Wayback Machine