Australia Ordains First Woman Pastor
The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) congratulates the Lutheran Church in Australia and New Zealand (LCANZ) on the ordination of its first female pastor on Palm Sunday.
Rev. Maria Rudolph was ordained at Concordia College Chapel Highgate in South Australia on 13 April and will be installed as associate pastor of St John's Lutheran Church, Perth, on Sunday 11 May.
The move comes following a historic decision by the church's General Convention last October to remove a paragraph from its statutes which prohibited women from being ordained for pastoral ministry. The resolution, which was passed by a two thirds majority, also confirmed that parishes and congregations may call a pastor, man or woman, who best suits their ministry needs.
A second woman, Sue Westhorp, will be ordained on 27 April to serve at St Paul's Lutheran Church in Box Hill, Victoria. The two female pastors join four other men who are also being ordained by the LCANZ in April and May, three to serve in parishes in Australia and one to serve in Auckland, New Zealand.
LWF’s Regional Secretary for Asia, Rev. Dr Rospita Siahaan welcomed the move, noting that it marks an important step forward and an example for other Lutheran churches in the region. “Together with the rest of the global communion, we celebrate this recognition of the importance of women’s ministry in our churches," she said. "We welcome this step towards equal dignity for all and we pray for all the new pastors, women and men, as they begin their ministry in the Australian church.”
