The Priests (Ordination of Women) Measure 1993

as it has effect in the Isle of Man

This Measure extends to the Isle of Man subject to the modifications set out in Schedule 4. Those modifications have been incorporated in this text.

Reproduced by permission of the Treasury of the Isle of Man
© Crown copyright reserved
Text as at 30th August 2004

Part I - Power to legislate by Canon
1. Provision for ordination of women as priests
Part II - Discharge of functions
2. Bishops
3. Parishes
5. Ecclesiastical offences
7. Benefices in the patronage of the Crown etc
8. Interpretation of Part II
Part III - General
9. General interpretation
10. Minor and consequential amendments
11. Amendment etc of Measure or Canon
12. Short title, commencement and extent
Schedule 1 - Forms of parish resolution
Schedule 3 - Minor and consequential amendments
Schedule 4 - Application to the Isle of Man

PART I
POWER TO LEGISLATE BY CANON

Provision for ordination of women as priests

1. (1) It shall be lawful for the General Synod to make provision by Canon for enabling a woman to be ordained to the office of priest if she otherwise satisfies the requirements of Canon Law as to the persons who may be ordained as priests.

(2) Nothing in this Measure shall make it lawful for a woman to be consecrated to the office of bishop.

NOTE S.1: Canon C4B, made under this section, was promulged on 22nd February 1994.

PART II
DISCHARGE OF FUNCTIONS

Bishops

2. (1) A bishop of a diocese in office at the relevant date may make any one or more of the following declarations -

(a) that a woman is not to be ordained within the diocese to the office of priest; or
(b) that a woman is not to be instituted or licensed to the office of incumbent or priest-in-charge of a benefice, or of team vicar for a benefice, within the diocese; or
(c) that a woman is not to be given a licence or permission to officiate as a priest within the diocese.

(2) A declaration by a bishop under subsection (1) above shall be contained in a written notice signed by him.

(3) A bishop who has made a declaration under subsection (1) above may by written notice signed by him withdraw the declaration.

(4) A copy of any notice given under subsection (2) or (3) above shall be sent to the following -

(a) Her Majesty; . . .
(d) the archbishop of the province concerned;
(e) the secretary of the diocesan synod of the diocese concerned;
(f) the registrar of the province concerned;
(g) the registrar of the diocese concerned;. . .

(5) Where the bishop of a diocese who has made a declaration under subsection (1) above and not withdrawn it ceases to hold that office, the declaration shall continue to be in force until the expiry of a period of six months beginning with the date on which another person becomes the bishop of that diocese.

(6) Where a declaration by a bishop under this section is in force, a bishop discharging any functions of the bishop of the diocese (including functions by virtue of an instrument under section 10 of the Dioceses Measure 1978 or a scheme under section 11 of that Measure) shall not act in contravention of the declaration.

(7) A declaration under subsection (1)(c) above shall not prevent a woman from being allowed under any Canon of the Church of England to officiate as a priest in a church or chapel for one period of not more than seven days in any period of three months without reference to the bishop or other Ordinary.

(8) In this section "relevant date" means the date on which the Canon enabling a woman to be ordained to the office of priest is promulged.

NOTE S.2: subs.(4): paras.(b), (c) & (h) omitted by Sch.4; subs.(8): the "relevant date" was 22nd February 1994 (see note on s.1 above).

Parishes

3. (1) Subject to the following provisions of this section the parochial church council of a parish may pass either or both of the resolutions set out as Resolution A and Resolution B in Schedule 1 to this Measure.

(2) Subject to the following provisions of this section a parochial church council which has passed a resolution under subsection (1) above may by resolution rescind it, and the first-mentioned resolution shall continue in force until rescinded.

(3) A motion for a resolution in the form set out as Resolution A in Schedule 1 to this Measure shall not be considered by a parochial church council if the incumbent or priest-in-charge of the benefice concerned, or any team vicar or assistant curate for that benefice, is a woman ordained to the office of priest.

(4) A resolution shall not be passed by a parochial church council under subsection (1) or (2) above unless -

(a) except where notice of a vacancy has been sent to the secretary of the council under section 7(4) of the Patronage (Benefices) Measure 1986, the secretary of the council has given to the members of the council at least four weeks' notice of the time and place of the meeting at which the motion proposing the resolution is to be considered; and
(b) the meeting is attended by at least one half of the members of the council entitled to attend.

(5) A copy of any resolution passed by a parochial church council under subsection (1) or (2) above shall be sent to the following -

(a) the bishop of the diocese concerned;
(b) the rural dean of the deanery concerned;
(c) the lay chairman of the deanery synod concerned;
(d) the registrar of the diocese concerned;
[(e) the patron of the benefice].

(6) Where a resolution under subsection (1) above is in force a person discharging any function in relation to the parish or benefice concerned shall not act in contravention of the resolution:
Provided that this subsection shall not apply in relation to a service held in a parish church cathedral on the direction of the bishop of the diocese.

[(7) Where a chapelry or part of a chapelry is situated within the boundary of a parish, the functions of the parochial church council under this section shall he exercised by the parochial church council of the parish (excluding the chapelry or part thereof) and the parochial church council of the chapelry acting jointly, in accordance with rules made for the purpose of this subsection by the standing committee of the diocesan synod.

(8) In this section -

"chapel" means a chapel for the time being specified in Part I of Appendix III to Schedule 3 to the Synodical Government Measure 1969 as that Schedule has effect in the Isle of Man ("the Isle of Man Church Representation Rules");
"chapelry" means a district assigned to a chapel in accordance with the Isle of Man Church Representation Rules;
"parish" means an ecclesiastical parish. ]

NOTE S.3: subs.(5): para.(e) substituted and para.(f) omitted by Sch.4; subss(7) & (8) substituted and subss.(9) & (10) omitted by Sch.4.

. . . . .

NOTE S.4 omitted by Sch.4.

Ecclesiastical offences

5. It shall be an offence against the laws ecclesiastical, for which proceedings may be taken under the Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction Measure 1963 -

(a) for any bishop to act in contravention of a declaration under section 2(1) above; or
(b) for any bishop, priest or deacon to act in contravention of a resolution under section 3(1) above or to permit any act in contravention of such a resolution to be committed in any church or any building licensed for public worship according to the rites and ceremonies of the Church of England; . . .

NOTE S.5: para.(c) omitted by Sch.4.

. . . . .

NOTE S.6 omitted by Sch.4.

Benefices in the patronage of the Crown etc

[7. Sections 2 and 3 shall apply to a benefice the patronage of which is vested in or exercisable by Her Majesty as they apply in relation to any other benefice.]

NOTE S.7 substituted by Sch.4.

Interpretation of Part II

8. In this Part -

"administrative body" has the same meaning as in the Cathedrals Measure 1963;
["benefice" includes the office of incumbent of the parish of German, but does not include any other office in the cathedral church of St German;]
"cathedral church" means any cathedral church in England except the cathedral church of Christ in Oxford;
"parish church cathedral" means any cathedral church other than a cathedral church in respect of which there is a corporate body known as the dean and chapter.

NOTE S.8: definition of "benefice" substituted by Sch.4.

PART III
GENERAL

General interpretation

9. In any Canon, order, rule or regulation relating to priests, words importing the masculine gender include the feminine, unless the contrary intention appears.

Minor and consequential amendments

10. The enactments specified in Schedule 3 to this Measure shall have effect subject to the amendments specified in that Schedule, being minor amendments or amendments consequential on the provisions of this Measure.

Amendment etc of Measure or Canon

11. A motion for the final approval of a Measure or Canon of the Church of England which amends or repeals any provision of this Measure or of any Canon promulged under section 1 above shall not be deemed to be carried unless it receives the assent of a majority in each House of the General Synod of not less than two-thirds of those present and voting.

Short title, commencement and extent

12. (1) This Measure may be cited as the Priests (Ordination of Women) Measure 1993.

(2) This Measure shall come into force on such day as the Archbishops of Canterbury and York may jointly appoint, but they shall not appoint a day for the purpose of this subsection unless a Measure of the General Synod making provision as to the relief of hardship incurred by persons resigning from ecclesiastical service by reason of opposition to the promulgation of a Canon under section 1 above has been enacted.

(3) Subject to the following provisions of this section this Measure shall extend to the whole of the provinces of Canterbury and York except the Channel Islands.

(4) This Measure may be applied to the Channel Islands, as defined in the Channel Islands (Church Legislation) Measures 1931 and 1957, or either of them, in accordance with those Measures.

(5) This Measure shall apply to the Isle of Man in accordance with the provisions of Schedule 4 to this Measure.

NOTE S.12: Commencement: the Measure came into force on 22nd February 1994.

SCHEDULE 1
FORMS OF PARISH RESOLUTION

Resolution A

That this parochial church council would not accept a woman as the minister who presides at or celebrates the Holy Communion or pronounces the Absolution in the parish.

Resolution B

That this parochial church council would not accept a woman as the incumbent or priest-in-charge of the benefice or as team vicar for the benefice.

. . . . .

NOTE Sch.2 omitted by Sch.4.

SCHEDULE 3
MINOR AND CONSEQUENTIAL AMENDMENTS

. . . . .

NOTE Sch.3 amends the Church Representation Rules, Dioceses Measure 1978, Pastoral Measure 1983 and Church of England (Miscellaneous Provisions) Measure 1983; paras.1, 2, 3(a) and 10-13 omitted by Sch.4.

SCHEDULE 4
APPLICATION TO THE ISLE OF MAN

In its application to the Isle of Man, this Measure shall have effect as if -

(a) in section 2(4), paragraphs (b), (c) and (h) were omitted;
(b) in section 3 -
(i) in subsection (5), for paragraphs (e) and (f) there were substituted -
"(e) the patron of the benefice";
(ii) for subsections (7), (8), (9) and (10) there were substituted -

"(7) Where a chapelry or part of a chapelry is situated within the boundary of a parish, the functions of the parochial church council under this section shall he exercised by the parochial church council of the parish (excluding the chapelry or part thereof) and the parochial church council of the chapelry acting jointly, in accordance with rules made for the purpose of this subsection by the standing committee of the diocesan synod.

(8) In this section -

"chapel" means a chapel for the time being specified in Part I of Appendix III to Schedule 3 to the Synodical Government Measure 1969 as that Schedule has effect in the Isle of Man ("the Isle of Man Church Representation Rules");
"chapelry" means a district assigned to a chapel in accordance with the Isle of Man Church Representation Rules;
"parish" means an ecclesiastical parish.";
(c) section 4 (together with Schedule 2) were omitted;
(d) in section 5, the word "or" (where it appears after paragraph (b)) and paragraph (c) were omitted;
(e) section 6 were omitted;
(f) for section 7 there were substituted -

"7. Sections 2 and 3 shall apply to a benefice the patronage of which is vested in or exercisable by Her Majesty as they apply in relation to any other benefice.";

(g) in section 8, for the definition of "benefice" there were substituted -
"benefice" includes the office of incumbent of the parish of German, but does not include any other office in the cathedral church of St German;";
(h) in Schedule 3, paragraphs 1, 2, 3(a) and 10, 11, 12 and 13 were omitted.

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