A crowd-funded project to commission a song to celebrate women priests in the Church of England has been launched in our diocese.
Revd Catherine Shelley of St Mary’s Todmorden is one of our Diocesan Advisers on Women’s Ministry and said the initiative would mark 30 years of women’s ordination and ten years of women bishops.
“We want to commission O’ Hooley and Tidow, a Yorkshire-based folk band of Gentleman Jack fame, to write a song celebrating some of the first women to be ordained,” Revd Catherine said.
“They will include Revd Margaret Mabbs,who campaigned for women to be ordained from 1942, was amongst the first to be ordained in 1994 at the age of 70 and retired from ministry aged 92. It will also include Jemima Prasadam, mother of the current Bishop of Huddersfield, +Smitha Prasadam, who was the first South Asian woman to be ordained in the CofE, plus others who continue to minister today.
The project is supported by NADAWM, the National Association of Diocesan Advisers for Women's Ministry and friends, CofE members and wider communities, across the UK and beyond.
The Rt Revd Anna Eltringham, Bishop of Ripon praised the “brilliant” idea: “Folk music re-tells stories of people and places so they are not forgotten.
“The idea of retelling the stories through song, of some of the first women ordained in 1994, is absolutely brilliant!
“I look forward to what O’ Hooley and Tidow come up with and encourage the news of this creative endeavour to be spread far and wide so that we can raise money to make it happen.
“Do suggest whose stories you think must not be forgotten too – we can’t include them all, but we will celebrate through this song the difference women’s ministry collectively has made to the church and the world.
“Like Miriam in the Old Testament, get your tambourine ready to join in when the song is finally released!”
More information and how to donate may be found here.