Bishop delighted at decision by Scottish Episcopal Church's General Synod Go-ahead for ordination of women priests

An amendment to the Church's canons to allow the ordination of women

to the priesthood secured two-thirds majorities in all three houses on

its second reading.

The house of laity, in which on last year's first reading a two-thirds

majority was only just reached, yesterday voted by 56 against 22, with

one abstention, for the measure.

The house of clergy voted 66 to 12 with one abstention, and the house

of bishops by six for, with none against.

The Primus, the Most Rev. Richard Holloway, Bishop of Edinburgh, said

later he was delighted. He was glad such large majorities had been

achieved, because two-thirds was itself a hard fence to leap.

Asked about fears that the decision would divide the Church and cause

male priests to resign, Bishop Holloway said he would be surprised if

many left. He did not think there would be more than three.

The Church would not make formal provision to compensate those who

felt compelled to resign their office, but the College of Bishops would

consider each specific case compassionately and justly, he said.

''No-one will be impoverished.''

The Synod agreed that the Church's first women priests would be

ordained on December 17.

There are already 63 women deacons, the first rung of the ladder of

the clergy, and Bishop Hollway estimated that 50 women priests could be

ordained in December.

An amendment by the diocese of Argyll and the Isles to delay

implementation of the canon until the synod could make financial

provision for those who felt compelled to resign was heavily defeated.

After the decision, Mr Robin Angus, Edinburgh, a layman, who said he

had been opposed to women priests, moved a resolution intended to

reconcile the different sides and calling on all branches of the Church

to continue to work together in love.

This resolution was overwhelmingly carried, and the Primus and Mr

Angus embraced each other on the platform .

Opposition had came from lay members who last year formed a group

called Our Living Church and launched a petition calling for the

procedure to be halted to allow much deeper consideration to take place

before a decision was made.

Mrs Elizabeth Anderson, Glasgow, said yesterday that since it had been

reported this week that many of the clergy had refused to let their

congregations consider the petition, members had shown interest in it.

More than 1150 communicants had now signed.

Mrs Mary Woodcock, Dunoon, one of the opponents, said people were

afraid because so many saw the priesting of woman as the culmination of

a departure from scripture and tradition.

''They fear the opening of the floodgates to militant feminism, an

even greater acceptance of deviant sexual practices, contempt for family

life, alteration of creeds, trendy liturgies, and all manner of strange

and erroneous doctrines.''

The Right Rev. Bruce Cameron, Bishop of Aberdeen and Orkney, asked

members to live together as a Church with a diversity of view and

practice.

''The alternative,'' he said, ''would lock this Church over the next

few years into an increasingly polarised and sterile existence which

would be detrimental to our life and mission''.

Canon Kenyon Wright, Glencarse, said the barrier to women being

priests was irrational, unbiblical, and debilitating to the Church's

life and witness. He suggested onlookers must see this soul-searching as

''a storm in a chalice''.