December 2, 2009
By Kim Cain

MELBOURNE, Australia – An Anglican ordination scheduled to take place in a Roman Catholic church in rural Australia was moved at short notice to a Protestant church because the Vatican refused to have women ordained in a Catholic building.

Originally, Catholic Bishop Joseph Grech of the Diocese of Sandhurst had given permission for the Anglican Bishop Andrew Curnow of Bendigo to ordain seven candidates in St. Killian's Catholic Church on Nov. 29 due to the closure of the local Anglican cathedral on safety grounds.

But when it was discovered that four of those to be ordained were women, Rome vetoed the local leadership saying the ordinations could not take place within the Catholic building, even though it was an Anglican service.

Curnow told Ecumenical News International that he had been informed that the decision was entirely due to the presence of women in the ordination line-up. "It was felt that this would be sending the wrong signal regarding the ordination of women from a Catholic perspective," he said.

Instead, the ordinations were shifted to a local church of the Uniting Church in Australia, a Protestant denomination that has a history of ordaining women.

The decision to stop the ordinations in the Catholic church building was handed down through the office of the apostolic nuncio, or Vatican ambassador, to Australia, Archbishop Giuseppe Lazzarotto.

The Bendigo Advertiser quoted Grech as saying, "After much discussion with Archbishop Giuseppe Lazzarotto and the Vatican, the ramifications were investigated. The Catholic Church's doctrine on the ordination of deacons and priests is well known.

"There were certain issues within the doctrine that created problems. It's the best thing for both churches," Grech said.

Curnow asserted that the decision was not due to the Catholic Church in Bendigo.

With a population of 90,000, Bendigo is a regional city in the state of Victoria, about 150 kilometres (90 miles) northwest of Melbourne.

Curnow said there was confusion as to who initiated the Vatican response. "Some are saying it was due to a letter written to Rome," by a member of the local Catholic Church, he said.

Others have suggested that Lazzarotto became involved at the behest of Sydney-based Cardinal George Pell. Pell's office has not responded to questions from Ecumenical News International concerning his possible involvement.

Curnow revealed that at one point the Vatican had written to him asking a series of very detailed questions regarding the ordination. "It was when they discovered that four of the ordinands were female that they said ‘No,' as it was inconsistent with Catholic teachings," he said.

The dean of the Anglican cathedral, the Rev. Peta Sherlock, said the church had received many telephone calls from lay members of the Catholic Church "expressing sadness" that the ordination was not allowed to go ahead in the Catholic building.

Episcopal News Service
Ecumenical News International