The Orthodox Church

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The Orthodox Church, a Christian denomination that traces its origins to the first century and is most prominent in Eastern Europe and Africa, does not permit women to be ordained.

According to a question-and-answer section on the website of the Orthodox Church in America, this prohibition on female ordination “is a matter of Holy Tradition, as well as a vision of ministry as something not limited to the ordained priesthood.”

“I have come across theologians who posit that, while there may be no strictly theological objection to the ordination of women, Holy Tradition has never supported it, and that theological pursuits cannot be considered in isolation from the ongoing life of God’s People known as Tradition,” stated the OCA answer.

“Orthodoxy does not see the priesthood as a 'right' or a 'privilege.' It does not see the clergy as a caste apart from the laos tou Theou, the People of God. It does not understand ordination to the priesthood as a matter of justice, equality, political correctness, or human rights.”

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