Did you know that it wasn’t that long ago that women were not allowed to be priests in the Episcopal Church? Eleven women broke that glass ceiling when they were ordained on July 29, 1974, two years before General Convention authorized the ordination of women. These ordinations, and that of five more women in Washington, DC in 1975, were widely criticized as irregular until the House of Bishops affirmed the validity of their ordinations in 1976 by requiring an ‘act of completion’ from these priests.
The Philadelphia Eleven, a feature-length documentary that is scheduled to be released in 2024, examines this major turning point in the history of the church and the effective strategic organizing of the women’s movement that led to these hard-won rights. The director and producer, Margo Guernsey, interviewed eight of the eleven and describes the film as “the story of a call that is denied, and the determination to overcome the barriers and live out the call with integrity.” A sneak peek of the film will be held virtually tomorrow night, June 30, at 7:30 pm ET. Following a 10-15 minute highlight reel, two of the Philadelphia Eleven—the Rev. Nancy Wittig and the Rev. Marie Moorefield—and the Rev. Betty Rosenburg Powell, one of four women ordained in 1975 in the Diocese of Washington, will participate in a Q&A. Register here if you’d like to attend, but I recommend doing that today as I understand that the free tickets are limited and going quickly.
It’s almost July and our First Friday Fun is going to be a First Monday Fun!! We will be participating in the Palisades 56th Annual Fourth of July Parade and Picnic and St. Patrick’s will host as usual for parade participants beginning at 10:00 AM. Then, we’ll hoist our St. Patrick’s banner and join in as the parade kicks off around 11:00 AM, ending at Palisades Rec Center for free food, music, and games. This is an amazing way to connect with our neighbors and enjoy what feels like a ‘small town parade’ in the heart of Washington, DC! Please join me Monday at this special event.
