3. Burden of Proof and the Status Quo
Brian Smith & Kristin Coffin | Sunday, November 13, 2011 Brian Smith and Kristin Coffin offer a dialogue-style collaborative piece dealing with five subtopics as follows:
- The ramifications of an all-male priesthood.
- Systemic sexism in the Church.
- The burden of proof and the status quo.
- Doctrinal arguments.
- The role and purpose of the clergy.
This is the fourth piece in the series: Women as Ordained Priests (or Not). -Editor.
Kristin, speaking on the burden of proof
I’ve heard several people voice the following in the last few years: given the gravity of the consequences, if the General Church persists to exclude women from its spiritual leadership, there had better be very good reasons for doing so. Both sides of the debate tend to agree that our best understanding of doctrine needs to come before any consideration of convenience or natural pragmatism
Wondering about the inspiration for this article? Look up the New Church, which is based on the theological writings of Emanuel Swedenborg.
doctrine, male vs. female, ministry, ordination, organized, religion, sexism