While the Church of England debates the “place” of women in the church, which we reported HERE, and Lauren Stanley responded to in her Daily Episcopalian piece, “I am not a nobody“, Dr. Jane Williams, known as “A theologian in her own right” and also as the spouse of the current Archbishop of Canterbury, spoke with women in Pennsylvania and encouraged them to tell their stories and to ” ‘re-imagine’ themselves within the body of the people of God.”
Share your stories, build community, Williams tells women
From Episcopal News Service:
Jane Williams, a widely regarded theologian and the spouse of the Archbishop of Canterbury, challenged women in the Diocese of Pennsylvania last weekend to “re-imagine” themselves within the body of the people of God.
In two addresses, she encouraged her listeners to create a new vision of themselves, gain confidence as a group and join with other women worldwide who are making a significant contribution to the life and witness of the church.
Williams, who said she makes few public appearances, was the keynote speaker at “Re-Imagining Ourselves,” the first all-women’s diocesan conference in many years, held at two Philadelphia churches on October 8-10.
…
Encouraging the women, Williams said they must keep reminding themselves that they are “beloved and chosen.” “Not everything in the world around us, whether it might be in the family or in the church, helps us to feel that,” she said. “We must keep doing it for each other.”
No word on whether anyone asked her about the current debates in the Church of England and her take on them. Any Cafe readers at these sessions?