CAPTION: The Rev'd Prebendary Jackie Taylor, Dean of Women in Ministry, raising her hand to share the "choose to challenge" message for International Women's Day 2021
The Women in Ministry who ‘Choose to Challenge’ for International Women’s Day 2021
The theme of International Women’s Day this year is Choose to Challenge. The Rev’d Prebendary Jackie Taylor, Dean of Women in Ministry for the Diocese of Exeter and Rector of Kingsbridge, Dodbrooke and West Alvington in South Devon, speaks here about some of the challenges she has faced and the women who have been her role models:
Did you face challenges on your journey to ordination?
“When I first felt a real sense of God’s prompting to ordination, the predominant challenge that I faced came from within myself.
“I went through a whole string of questions, trying to reason how it could be possible that God was calling me to ordained ministry as priest. ‘Who me Lord?’ But that deep sense of calling didn’t go away – it got stronger.
“Affirmation, which came in so many ways, lead me on a journey to recommendation for ordination training and during my final year at theological college we celebrated the 10th anniversary of the first ordination of women as priests in the Church of England.
Who are the women who have inspired you and why?
“I have been inspired by the strong women of my heritage, my grandmothers and my mother, who encouraged me through their determination for equal opportunities for women and girls and an aspiration for a gender equal world.
“I am also inspired by people like Edith Cavell, Nurse in WWI, without discrimination she served all in her care whether or not they were allied troops. Ultimately giving her life for theirs, her selfless courage enabled hundreds of soldiers to escape from occupied Belgium.
“Also, Rosa Parks – a humble seamstress who courageously challenged the status quo of the segregation laws in Alabama in 1955. From that determined act, which led to her arrest for civil disobedience, she became an international icon for racial equality and fifty years later upon her death became the first woman to lie in honour in the Capitol Rotunda Washington DC.
“Women are also prominent in early Christianity. Mary Magdalene, ‘Apostle to the Apostles’ is a constant inspiration. She is the person Jesus reveals himself to as the risen Christ. He entrusts her with the sharing of the glorious news of his resurrection on that first Easter morning.
The Church of England in Devon is actively encouraging more women to consider leadership roles in the Diocese. What would you say to women who are wondering whether this is a good place to be in ministry or who are considering training for some form of ministry?
“As Dean of Women in Ministry, I have been encouraged by the practical steps that are being taken to clearly demonstrate that this diocese is committed to being one in which women’s ordained ministry is able to flourish and potential female leaders identified, encouraged and supported.
“There is a real intentionality to cultivate an environment that encourages women to apply for leadership posts and to actively maximise the potential for the positive contribution that women in ministry can bring to the diocese.”
You can find out more about current vacancies and different forms of ministry in the Church of England in Devon here.
