Victoria Matthews
Encyclopedia
Victoria Matthews is Bishop of Christchurch in the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand, and Polynesia. At her ordination to the episcopate in 1994, she became the first ever female bishop in the Anglican Church of Canada
.
in 1980. She served as an educator and a parish priest until 1994 when she was ordained to the episcopate. She was elected Bishop of Edmonton
in 1997.
In 1992, she sat on the bishop's court that convicted Fr James Ferry
of disobedience for living in a domestic partnership with another man.
Aside from heading her diocese, she had sat on many important Anglican committees that have helped to influence the church's stance on issues. She chaired the Primate’s Theological Commission starting in 1996 and was reelected in 2004. She also chaired the Task Force on Alternate Episcopal Oversight, which studied the issue of same-sex marriage
.
Matthews was a candidate to become Primate of the ACC
in 2004 until she had to withdraw from the race after being diagnosed with cancer. She was renominated for the 2007 primatial election, which saw Bishop Fred Hiltz
become primate instead.
Matthews is considered to be a theological conservative and on the Anglo-Catholic wing of the Church. At General Synod of 2007, she spoke favourably about same-sex blessings on the floor and voted in favour of a resolution acknowledging that "the blessing of same-sex unions is not in conflict with the core doctrine of the Anglican Church of Canada", while voting against permitting such blessings.
On August 3, 2007, Matthews announced her intention to resign as Bishop of Edmonton effective November 30, 2007. She was bishop-in-residence at Wycliffe College
in Toronto, Ontario, from January to April, 2008. In February 2008, she was elected Bishop of Christchurch
in the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand, and Polynesia. http://www.guardian.co.uk/theguardian/2008/feb/22/3 She was enthroned on August 30, 2008.
Education
Anglican Church of Canada
The Anglican Church of Canada is the Province of the Anglican Communion in Canada. The official French name is l'Église Anglicane du Canada. The ACC is the third largest church in Canada after the Roman Catholic Church and the United Church of Canada, consisting of 800,000 registered members...
.
Life
Matthews became a deacon in 1979 and was ordained to the priesthoodOrdination of women
Ordination in general religious usage is the process by which a person is consecrated . The ordination of women is a regular practice among some major religious groups, as it was of several religions of antiquity...
in 1980. She served as an educator and a parish priest until 1994 when she was ordained to the episcopate. She was elected Bishop of Edmonton
Anglican Diocese of Edmonton
The Diocese of Edmonton is a diocese of the Ecclesiastical Province of Rupert's Land of the Anglican Church of Canada. The diocese comprises almost 78,000 square kilometres of the civil Province of Alberta, consisting of a band across the central part of the province, extending to the borders of...
in 1997.
In 1992, she sat on the bishop's court that convicted Fr James Ferry
James Ferry
James Ferry is a priest of the Anglican Church of Canada. In 1992 he was removed from his parish after it was revealed that he was gay and in a relationship with another man....
of disobedience for living in a domestic partnership with another man.
Aside from heading her diocese, she had sat on many important Anglican committees that have helped to influence the church's stance on issues. She chaired the Primate’s Theological Commission starting in 1996 and was reelected in 2004. She also chaired the Task Force on Alternate Episcopal Oversight, which studied the issue of same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage is marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Supporters of legal recognition for same-sex marriage typically refer to such recognition as marriage equality....
.
Matthews was a candidate to become Primate of the ACC
Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada
The Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada is elected by the General Synod of the Church from among a list of five bishops nominated by the House of Bishops...
in 2004 until she had to withdraw from the race after being diagnosed with cancer. She was renominated for the 2007 primatial election, which saw Bishop Fred Hiltz
Fred Hiltz
Frederick James "Fred" Hiltz is the current Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada.Hiltz was born in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia where he was also raised. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree at Dalhousie University in 1975 and obtained his Master of Divinity degree at the Atlantic School of...
become primate instead.
Matthews is considered to be a theological conservative and on the Anglo-Catholic wing of the Church. At General Synod of 2007, she spoke favourably about same-sex blessings on the floor and voted in favour of a resolution acknowledging that "the blessing of same-sex unions is not in conflict with the core doctrine of the Anglican Church of Canada", while voting against permitting such blessings.
On August 3, 2007, Matthews announced her intention to resign as Bishop of Edmonton effective November 30, 2007. She was bishop-in-residence at Wycliffe College
Wycliffe College
Wycliffe College is an Anglican Church of Canada seminary federated with the University of Toronto. It is evangelical and Low church in orientation. On the other hand, the University of Toronto's other Anglican college, the University of Trinity College is Anglo-Catholic in outlook. While being an...
in Toronto, Ontario, from January to April, 2008. In February 2008, she was elected Bishop of Christchurch
Christchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
in the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand, and Polynesia. http://www.guardian.co.uk/theguardian/2008/feb/22/3 She was enthroned on August 30, 2008.
Education
- B.A.Bachelor of ArtsA Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
(honours) 1976 - Trinity CollegeUniversity of Trinity CollegeThe University of Trinity College, informally referred to as Trin, is a college of the University of Toronto, founded in 1851 by Bishop John Strachan. Trinity was intended by Strachan as a college of strong Anglican alignment, after the University of Toronto severed its ties with the Church of...
, University of TorontoUniversity of TorontoThe University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada... - M.Div. 1979 - Yale Divinity SchoolYale Divinity SchoolYale Divinity School is a professional school at Yale University, in New Haven, Connecticut, U.S. preparing students for ordained or lay ministry, or for the academy...
and Berkeley Divinity SchoolBerkeley Divinity SchoolBerkeley Divinity School, founded in 1854, is an official seminary of the Episcopal Church, based in New Haven, Connecticut. The seminary was originally founded as a middle-way between the Anglo-Catholic leaning General Theological Seminary in New York, and the Evangelical-leaning Virginia...
(recipient of the North American Theological Fellowship 1976-1979) - Th.M. 1987 - Trinity College