by Chia-Lin Wang

When people talk about female experience at churches in East Asia, the first image that comes into mind is the Rev. Florence Li Tim-Oi who was the first female to be ordained as priest in the Anglican Communion. Thinking of the Rev. Florence Li Tim-Oi, females in leadership can be very challenged in the society, life, and church ministry of East Asia and Southeast Asia. Some countries in the Anglican Communion nowadays still ordain females as deacons but not as priests. However, the concern of gender equality around the world makes influence on Asian countries. After centuries of progress, East Asia of the Anglican Communion welcomes the first female bishop, the Rt. Rev. Maria Grace Tazu Sasamori, in the Diocese of Hokkaido of the Nippon Sei Ko Kei, the Anglican Communion in Japan. This article will be my personal observation and reflection about how I, as female, grow and be affected and transformed at Episcopal Church.

Many females in the world were or are educated to get married when they graduate from college or the age comes to twenties, next give birth to babies, and take care of entire household chores so that husbands can focus on work for family expense. Females compete to be the best housewife which represents the greatest accomplishment in their life. But there are some females who not only have their own career but also can maintain their household with their husbands equally. I witnessed both kinds of females in my family. One was my grandmother who fit every description in the first character, and another is my mother who lives out the life of the second character. So, what would it be like when both females came to church?

My family was Presbyterian, and I noticed only males in the family taking the roles of leadership at church. Behind males, females and children of the family were all involved in church ministries and supported males. Males were either elders or deacons, females were either the leader or vice leader of females’ fellowship, and all children had experience of serving as pianist at the church. Among my Christian relatives, there are only two females who had been the elders.

Then I discovered that females who become elders at church mostly have high education at least with a bachelor’s degree and a steady career in the government’s department or their own business with certain income. They serve at church with all hearts, have their own career, and sustain their family well. They present female independence and ability of organizing their life at church, work, and family. Through these models, they tell me that females are not restrained by their gender anymore.

When I came to Episcopal church and participated in the vestry of my home parish, it was a big surprise for me to see that the numbers of females in the vestry were equal to males. Each of them takes a different character of leadership at the church and works with the rector, who is a female priest, to expand church ministries. They gather female parishioners and invite husbands of these parishioners to attend courses and fellowships at church. No one is left, and all is one body at the church.

This is a parish which welcomes every member to participate and experience different ministries. I started with being a pianist at English service with a small international congregation and a teacher at children’s English Sunday School. And I was invited by the rector to join the training and serve as acolyte and Lay Eucharist Minister. After three years, I volunteered to be the leader of the Youth group in the Chinese congregation. When I was confirmed to be Episcopalian in 2015, I joined the diocesan mission trip to Myanmar and Malaysia. Every moment I serve at the church, I realize that each experience is accompanied by the knowledge of God and the tradition of the church. It is a journey of faith to answer the call from heaven.

Serving, learning, and growing in the Episcopal church guided me to understand the question “Do you want to be a priest?” from my mother. Stepping into priesthood is not about gender but my relationship with God. Being Episcopalian gives me courage to share the call with my grandmother, who was happy for me and immediately gave me blessings which I didn’t expect. Because I presumed my grandmother would say it was inappropriate and inconvenient for females to be priests. Females should get married, be at home and support their husbands. Nevertheless, the world is changing. More and more females become priests and lead the church to flourish. And even my country, Taiwan, has had the first female president since 2016. My grandmother experienced her own transformation from the family, church, and society.

It takes decades for people in Taiwan to embrace females as leadership. It is a long journey and also an ongoing process of raising up female voices. Challenges to females still exist in Taiwan and all over the world. The path of changing the world is still full of obstacles, but churches can be the shelter for females being mistreated and anyone in need. No matter what gender, class, or race people are, all shall be welcomed to the Lord’s table.