Contemporary Thinking on the Role and Ministry of Women in the Orthodox Church

The article is concerned with contemporary Orthodox thinking on the role of women in the Church. This topic is explored in the context of Orthodox theology, tradition and history. The starting point for Orthodox theology as regards the division of humanity into masculine and feminine is fundamental to understanding the Orthodox Church's view on the past, present and future role of women. In particular, the current issues of restoring the female diaconate and ordaining women to the priesthood present a significant challenge to the Orthodox Church in its understanding of the meaning of faithfulness to tradition and its discernment of the work of the Holy Spirit.