Saturday 2 February 2013

Why a Redhead Cannot be a Priest

I'd normally let it lie. I really would. But it was Mad Priest that started me off. The story from the Catholic News is the line that women cannot be priests because Jesus is male. I'm not going to fisk the article - not least because you normally find that someone's been misquoted, or doesn't exist, or something, and then you just feel all silly. But the line of argument is familiar enough.

Let's just try rearranging the theory slightly, and imagine the Reverend Schwarzkopf, of the Church of the Sun-Resistant Bonces:

"The son of God became flesh, but became flesh not as hairless humanity but as a brunet," Reverend Schwarzkopf said; "and since a priest is supposed to serve as an image of Christ, his dark hair is essential to that role."

"It's important to realise that blonds and red-heads are not excluded from the Church, nor are they second-class. Indeed, because they know they have to be careful in hot sun, they are more likely to sympathise with others in their weakness. In particular, carrot-tops are especially blessed as they are so familiar with persecution. But, if we think in more general terms, their tendency to be hot-headed means it's probably best they have more suitable roles, such as getting stroppy in church meetings."

8 comments :

  1. Nice to know that as a blonde and female priest I'm doubly beyond the pale. :-)

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  2. Thus showing the relationship between the Anglo-Catholic theology of apostolic succession and the Evangelical doctrine of male headship ;-)

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    1. Nice to hear from you, Mouse. Was worried that Grendel, our Community cat, might have intercepted you.

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  3. You're a STAR and I should not giggle so much, being a 'respectable' (oh if they only knew!) middle-aged C of E Sunday School teacher. Nah, what the 'eck, I'll giggle as much as I like! :)

    love Mags B x

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  4. (And please note I am not ranting about the fact that of course Jesus was male, because in those days a female was the possession of her nearest male relative and you can't have the Messiah being no more independent than her husband's soup bowl. Also, three cheers for the Married Woman's Property Act! Rant ends now)

    love Mags B x

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  5. we all know that Jesus had light brown hair and blue eyes, so where does that leaev the rest of us?

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  6. And a spotless white dress, sorry, robe (so who dry-cleaned it for him and why do clergy traditionally wear black these days?) I've never found church work and white clothes go together, but maybe that's because I'm also a C of E Sunday school teacher of uncertain age...

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  7. Interesting read, thanks for sharing. I actually came across this blog because my cousin wants to get ordained online and I really don't know much about it other than he wants to be a priest.

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