The stained-glass ceiling is a sociological phenomenon in

religious Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...

communities similar to the concept of the "

glass ceiling A glass ceiling is a metaphor usually applied to women, used to represent an invisible barrier that prevents a given demographic from rising beyond a certain level in a hierarchy.Federal Glass Ceiling Commission''Solid Investments: Making Full ...

". This concept revolves around the apparent difficulty for women who seek to gain a role within church leadership. The use of the term "stained-glass ceiling" is metaphorical, indicating a certain level of power or authority within structures that women tend not to rise above within church hierarchies. This could range from a group's ''

de jure In law and government, ''de jure'' ( ; , "by law") describes practices that are legally recognized, regardless of whether the practice exists in reality. In contrast, ("in fact") describes situations that exist in reality, even if not legall ...

'' barring of women from positions like

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

, or similar clerical figures, to gender discrimination at the level of local congregations that prevent women from rising to any role of particular status or power. The stained-glass ceiling is a particular aspect of a broader trend of

gender segregation Sex segregation, sex separation, gender segregation or gender separation is the physical, legal, or cultural separation of people according to their biological sex. Sex segregation can refer simply to the physical and spatial separation by sex wi ...

and discrimination in religious communities, by use defined social roles and barriers typically justified by either tradition, dogma, or doctrine of the church group. The phrase "stained-glass" refers to the frequent placement of

stained-glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

artwork in places of Christian worship.

Statistics

Among the most significant examples of resistance to female clergy has been in the position of senior pastor in large church settings. For example, in the United Methodist Church only two female ministers have ever led churches with membership numbers within the top 100 of United Methodist churches in the U.S. The most recent national data (2005) indicates that there are no female ministers currently leading top 100 membership UMCs. Resistance has eased more rapidly for the position of bishop in the United Methodist Church. For 2004–2008, 15 of the 50 (30%) United Methodist bishops serving the U.S. are women.

Notable people

* Marjorie Matthews, elected bishop in the United Methodist Church in 1980. She was the first woman elected as a bishop by a U.S. mainline Christian denomination. * Julie Pennington-Russell, Senior Pastor of First Baptist Church (Decatur, Georgia)(8/2007–present). The largest church affiliated with the

Southern Baptist Convention The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination, and the largest Protestant and second-largest Christian denomination in the United States. The wo ...

with a woman as senior pastor (weekly worship attendance of 483/ 2,696 members "1,804 resident and 892 non-resident"). * Barbara Harris – the first woman ordained as a bishop in the Anglican Communion (1989) *

Katharine Jefferts Schori Katharine Jefferts Schori (born March 26, 1954) is the former Presiding Bishop and Primate of the Episcopal Church of the United States. Previously elected as the 9th Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Nevada, she was the first woman elected ...

– the first woman elected as a primate of the worldwide Anglican Communion (2006) * Elizabeth Eaton – the first woman elected as presiding bishop in the Evangelical Church in America (2013)

References

Presiding Bishop - About The Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton
''Growing Churches Led by Clergywomen''
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110715112410/http://media.premierstudios.com/nazarene/docs/Nazarene%20Clergy%20Women%20A%20Statistical%20Analysis.pdf ''Nazarene Clergy Women: A Statistical Analysis from 1908 to 2003, Richard Houseal, USA/Canada Mission/Evangelism Department- Church of the Nazarene Headquarters, See table 4, p. 20'']
''ELCA Gathers 'Power-Filled Women for a Power-Filled Church, March 1, 2004''

External links

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20000815072423/http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2000/0717/wpriests.html Time Magazine "The Stained Glass Ceiling" 17 July 2000 {{Portal bar, Feminism, Religion, Society Women's rights in religious movements

Statistics

Notable people

See also

References

External links