When then-journalist Katie Sherrod, who had grown up in a Catholic church but stopped attending, was invited to a private Eucharist in 1974 being conducted by a female Episcopal priest whose ordination had not been recognized officially by the church, she went only as an observer. 

“I was intrigued by how similar the service was to those of the Catholic Mass,” she said in a 2025 keynote address to the Episcopal Women’s History Project. “It was just another interesting assignment to me as a reporter, though.

“But then came the consecration. (The priest) raised the host and said, ‘The body of Christ.’ A woman saying those words, ‘the body of Christ’—I was unprepared for the powerful visceral reaction that swept through me. I had heard those words thousands of times as a Catholic but always said by a male. When I heard a woman saying it, everything changed for me. For the first time in my life, I felt included in the body of Christ.

“I looked around at this house full of weeping women and men and thought, something holy is happening here.”

In 2024, The Episcopal Church celebrated the 50th anniversary of women’s ordination, a long struggle chronicled in the PBS documentary, “The Philadelphia Eleven.” Today, approximately 40% of Episcopal priests are women; and nearly half of all active bishops are women. In 2006, the church elected its first—and thus far only—female presiding bishop, the Rt. Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori. In that role, she also became the first woman to serve as a primate (senior leader) in the worldwide Anglican Communion, which in 2026 welcomed its first female archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev. Sarah Mullally.

Women’s leadership roles in the story of the church are both ancient and central and include biblical and early church figures like Mary, Lydia, Dorcas, and Phoebe—as well as the desert mothers and female mystics down through the centuries. 

Directly connected to our current support of women’s roles and impact in The Episcopal Church is our commitment to stand against violence that harms women and girls—and to promote just, loving, and mutually respectful relationships. 

Organizations and networks

National Episcopal Church Women – This volunteer organization has served women and girls since 1871.

Episcopal Women’s History Project – Collects and preserves stories; offers grants and awards.

National Altar Guild Association – Supports those who prepare and maintain the altar and items used for worship. 
 
The Episcopal Community – A women’s community that uses the Rule of St. Benedict as a guide.

The Order of the Daughters of the King – A women and girls’ community that follows a Rule of Life.