After a years-long struggle, the Church's governing body is finally voting — and female bishops could be ordained as early as 2014.
The Church of England's governing body is holding a three-day summit to vote on whether women can become bishops.
The governing body is comprised of 470 members and is known as the "General Synod," which is a truly A+ name. It will reach a decision Tuesday.
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There have been female priests in England since 1992, and they currently make up a third of all British clergy.
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However, that debate alone took twenty-five years to settle.
Above, a woman advocating for ordaining female clergy back in 1978. (Also, in case you're not totally up-to-date on your knowledge of Anglican church structure, the difference between priests and bishops is that the former are local, looking after single parishes or communities, while the latter oversee a whole group of these parishes in what's known as a "diocese." Basically, it comes down to power.)
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The vote is expected to be tight.
Image by Peter Macdiarmid / Getty Images
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