353: Icons and Idols

I was once told that the reason it was so important that only men could be ordained in the ICCEC, was because the clergy is “an icon of Christ.”

Worship is so intrinsically bound to the role of our clergy that if it does not flow into or out of the altar, it is not an essential element of ordained ministry . . . The ICCEC does not ordain women to the diaconate or priesthood . . . The Eucharist is intrinsic to our worship services. Indeed, biblical worship must include sacrifice . . . Our clergy are not permitted to concelebrate the Eucharist with an ordained female minister or priest . . .

It smacked of phallocentric idolatry then; it still does.

There’s the rub; an icon can far too easily become an idol. Idols always bring disaster to the idolater. An icon is an open door to the Creator; when it becomes an idol, the door slams in your face.
Madeleine L’Engle

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