As the established church of England and the mother church of the Anglican Communion, the Church of England is organised as a hierarchy with two archbishops of York and Canterbury at the head. Canterbury takes precedence over York.
Canterbury leads the Southern Province and York the Northern. The two provinces comprise England, the Isle of Man, the Channel Islands, the Isles of Scilly and a small part of Wales. Each province is made up of dioceses, of which England has 43. Each diocese is then divided into parishes. All Episcopal appointments are made by the crown.
Beneath the archbishops are the clergy of three ancient orders - Bishops, priests and deacons. Only bishops have the authority to ordain, confirm, and consecrate churches. Meanwhile, bishops are given consecration by other bishops. Deacons function as priests except for celebrating the mass and granting absolution, deacons have the same clerical functions as priests.
At the moment, the Church of England employs over 27000 licensed ministers. This number includes more than 9000 paid clergy, over 3000 non-stipendiary ministers, over 10000 Readers, some 5000 retired but still active clergy, together with more than 1100 chaplains working in various institutions including colleges, universities, hospitals, schools, prisons and the armed forces.
As for the role of women in the Church of England, they have been ordained as deacons since 1987 and as priests since 1994. In 2005, it was decided to commence the process of revamping church law to allow women to become bishops.
Canterbury leads the Southern Province and York the Northern. The two provinces comprise England, the Isle of Man, the Channel Islands, the Isles of Scilly and a small part of Wales. Each province is made up of dioceses, of which England has 43. Each diocese is then divided into parishes. All Episcopal appointments are made by the crown.
Beneath the archbishops are the clergy of three ancient orders - Bishops, priests and deacons. Only bishops have the authority to ordain, confirm, and consecrate churches. Meanwhile, bishops are given consecration by other bishops. Deacons function as priests except for celebrating the mass and granting absolution, deacons have the same clerical functions as priests.
At the moment, the Church of England employs over 27000 licensed ministers. This number includes more than 9000 paid clergy, over 3000 non-stipendiary ministers, over 10000 Readers, some 5000 retired but still active clergy, together with more than 1100 chaplains working in various institutions including colleges, universities, hospitals, schools, prisons and the armed forces.
As for the role of women in the Church of England, they have been ordained as deacons since 1987 and as priests since 1994. In 2005, it was decided to commence the process of revamping church law to allow women to become bishops.