It’s time for the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Australia to recognise women equally in ministry. Discriminatory practices (such as single-sex ordination) not only harm our mission, impose an arbitrary limitation on Spirit-called women, and turn people away; they also deprive the Church of the wisdom, insight, and leadership that women uniquely bring. We call on church leaders to do everything within their power to end this injustice now.

We, the undersigned, care deeply about both churched and unchurched people across Australia. We long to see the Seventh-day Adventist Church become more effective in sharing—and living out—the good news of a loving God who is gracious and just with all people in our increasingly secular society.

But we believe that the Church’s current practice of gender-based discrimination via ordination is a significant barrier to that mission.

 

A System That Limits and Excludes

The Church currently operates a two-tiered system, where a requirement of ordination exists (with a gender-exclusive application) to be able to perform certain pastoral functions and leadership roles. This represents a structural injustice that:

• Limits the calling and contribution of Spirit-filled women,
• Undermines the effectiveness and credibility of the Church,
• Pushes people away, both those in the church and those looking in.

We are seeing people walk away from the church because of this issue. Many others, especially younger Australians, aren’t willing to hear our message when they see a system that treats women as second-class citizens.

Our church is both poorer and weaker as a result. 

 

This Is Not the Gospel We Preach

We reject discrimination on the basis of gender.

We affirm the Protestant principle of the priesthood of all believers, and the New Testament teaching that:

“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” – Galatians 3:28

Our current practices contradict this truth, hinder our mission, and misrepresent the inclusive gospel we claim to uphold.

 

A Call for Justice, in Our Cultural Context

In Australia, the idea of a “fair go”—that everyone deserves equal opportunity—is deeply woven into our cultural identity. When the Church upholds a system that excludes women from certain levels of leadership, it is seen as not just outdated, but unjust.

This injustice doesn’t only hurt our witness. It leaves the Church increasingly out of touch with society and potentially exposed under anti-discrimination frameworks.

 

The Time for Change Is Now

We understand that the issue of ordination will be discussed at the upcoming Australian Union Conference Constituency Meeting (August 31 – September 4, 2025), and are encouraged by reports that many Conferences have expressed support for discussing change to the current system with its entrenched structural inequalities. We affirm their leadership and acknowledge that there may be multiple faithful paths toward the removal of current inequities.

We commend the steps that have been made towards equality, and believe the time has come for our Church in Australia to finish the job and find a way to fully align its practices with the gospel of justice, equality, and grace in this matter.

 

What We Are Asking

We respectfully call on Church leaders, delegates, and members at all levels within the Australian Seventh-day Adventist Church to advocate boldly at every forum afforded to them, and to seek and create opportunities to vote to:

• End all forms of gender-based discrimination in employment, leadership, and ordination (if ordination is retained as a requirement for certain roles)
• Ensure women called to ministry by the Holy Spirit are recognised on equal footing with men,
• Lead with courage, guiding our Church in Australia to a position that honours biblical truth and speaks meaningfully to our cultural context—acknowledging that Unions in other parts of the world may have different perspectives and needs within their own social and cultural contexts.

Recognising that the entire global Church may never reach consensus on this issue, we call for justice at least within our Union, for the health and mission of the Church in Australia. 

This call is grounded in Fundamental Belief #14 – Unity in the Body of Christ, which affirms that:

"Distinctions… between high and low, rich and poor, male and female, must not be divisive among us. We are all equal in Christ… and are to serve and be served without partiality or reservation."

 

We Stand for Justice and Equality

We pray for wisdom and courage for our leaders as they consider this issue.

We pray for a Church that embodies the character of Jesus—a Church that welcomes all, uplifts the marginalised, and embraces the gifts of every believer.

We are not ashamed of the gospel, nor of standing up for justice and equality for women, and the powerful, Spirit-led contributions they are called to make at every level of church life and leadership.

 

Justice Delayed is Justice Denied

How long will we hush our hearts while injustice lingers in plain sight?

How many years will we wait before finding a way to do what is right?

Let us not remain stalled or silenced by policy or politics while justice cries out to us for action. When conscience calls, will we not respond with conviction and do the right thing because it's the right thing to do?

This is both our prayer and our promise: that the Church in Australia will lead with integrity, standing in solidarity with all who hunger and thirst for righteousness and what is just in this matter.

As Martin Luther King Jr. wisely said:
“The time is always right to do what is right.”

Now is such a time for our Church.

Be bold, for the Lord your God is with you.

We also support you, and will be upholding you in prayer as you act as our representatives in this cause that is long overdue for resolution. 

📣 Sign this petition if you believe it’s time for the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Australia to end gender discrimination in ministry and more fully embrace a gospel of inclusion, fairness, and justice—with all of the benefits that will bring.