Florence Li Tim-Oi
“He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little way from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.’ Simon answered, ‘Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.’ When they had done this, they caught so many fish that their nets were beginning to break.”
Luke 5:3-6
Florence Li Tim-Oi was the first woman ever ordained as a priest in the Anglican Communion. Her ordination came out of necessity, rather than a normal discernment and ordination process.
“Florence studied at Union Theological College in Guangzhou (Canton). In 1938 upon graduation she served as lay worker, first in Kowloon and then in nearby Macao. In May 1941 Florence was ordained as a deaconess. Some months later, Hong Kong fell to Japanese invaders, and priests could not travel to Macao to celebrate the Eucharist. Despite this setback, Florence continued her ministry. Her work came to the attention of Bishop Ronald Hall of Hong Kong, who decided that ‘God’s work would reap better results if she had the proper title.’ On January 25, 1944, the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul, Bishop Hall ordained her a priest.”[1]
Once World War II was over, there was much controversy over her irregular ordination as a priest. She ceased exercising her priestly duties until women’s ordination would be normalized, but Bishop Hall insisted that she would continue to be called a priest. Finally, in the early 1980s while Florence was in Canada to visit family members, “she was licensed as a priest in the Diocese of Montreal and later in the Diocese of Toronto, where she finally settled until her death on February 26, 1992.”[2]
Florence Li Tim-Oi said “yes” to God’s call to serve His people in the way that she was needed. The call she received did not fit with the norms of the time and place in which she served — at that time only men could be ordained as priests. When we listen expectantly and hear God’s call in our lives, it can sometimes feel daunting. I feel sure that the path that Florence followed was not an easy one. May we all strive to follow the example of Florence in her courage and conviction responding faithfully to God’s call on her life.
Collect for Florence Li Tim-Oi
Almighty God, who pours out your Spirit upon your sons and daughters: Grant that we, following the example of your servant Florence Li Tim-Oi, chosen priest in your church, may with faithfulness, patience, and tenacity proclaim your holy gospel to all the nations, through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.
“Lesser Feasts and Fasts” 2018, page 59.
[1] “Lesser Feasts and Fasts” 2018, page 58.
[2] Ibid.
