Church of England to allow women bishops

The Church of England has voted to allow women to enter its top ranks as bishops for the first time.

The Church's national assembly, known as the General Synod, approved the historic measure at its meeting in York in northern England on Monday. A total of 351 members of the Synod's three different houses voted in favor of the measure, while 72 voted against and 10 abstained.

The measure had the support of Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and Prime Minister David Cameron.

The vote comes two years after similar legislation failed to reach a two-thirds majority among the General Synod's lay members, despite approval from bishops and clergy.

Earlier Monday, Welby told the BBC that he hoped the vote would go through, saying "the votes, I think, are there."

"Theologically, the church has been wrong not to ordain women as priests and bishops over the centuries," Welby said in the interview, which aired Sunday.

Welby said the first female bishop could be named early next year.

The Church of England is part of the Anglican Communion, which has the largest Christian denomination in Britain and a presence in more than 160 countries.

Bishops are senior managers in the church who uphold the episcopal tradition because only they can ordain priests and assure the continuation of the clergy.

Wire services