Despite risks, Iraqis want Pope Francis to go ahead with visit
- Mar 4, 2021
One of the Catholic Church’s most visible nuns has said the push for women’s priestly ordination in the Catholic Church points to a deeper question that needs to be asked and stressed the need to separate ordained ministry from decision-making.
Seven women who recently turned in résumés at the Vatican embassy to France for ecclesial jobs open only to men were shocked not only when they got a response, but were offered one-on-one private meetings with Vatican’s nuncio to the country, Archbishop Celestino Migliore, who they described as welcoming, open-minded, and an attentive listener.
In a recent interview, the new president of the German bishops’ conference signaled openness to both married priests and women’s ordination, and appeared to criticize a lengthy essay by Pope Benedict XVI on the root causes of the clerical sexual abuse crisis.
The Vatican said Wednesday that Pope Francis has created a new commission of experts to examine whether women can be deacons, an ordained role in the Catholic Church currently reserved for men.
Protestors in favor of women’s ordination marched from the United Nations to St. Patrick’s Cathedral on International Women’s Day.
Activists supporting women’s ordination held a prayer vigil along the banks of the Tiber on Tuesday.
As Catholic women continue to push for more leadership in the Church, at least one member of the ecclesial hierarchy has said the general mindset on women must break from antiquated categories and delve into what they actually bring to the table.
About 800 people have protested gender inequality in the Catholic Church by forming a human chain around Germany’s Cologne Cathedral.