“As a woman, I’m not focused at all on the fact that I’m not a priest,” Renée Köhler-Ryan, one of 54 women delegates to the Synod on Synodality, said at a press briefing Oct. 17, 2023. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNA
Rome Newsroom, Oct 17, 2023 / 14:10 pm (CNA).
Spending too much time on the “niche issue” of women priests or deacons distracts the Church from addressing what women really need, a theologian participating in the Synod on Synodality said Tuesday.
“As a woman, I’m not focused at all on the fact that I’m not a priest,” Renée Köhler-Ryan, one of 54 women delegates to the Synod on Synodality, said at a press briefing Oct. 17.
“I think that there’s too much emphasis placed on this question,” the Catholic professor added. “And what happens when we put too much emphasis on this question is that we forget about what women, for the most part, throughout the world, need.”
Köhler-Ryan is head of the School of Philosophy and Theology at the University of Notre Dame in Sydney, Australia. She participated in the Church in Australia’s plenary council and is writing a forthcoming book on St. Edith Stein’s “Essays on Woman.”
Paolo Ruffini, president of the synod’s information commission, told journalists that synod discussions on the afternoon of Oct. 16 focused a lot on the role of women in the Church, including whether women should be able to preach the homily at Mass and the “reinstatement of the female diaconate.”
Another topic of discussion, he said, was “how to overcome clerical models that impede communion or that can impede the communion of all the baptized.”
Köhler-Ryan said “some people are very focused on this idea that only if women become ordained will they have any kind of equality.”
But, equality is “not a one for one thing” in the Church, she said, pointing out that the Synod on Synodality has focused a lot on the idea of unity in diversity.
“Well part of that diversity is that there are realities of motherhood and fatherhood that are both spiritual and biological and that are really important for understanding what is going on across the whole Church,” the wife and mother added.
She said the issue of women’s ordination “distracts” the Church from what it could be doing to help women in other ways, like offering greater support to families and working mothers.
“I think that’s a far more interesting conversation for most women than what I tend to think of as a kind of niche issue,” Köhler-Ryan said.
Köhler-Ryan’s comments came shortly after another delegate described women’s participation in the Synod on Synodality, where they are full voting members for the first time, as “setting the stage for future changes.”
Sister Maria de los Dolores Valencia Gomez, a Sister of St. Joseph, led the Synod on Synodality assembly Oct. 13 in her capacity as one of Pope Francis’ 10 president-delegates. She described the experience of sitting with the pope “as a symbol of this opening, this wish that the Church has … for something that places all of us at the same level.”
Another synod participant, one of 13 people tasked with helping put together a summary document of the Oct. 4–29 assembly, told the National Catholic Reporter last week that he would be open to a female diaconate.
“The question of the ordination of women is clearly something that needs to be addressed universally. … And if it were to be that the outcome was for ordination to the diaconate to be open to women, I’d certainly welcome that,” Bishop Shane Mackinlay of Sandhurst, Australia, said in a podcast interview.
Ruffini said Monday’s discussions also included requests for “greater attention to an inclusive language in the liturgy and ecclesial documents” and that the word “cooperate” in canon 208 of the Code of Canon Law, which says all Christians “cooperate in the building up of the Body of Christ according to each one’s own condition and function,” be changed to “co-responsibility.”
On “the possible reinstatement of the female diaconate,” Ruffini said there was reference to first studying the exact nature of the diaconate.
About women deacons, Köhler-Ryan said what the synod is “identifying at the moment is where there needs to be more theological consideration of different issues, and I think I can safely say this is one where there needs to be more consideration, knowing that this has been an issue that has been looked at before.”
During his pontificate, Pope Francis has formed two temporary commissions to study the question of women deacons.
The first, in 2016, examined the historic question of the role of deaconesses in the early Church. In 2019, it was announced that the 12-person commission had not reached any consensus on the question.
In April 2020, the pope formed a second commission after the topic of female deacons was discussed at the Amazon Synod the prior October, together with a request for the 2016 commission to be reestablished.
At the end of the October 2019 meeting, synod members recommended to Pope Francis that women be considered for certain ministries in the Church, including the permanent diaconate, which is an order within the sacrament of holy orders.
But in his apostolic exhortation on the Amazon, published in February 2020, Pope Francis called for women in the South American region to be included in new forms of service in the Church, but not within the ordained ministries of the permanent diaconate or priesthood.
The subject of women deacons has previously been studied by the Church, including in a 2002 document from the International Theological Commission (ITC), an advisory body to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
In the document, the ITC concluded that female deacons in the early Church had not been equivalent to male deacons and had neither a “liturgical function” nor a sacramental one. It also maintained that even in the fourth century, “the way of life of deaconesses was very similar to that of nuns.”
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Speaking in his Angelus address on March 3, 2024, about the Israel-Hamas war, Pope Francis made an emotional plea for negotiations to reach a deal that both frees the hostages immediately and grants civilians access to humanitarian aid. / Credit… […]
Pope Francis at the general audience in St. Peter’s Square, Oct. 5, 2016. / Credit: Daniel Ibanez/CNA
CNA Staff, Mar 13, 2024 / 12:00 pm (CNA).
March 13 marks the anniversary of the election of Pope Francis as the 266th successor of St. Peter. Here is a timeline of key events during his papacy:
2013
March 13 — About two weeks after Pope Benedict XVI steps down from the papacy, Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio is elected pope. He takes the papal name Francis in honor of St. Francis of Assisi and proclaims from the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica: “Let us begin this journey, the bishop and people, this journey of the Church of Rome, which presides in charity over all the Churches, a journey of brotherhood in love, of mutual trust. Let us always pray for one another.”
March 14 — The day after he begins his pontificate, Pope Francis returns to his hotel to personally pay his hotel bill and collect his luggage.
July 8 — Pope Francis visits Italy’s island of Lampedusa and meets with a group of 50 migrants, most of whom are young men from Somalia and Eritrea. The island, which is about 200 miles off the coast of Tunisia, is a common entry point for migrants who flee parts of Africa and the Middle East to enter Europe. This is the pope’s first pastoral visit outside of Rome and sets the stage for making reaching out to the peripheries a significant focus.
Pope Francis gives the Wednesday general audience in St. Peter’s Square on Oct. 2, 2013. Elise Harris/CNA.
July 23-28 — Pope Francis visits Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to participate in World Youth Day 2013. More than 3 million people from around the world attend the event.
July 29 — On the return flight from Brazil, Pope Francis gives his first papal news conference and sparks controversy by saying “if a person is gay and seeks God and has goodwill, who am I to judge?” The phrase is prompted by a reporter asking the pope a question about priests who have homosexual attraction.
Nov. 24 — Pope Francis publishes his first apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel). The document illustrates the pope’s vision for how to approach evangelization in the modern world.
2014
Feb. 22 — Pope Francis holds his first papal consistory to appoint 19 new cardinals, including ones from countries in the developing world that have never previously been represented in the College of Cardinals, such as Haiti.
March 22 — Pope Francis creates the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors. The commission works to protect the dignity of minors and vulnerable adults, such as the victims of sexual abuse.
Pope Francis greets pilgrims during his general audience on Nov. 29, 2014. Bohumil Petrik/CNA.
Oct. 5 — The Synod on the Family begins. The bishops discuss a variety of concerns, including single-parent homes, cohabitation, homosexual adoption of children, and interreligious marriages.
Dec. 6 — After facing some pushback for his efforts to reform the Roman Curia, Pope Francis discusses his opinion in an interview with La Nacion, an Argentine news outlet: “Resistance is now evident. And that is a good sign for me, getting the resistance out into the open, no stealthy mumbling when there is disagreement. It’s healthy to get things out into the open, it’s very healthy.”
2015
Jan. 18 — To conclude a trip to Asia, Pope Francis celebrates Mass in Manila, Philippines. Approximately 6 million to 7 million people attend the record-setting Mass, despite heavy rain.
March 23 — Pope Francis visits Naples, Italy, to show the Church’s commitment to helping the fight against corruption and organized crime in the city.
May 24 — To emphasize the Church’s mission to combat global warming and care for the environment, Pope Francis publishes the encyclical Laudato Si’, which urges people to take care of the environment and encourages political action to address climate problems.
Pope Francis at a Wednesday general audience in St. Peter’s Square on June 17, 2015. Bohumil Petrik.
Sept. 19-22 — Pope Francis visits Cuba and meets with Fidel Castro in the first papal visit to the country since Pope John Paul II in 1998. During his homily, Francis discusses the dignity of the human person: “Being a Christian entails promoting the dignity of our brothers and sisters, fighting for it, living for it.”
Sept. 22-27 — After departing from Cuba, Pope Francis makes his first papal visit to the United States. In Washington, D.C., he speaks to a joint session of Congress, in which he urges lawmakers to work toward promoting the common good, and canonizes the Franciscan missionary St. Junípero Serra. He also attends the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia, which focuses on celebrating the gift of the family.
Pope Francis speaks to the U.S. Congress in Washington, D.C. on Sept. 24, 2015. . L’Osservatore Romano.
Oct. 4 — Pope Francis begins the second Synod on the Family to address issues within the modern family, such as single-parent homes, cohabitation, poverty, and abuse.
Oct. 18 — The pope canonizes St. Louis Martin and St. Marie-Azélie “Zelie” Guérin. The married couple were parents to five nuns, including St. Therese of Lisieux. They are the first married couple to be canonized together.
Dec. 8 — Pope Francis’ Jubilee Year of Mercy begins. The year focuses on God’s mercy and forgiveness and people’s redemption from sin. The pope delegates certain priests in each diocese to be Missionaries of Mercy who have the authority to forgive sins that are usually reserved for the Holy See.
2016
March 19 — Pope Francis publishes the apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia, which discusses a wide variety of issues facing the modern family based on discussions from the two synods on the family. The pope garners significant controversy from within the Church for comments he makes in Chapter 8 about Communion for the divorced and remarried.
April 16 — After visiting refugees on the Greek island of Lesbos, Pope Francis allows three Muslim refugee families to join him on his flight back to Rome. He says the move was not a political statement.
Pope Francis at the General Audience in St. Peter’s Square, Feb. 24, 2016. Daniel Ibanez/CNA.
July 26-31 — Pope Francis visits Krakow, Poland, as part of the World Youth Day festivities. About 3 million young Catholic pilgrims from around the world attend.
Sept. 4 — The pope canonizes St. Teresa of Calcutta, who is also known as Mother Teresa. The saint, a nun from Albania, dedicated her life to missionary and charity work, primarily in India.
Sept. 30-Oct. 2 — Pope Francis visits Georgia and Azerbaijan on his 16th trip outside of Rome since the start of his papacy. His trip focuses on Catholic relations with Orthodox Christians and Muslims.
Oct. 4 — Pope Francis makes a surprise visit to Amatrice, Italy, to pray for the victims of an earthquake in central Italy that killed nearly 300 people.
2017
May 12-13 — In another papal trip, Francis travels to Fatima, Portugal, to visit the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima. May 13 marks the 100th anniversary of the first Marian apparition to three children in the city.
July 11 — Pope Francis adds another category of Christian life suitable for the consideration of sainthood: “offering of life.” The category is distinct from martyrdom, which only applies to someone who is killed for his or her faith. The new category applies to those who died prematurely through an offering of their life to God and neighbor.
Pope Francis greets a participant in the World Day of the Poor in Rome, Nov. 16, 2017. L’Osservatore Romano.
Nov. 19 — On the first-ever World Day of the Poor, Pope Francis eats lunch with 4,000 poor and people in need in Rome.
Nov. 27-Dec. 2 — In another trip to Asia, Pope Francis travels to Myanmar and Bangladesh. He visits landmarks and meets with government officials, Catholic clergy, and Buddhist monks. He also preaches the Gospel and promotes peace in the region.
2018
Jan. 15-21 — The pope takes another trip to Latin America, this time visiting Chile and Peru. The pontiff meets with government officials and members of the clergy while urging the faithful to remain close to the clergy and reject secularism. The Chilean visit leads to controversy over Chilean clergy sex abuse scandals.
Aug. 2 — The Vatican formally revises No. 2267 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which concerns the death penalty. The previous text suggested the death penalty could be permissible in certain circumstances, but the revision states that the death penalty is “inadmissible.”
Aug. 25 — Archbishop Carlo Viganò, former papal nuncio to the United States, publishes an 11-page letter calling for the resignation of Pope Francis and accusing him and other Vatican officials of covering up sexual abuse including allegations against former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick. The pope initially does not directly respond to the letter, but nine months after its publication he denies having prior knowledge about McCarrick’s conduct.
Aug. 25-26 — Pope Francis visits Dublin, Ireland, to attend the World Meeting of Families. The theme is “the Gospel of family, joy for the world.”
Pope Francis at the 2018 World Meeting of Families in Ireland. Daniel Ibanez/CNA.
Oct. 3-28 — The Synod on Young People, the Faith, and Vocational Discernment takes place. The synod focuses on best practices to teach the faith to young people and to help them discern God’s will.
2019
Jan. 22-27 — The third World Youth Day during Pope Francis’ pontificate takes place during these six days in Panama City, Panama. Young Catholics from around the world gather for the event, with approximately 3 million people in attendance.
Feb. 4 — Pope Francis signs a joint document in with Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayeb, the grand imam of Al-Azhar, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, titled the “Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together.” The document focuses on people of different faiths uniting together to live peacefully and advance a culture of mutual respect.
Pope Francis and Ahmed el-Tayeb, grand imam of al-Azhar, signed a joint declaration on human fraternity during an interreligious meeting in Abu Dhabi, UAE, Feb. 4, 2019. Vatican Media.
Feb. 21-24 — The Meeting on the Protection of Minors in the Church, which is labeled the Vatican Sexual Abuse Summit, takes place. The meeting focuses on sexual abuse scandals in the Church and emphasizes responsibility, accountability, and transparency.
Oct. 6-27 — The Church holds the Synod of Bishops for the Pan-Amazon region, which is also known as the Amazon Synod. The synod is meant to present ways in which the Church can better evangelize the Amazon region but leads to controversy when carved images of a pregnant Amazonian woman, referred to by the pope as Pachamama, are used in several events and displayed in a basilica near the Vatican.
Oct. 13 — St. John Henry Newman, an Anglican convert to Catholicism and a cardinal, is canonized by Pope Francis. Newman’s writings inspired Catholic student associations at nonreligious colleges and universities in the United States and other countries.
2020
March 15 — Pope Francis takes a walking pilgrimage in Rome to the chapel of the crucifix and prays for an end to the COVID-19 pandemic. The crucifix was carried through Rome during the plague of 1522.
March 27 — Pope Francis gives an extraordinary “urbi et orbi” blessing in an empty and rain-covered St. Peter’s Square, praying for the world during the coronavirus pandemic.
Pope Francis venerates the miraculous crucifix of San Marcello al Corso in St. Peter’s Square during his Urbi et Orbi blessing, March 27, 2020. Vatican Media.
2021
March 5-8 — In his first papal trip since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Pope Francis becomes the first pope to visit Iraq. On his trip, he signs a joint statement with Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani condemning extremism and promoting peace.
July 3 — Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu, who was elevated to the College of Cardinals by Pope Francis, is indicted in a Vatican court for embezzlement, money laundering, and other crimes. The pope gives approval for the indictment.
July 4 — Pope Francis undergoes colon surgery for diverticulitis, a common condition in older people. The Vatican releases a statement that assures the pope “reacted well” to the surgery. Francis is released from the hospital after 10 days.
July 16 — Pope Francis issues a motu proprio titled Traditionis Custodes. The document imposes heavy restrictions on the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass.
Dec. 2-6 — The pope travels to Cyprus and Greece. The trip includes another visit to the Greek island of Lesbos to meet with migrants.
Pope Francis greets His Beatitude Ieronymos II in Athens, Greece on Dec. 5, 2021. Vatican Media
2022
Jan. 11 — Pope Francis makes a surprise visit to a record store in Rome called StereoSound. The pope, who has an affinity for classical music, blesses the newly renovated store.
March 19 — The pope promulgates Praedicate Evangelium, which reforms the Roman Curia. The reforms emphasize evangelization and establish more opportunities for the laity to be in leadership positions.
May 5 — Pope Francis is seen in a wheelchair for the first time in public and begins to use one more frequently. The pope has been suffering from knee problems for months.
Pope Francis greeted the crowd in a wheelchair at the end of his general audience on Aug. 3, 2022. Daniel Ibanez/CNA
July 24-30 — In his first papal visit to Canada, Pope Francis apologizes for the harsh treatment of the indigenous Canadians, saying many Christians and members of the Catholic Church were complicit.
2023
Jan. 31-Feb. 5 — Pope Francis travels to the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan. During his visit, the pope condemns political violence in the countries and promotes peace. He also participates in an ecumenical prayer service with Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and Moderator of the Church of Scotland Iain Greenshields.
Pope Francis greets a young boy a Mass in Juba, South Sudan on Feb. 5, 2023. Vatican Media
March 29-April 1 — Pope Francis is hospitalized for a respiratory infection. During his stay at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, he visits the pediatric cancer ward and baptizes a newborn baby.
April 5 — The pope appears in the Disney documentary “The Pope: Answers,” which is in Spanish, answering six “hot-button” issues from members of Gen Z from various backgrounds. The group discusses immigration, depression, abortion, clergy sexual and psychological abuse, transgenderism, pornography, and loss of faith.
April 28-30 — Pope Francis visits Hungary to meet with government officials, civil society members, bishops, priests, seminarians, Jesuits, consecrated men and women, and pastoral workers. He celebrates Mass on the final day of the trip in Kossuth Lajos Square.
Pope Francis stands on an altar erected outside the Parliament Building in Budapest’s Kossuth Lajos’ Square during a public outdoor Mass on April 30, 2023. Vatican Media
June 7 — The Vatican announces that Pope Francis will undergo abdominal surgery that afternoon under general anesthesia due to a hernia that is causing painful, recurring, and worsening symptoms. In his general audience that morning before the surgery, Francis says he intends to publish an apostolic letter on St. Thérèse of Lisieux, “patroness of the missions,” to mark the 150th anniversary of her birth.
June 15 — After successful surgery and a week of recovery, Pope Francis is released from Gemelli Hospital.
Aug. 2-6 — Pope Francis travels to Lisbon, Portugal, for World Youth Day 2023, taking place from Aug. 1-6. He meets with Church and civil leaders ahead of presiding at the welcoming Mass and Stations of the Cross. He also hears the confessions of several pilgrims. On Aug. 5, he visits the Shrine of Our Lady of Fátima, where he prays the rosary with young people with disabilities. That evening he presides over the vigil and on Sunday, Aug. 6, he celebrates the closing Mass, where he urges the 1.5 million young people present to “be not afraid,” echoing the words of the founder of World Youth Days, St. John Paul II.
Pope Francis waves at the crowd of 1.5 million people who attended the closing Mass of World Youth Day 2023 in Lisbon, Portugal on Aug. 6, 2023. Vatican Media.
Aug. 31-Sept. 4 — Pope Francis travels to Mongolia, the world’s most sparsely populated sovereign country. The trip makes Francis the first pope to visit the Asian country that shares a 2,880-mile border with China, its most significant economic partner. Mongolia has a population of about 1,300 Catholics in a country of more than 3 million people.
Pope Francis meets with local priests and religious of Mongolia, which includes only 25 priests (19 religious and six diocesan), 33 women religious, and one bishop — Cardinal Giorgio Marengo — in Ulaanbaatar’s Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul on Sept. 2, 2023. Credit: Vatican Media
Sept. 22-23 — On a two-day trip to Marseille, France, Pope Francis meets with local civil and religious leaders and participates in the Mediterranean Encounter, a gathering of some 120 young people of various creeds with bishops from 30 countries.
Pope Francis asks for a moment of silence at a memorial dedicated to sailors and migrants lost at sea on the first of a two-day visit to Marseille, France, Sept. 22, 2023. A Camargue cross, which comes from the Camargue area of France, represents the three theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity. The three tridents represent faith, the anchor represents hope, and the heart represents charity. Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNA
Oct. 4-29 — The Vatican hosts the first of two monthlong global assemblies of the Synod on Synodality, initiated by Pope Francis in 2021 to enhance the communion, participation, and mission of the Church. Pope Francis celebrates the closing Mass of the synod at St. Peter’s Basilica on Oct. 29. The second and final global assembly will take place at the Vatican in October 2024.
Pope Francis at the Synod on Synodality’s closing Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica on Oct. 29, 2023. Vatican Media
Nov. 25 — Pope Francis visits the hospital briefly for precautionary testing after coming down with the flu earlier in the day. Although he still participates in scheduled activities, other officials read his prepared remarks. The Vatican on Nov. 28 cancels the pope’s planned Dec. 1–3 trip to Dubai for the COP28 climate conference, where he was scheduled to deliver a speech, due to his illness.
Dec. 18 — The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith issues the declaration Fiducia Supplicans, which authorizes nonliturgical blessings for same-sex couples and couples in “irregular situations.” Various bishops from around the world voice both support for and criticism of the document.
2024
Jan. 4 — Amid widespread backlash to Fiducia Supplicans, Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernández, prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, publishes a five-page press release that refers to Fiducia Supplicans as “perennial doctrine” and underlines that pastoral blessings of couples in irregular situations should not be “an endorsement of the life led by those who request them.”
Jan. 14 — Pope Francis for the first time responds publicly to questions about Fiducia Supplicans in an interview on an Italian television show. The pope underlines that “the Lord blesses everyone” and that a blessing is an invitation to enter into a conversation “to see what the road is that the Lord proposes to them.”
Feb. 11 — In a ceremony attended by Argentine president Javier Milei, Pope Francis canonizes María Antonia of St. Joseph — known affectionately in the pope’s home country as “Mama Antula” — in a Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica. The president and the former archbishop of Buenos Aires embrace after the ceremony. Pope Francis, who has not returned to his homeland since becoming pope in 2013, has said he wants to visit Argentina in the second half of this year.
Pope Francis meets with Argentina President Javier Milei in a private audience on Feb. 12, 2024, at the Vatican. Credit: Vatican Media
Feb. 28 — After canceling audiences the previous Saturday and having an aide read his prepared remarks at his Wednesday audience due to a “mild flu,” Pope Francis visits the hospital for diagnostic tests but returns to the Vatican afterward.
March 2 — Despite having an aide read his speech “because of bronchitis,” the pope presides over the inauguration of the 95th Judicial Year of the Vatican City State and maintains a full schedule.
March 13 — Pope Francis celebrates 11 years as Supreme Pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church.
Ross Perot said in the 1996 presidential debate that should the NAFTA agreement go into effect in the United States, there would be a huge sucking sound as hundreds, if not thousands, of U.S. based businesses fled the states for Mexico. He didn’t win the election, but he did predict correctly the mass exodus of companies from the U.S. into Mexico and other first and second world countries. Here’s a prediction not too unlike his: if the Novus Ordo Church takes it upon themselves to ordain women into either the deaconate or priesthood, there will be a huge sucking sound as thousands, if not millions, of men leave the sanctuary never to step foot in another Novus Ordo church again.
A tangential comment: About 30 years ago – around the time of Ordinatio Sacerdotalis, actually – Peter Kreeft and Alice von Hildebrand wrote a small booklet titled “Women and the Priesthood”. Each of them wrote a section on the reasons why only men can be priests in the Catholic Church. Franciscan University Press was the publisher. It’s been out of print for a while. Used ones are hard to come by and expensive when you find them. I gave my copy to a dear priest friend of mine, since he has more frequent conversations on the topic than I do.
If anyone who can do anything about this is reading this, or if you know someone who can: Please put this booklet back into print! I can’t think of a time since its publication that it has been more needed than today. The arguments are easy to understand and make a lot of sense. It should be required reading for everyone at the SoS.
I want to state categorically that this so-called Synod is NOT a Synod. Call it an assembly of “Here-Comes-Everybody” but don’t call it a Synod. A Synod is an assembly of bishops who are the successors of the Apostles. Pope Francis: Stop selling off the patrimony of the Universal Church.
The slide into hell begins with the corruption of language. It’s even cross-cultural! Said the Chinese emperor of his collapsing domain, when asked what he would do to save his people: “I would restore the meaning of words.”
There are several hundred Bishops participating in the Synod. And all the dioceses in the world also carried out consultations, surveys, and events. If the Pope, if the Church says that it is a Synod, why do you affirm that it cannot be defined as a Synod? What do you base on to argue this assertion that goes against what the Church and its legitimate authorities actually say?
As a Catholic woman myself, I will say that I dont envision ANY scenario in which I would attend a Mass conducted by a woman,nor take communion, go to confession, or have a family member married by one. There is NO biblical support for this and it smacks of secular woke talking points. Woman who want that sort of thing might try to track down one of the barely surviving liberal Protestant sects who paved the way by engaging in this— assuming they still have their doors open. I engage in a Catholic ministry in which I am quite happy. And I am most certainly nobody’s second class citizen.
The idea of women priests makes the serious mistake of focusing on what we do, not on what we are as women. That is the same mistake that has been made throughout the centuries where women have been valued for their activities as mothers and homemakers and active religious.
Didn’t John Paul II say that being comes before doing? This whole discussion avoids the question of the being of women and whether women are necessary to the Church as women.
Sadly, Sister, real discussion of the inherent natures of things (truths derived from the things that are) was jettisoned when the modernists ransacked the Church at Vatican II and tossed St. Thomas and what we refer to as “Realism”; the gift of the expression of common sense experience (among other things foundational to our intellectual nature). Perhaps, when the modernists come to their senses (don’t hold your breath) they’ll begin to appreciate, once again, the difference that common sense actually makes. Let us hope!
I enjoy battles! That’s why I publish articles on Where Peter Is.https://wherepeteris.com/author/sister-gabriela/
My latest article about Prof. Ratzinger’s talk on Oct. 10, 1962 shows why those who want to go back to a “traditional” faith that existed before Vatican II are simply following a limited theology that dates from the 17th century. Prof. Ratzinger makes that clear.
So I have no hesitation about writing unpopular articles, no matter who dislikes them.
Ross Perot said in the 1996 presidential debate that should the NAFTA agreement go into effect in the United States, there would be a huge sucking sound as hundreds, if not thousands, of U.S. based businesses fled the states for Mexico. He didn’t win the election, but he did predict correctly the mass exodus of companies from the U.S. into Mexico and other first and second world countries. Here’s a prediction not too unlike his: if the Novus Ordo Church takes it upon themselves to ordain women into either the deaconate or priesthood, there will be a huge sucking sound as thousands, if not millions, of men leave the sanctuary never to step foot in another Novus Ordo church again.
Mark, you left out that women by the millions will also leave in search of a validly celebrated Mass.
A tangential comment: About 30 years ago – around the time of Ordinatio Sacerdotalis, actually – Peter Kreeft and Alice von Hildebrand wrote a small booklet titled “Women and the Priesthood”. Each of them wrote a section on the reasons why only men can be priests in the Catholic Church. Franciscan University Press was the publisher. It’s been out of print for a while. Used ones are hard to come by and expensive when you find them. I gave my copy to a dear priest friend of mine, since he has more frequent conversations on the topic than I do.
If anyone who can do anything about this is reading this, or if you know someone who can: Please put this booklet back into print! I can’t think of a time since its publication that it has been more needed than today. The arguments are easy to understand and make a lot of sense. It should be required reading for everyone at the SoS.
I want to state categorically that this so-called Synod is NOT a Synod. Call it an assembly of “Here-Comes-Everybody” but don’t call it a Synod. A Synod is an assembly of bishops who are the successors of the Apostles. Pope Francis: Stop selling off the patrimony of the Universal Church.
The slide into hell begins with the corruption of language. It’s even cross-cultural! Said the Chinese emperor of his collapsing domain, when asked what he would do to save his people: “I would restore the meaning of words.”
very interesting
Amen !!!!!!!!!!!
There are several hundred Bishops participating in the Synod. And all the dioceses in the world also carried out consultations, surveys, and events. If the Pope, if the Church says that it is a Synod, why do you affirm that it cannot be defined as a Synod? What do you base on to argue this assertion that goes against what the Church and its legitimate authorities actually say?
As a Catholic woman myself, I will say that I dont envision ANY scenario in which I would attend a Mass conducted by a woman,nor take communion, go to confession, or have a family member married by one. There is NO biblical support for this and it smacks of secular woke talking points. Woman who want that sort of thing might try to track down one of the barely surviving liberal Protestant sects who paved the way by engaging in this— assuming they still have their doors open. I engage in a Catholic ministry in which I am quite happy. And I am most certainly nobody’s second class citizen.
I agree totally!! Thank you for speaking out on this matter.
The idea of women priests makes the serious mistake of focusing on what we do, not on what we are as women. That is the same mistake that has been made throughout the centuries where women have been valued for their activities as mothers and homemakers and active religious.
Didn’t John Paul II say that being comes before doing? This whole discussion avoids the question of the being of women and whether women are necessary to the Church as women.
Sadly, Sister, real discussion of the inherent natures of things (truths derived from the things that are) was jettisoned when the modernists ransacked the Church at Vatican II and tossed St. Thomas and what we refer to as “Realism”; the gift of the expression of common sense experience (among other things foundational to our intellectual nature). Perhaps, when the modernists come to their senses (don’t hold your breath) they’ll begin to appreciate, once again, the difference that common sense actually makes. Let us hope!
I enjoy battles! That’s why I publish articles on Where Peter Is.https://wherepeteris.com/author/sister-gabriela/
My latest article about Prof. Ratzinger’s talk on Oct. 10, 1962 shows why those who want to go back to a “traditional” faith that existed before Vatican II are simply following a limited theology that dates from the 17th century. Prof. Ratzinger makes that clear.
So I have no hesitation about writing unpopular articles, no matter who dislikes them.
“Pope Francis: Stop selling off the patrimony of the Universal Church.” —Deacon Peitler.
. . . consult, instead, with your close friends Ste. Thérèse
and Our Lady, Untier of Knots FIRST, before you do any more
damage to the Church.