Vatican City, Mar 6, 2017 / 05:05 pm (CNA).- To mark International Women’s Day, the Vatican invited women from across the globe to discuss not only their work as peacemakers in a conflict-filled world, but their contributions to the Church as well.
“Women understand, intuitively and by experience, that other people need their attention,” Dr. Scilla Elworthy, co-founder of the organization “Rising Women, Rising World,” told CNA March 6.
This intuition is seen concretely in how women interact with their children, their families and the communities they are a part of, she said. This ability “is what makes them such incredible peacemakers and peacebuilders: that ability to step into the shoes of the other in compassion, and to actually listen.”
“You’ll notice that some women have this lovely presence that makes them very alive and very engaged and engaging,” which isn’t just the result of their intuition, but also of the five characteristics of what she called “feminine intelligence.”
A term coined by Elworthy and her organization, feminine intelligence, or, as she calls it, “FQ,” is something that represents the specific qualities that stand out in women, but that men can learn through observation and practice.
Defined by Elworthy, “feminine intelligence” first of all consists of compassion, as well as inclusivity, referring to the sense that “no one is left out.”
Another quality is nurturing, which means “looking after (and) caring for” people, she said. Finally, the characteristic that stands out for Elworthy as the most important is the ability to really listen to others.
“We all think we’re good listeners, but most of us are not,” she said, adding that “that’s the greatest gift we can give to another person, is to hear them, and it’s the fastest, most effective way to resolve conflicts.”
“To listen to the person we’re in conflict with, feed back to them what they’ve said, check if they’ve got it right, and then ask them to do the same with us” is one of the most secure ways to end misunderstandings and confrontations, she said.
Elworthy was one of four panelists at a March 6 press conference on the Vatican’s annual Voices of Faith (VoF) women’s conference, held every year on March 8 to coincide with International Women’s Day.
First held in 2014, the VoF conference was established in response to Pope Francis’ call to “broaden the space within the Church for a more incisive feminine presence.”
Gathering women from around the world, this year’s VoF will take place at the Vatican’s Casina Pio IV and will gather women from around the world, including Syria and Burundi, to highlight the role women play in building a culture of peace within a world at conflict.
In her comments to CNA, Elsworthy, who is not Catholic but will be a panelist for a discussion on the topic of “Building Effective Leadership for Peace,” said the unique qualities women have at times risk of being lost in a society which, at various levels, often pushes them to be more like men.
“In corporate life, women are definitely expected to adopt a male, aggressive, competitive (attitude) and it doesn’t suit them, they get very stressed,” Elsworthy said, noting that “a lot of them are packing it in, they don’t like it.”
Politics is another field that can be “very harsh” for women, she said, explaining that women need to look for what she called a “deep inner power of the feminine,” but which is “not feminism.”
Instead, for Elsworthy this “feminine power” involves the five characteristics of her notion of feminine intelligence as well as “also the ability to self-inspect.”
This, she said, is where religion comes in, “because all the great religious traditions…demand that we spend time every day in silence.”
Also present at the news conference was Marguerite Barankitse, founder of the Maison Shalom foundation, which she established in response to the aftermath of the 1972 and 1993 genocides of both the Hutu and Tutsi tribes in Burundi as a means of ending the country’s cycle of violence.
In comments to journalists, Barankitse said that for her, even while the mass killings of Tutsis were taking place in 1993, being a Christian and going to Church “was more important than being Tutsi.”
She recounted that at one point during the genocide she had gone to the archbishop’s house in her village to seek refuge, thinking that because of Christianity’s emphasis on forgiveness, members of her parish community would be more balanced, but instead found that the people were filled with hatred.
After this experience and seeing the prejudice coursing through the country at the time, Barankitse said she decided to become teacher after genocide, because in doing so “I can teach children love and compassion.”
Barankitse said that some 60 percent of her family were killed by Hutus during the genocide, but that instead of retaliating, she wanted to establish the Shalom foundation in order to “create a new generation.”
Chantal Gotz, founder and organizer of VoF, also spoke at the news conference, telling journalists that part of the reason for establishing the organization, in addition to giving women a platform in the Church to highlight their contributions, was to break a somewhat negative image of the Church when it comes to women.
When VoF was founded, she said, a journalist had mentioned to her that while more space needed to be created for women in the Church, particularly when it comes to leadership roles, “we have no idea what Catholic women are doing in the Church.”
“The fact was also that four years ago, the image of the Catholic Church was always viewed in a quite negative way, nothing was highlighted on what is the Church doing in a positive way,” she said, adding that they are hoping to “bring new stories” to light showing what women already do.
Media is key in sharing these stories, she said, explaining that they hope to “highlight the positive, not just in Catholic press, but we also need secular press to spread the message of what women are doing and the great work that they’re already doing.”
Kerry Robinson, founding executive director and global ambassador of the Leadership Roundtable, was also present at the news conference. Founded in 2005 after the sex abuse crisis broke, the roundtable is made up of professionals from various fields and is dedicated to promoting best practices in the fields of management, finances and human resources in the Church.
In her comments to journalists, Robinson said she sees Pope Francis as “a reason to be hopeful” given his emphasis on mercy, the poor and his general closeness to people.
When it comes to women, she said one of the “signature motivations” for work of the roundtable is to ensure that their daughters and other young women have more of a voice and a stronger place in the future.
However, she said the push for women’s priestly ordination (which continues to be advocated for despite the fact that Pope Francis has already definitively closed the door) can be distracting from other initiatives that actually help women.
“The ordination question stops every other creative idea that could be implemented right away and nothing happens,” she said, explaining that “unless we bracket it,” none of the ideas for how to enhance the role of women in the present will be possible.
In her comments, Gotz said that finding ways to highlight the role of women and build them up within the Church is something that everyone should be responsible for, not just Pope Francis.
“We expect a lot from just from one person, from Pope Francis, and he was calling to all of us to bring in ideas of new initiatives,” she said, and pointed to VoF as an example.
The organization has not only enjoyed strong success, but also has the support of the Pope, she said, stressing that “we have to trust and we can support him in bringing in new ideas and not expecting that he has to change all of it by himself.”
Similarly, Barankitse said many wait for Pope Francis to act, “but what are the women doing?”
If we constantly wait for something to come “on a silver platter, we will never get it,” she said, adding that “it’s up to us women to support this extraordinary Pope, who is a blessing for our century, and we stand tall.”
But for Robinson, the discussion limited to just women, but involves the laity as a whole, including lay men, whose presence is also frequently missing from within the Vatican ranks.
She told journalists that as far as the Roundtable goes, it’s primarily a movement “to help the Church leaders, ordained and religious, avail themselves of the talent of laity, and that is very intentionally women and men.”
“That’s really our signature: to recognize that the talent and expertise of lay Catholics is an under-utilized resource that the Church can benefit from.”
In comments to CNA, Robinson said the “diversity” of having men and women work together “is a gift, and often we tend not to ensure that there’s true diversity at the tables of deliberation and decision-making.”
“Leadership Roundtable is about helping Church leaders avail themselves of the talent of laity, whether it’s laity who are CEO’s or captains of industry, or its emerging leaders like the talented young adults who are in colleges all over the world who love the Church and want to continue in a meaningful leadership way,” she said.
She stressed that “in no way would I want just women to be running things,” but instead it ought to be “our collective wisdom and experience that matters. It informs a better discussion and a better outcome.”
However, Robinson said she’s happy to see women “claiming their own” and stepping up in leadership roles in various sectors and professions, but noted that there’s still “a long way to go.”
Particularly in the Catholic Church, she said, opportunities need to be sought which ensure that “women and men together are seen as leaders, contributing to the discussion, being models of faith and excellence for younger generations.”
[…]
Pope Francis: Tear down these walls!
“Anyone convicted of illegal entry will be banned from entering Vatican territory for a period of up to 15 years. If this sanction is breached, the offender may be punished with a prison sentence of one to five years.”
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That’s pretty hardcore.
Unbelievable hypocrisy?
Anything but, given what we have experienced both of ‘unbelievable’ and of ‘hypocrisy’ over the current pontificate.
More like: ‘par for the course’ from this pope.
According to Francis, countries overrun by illegal immigrants are not to do as Francis’ Vatican aims to do through its Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State Decree on persons illegally entering Vatican territory?
Doublespeak again, louder please, so all can hear it unambiguously!
http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/259061/catholic-immigration-experts-respond-to-pope-francis-comment-that-repelling-migrants-is-a-grave-sin
Migrants must be granted free access to every neighborhood of Europe, North American and Australia, but there are a few areas that are strictly off-limits: Martha’s Vineyard, Davos, and now, we find out, the Vatican. Francis and company truly love the downtrodden, but from a safe distance. The rest of us get to enjoy a much more intimate experience.
I don’t know about Martha’s Vineyard but a family member worked for a couple from Nantucket Island who said there were quite a few illegal immigrants there. Somebody has to do the cleaning and yardwork, etc. and it’s not practical for workers to ferry back and forth constantly, so they stay on the island.
Large numbers of migrants without employment dumped on Nantucket or Martha’s Vineyard would be a different situation.
The Vatican needs to have tight security for many reasons. I honestly understand this, and support it.
But incoming President Trump, and 77.3 million Americans are wrong for wanting stricter security measures and illegal immigration/deportation crackdowns here in our own country?
Sounds perfectly logical to me.
“I was a stranger, and you did not welcome me.”
The goats are in trouble now …
Strangers are welcomed, but trespassers aren’t, even if said trespassers do not happen to be strangers.
So according to Pope Francis it is a disgrace for the US to apprehend, deport and ban illegal immigrants from the USA. But it is OK for the Vatican to do the same? Do as I say not as I do? And we wonder why the Catholic Church is shrinking?
Catholic Immigration: corrected – There would be no basis for ill feeling toward foreign nationals, if every country accepted the responsibility to pay for their own citizens’ politically defined entitlements and socialization costs. (health, welfare, education and criminal/restitution/incarceration.)
It is the responsibility of every nation to provide for the politically defined health, education, welfare and criminal costs incurred by their citizens while their citizens are in a foreign country. Because of the diversity of means by which the needs of citizens are provided for through out the world, often ranging from high taxation for many benefits to no taxation for no benefits, and because a country’s citizen’s first and primary recourse for the proper and customary administration of defined rights, responsibilities and entitlements is to his own country’s policies and resources, whenever a citizen is “abroad” the host nation shall have the ability to charge a visiting citizen’s home country for expenses which the host nation has incurred to its own citizens due to the needs of the visiting citizen. These costs may also be reimbursed by “sponsoring” groups, insurance companies, or individuals. Enforcement of these payments shall be enacted through the issuance or denial of visas. A host country can deny entry to citizens from a delinquent country. And a country that cannot afford the social costs of another country can place restrictions on the issuance of visas to its citizens for that other country. This law/policy should also state that a child born to a foreign national while in the United States is granted dual citizenship, but that the responsibility for the “entitlement” costs of the child remain with the parents and the home country of the parents until the child turns 18 or becomes a citizen of the host nation alone, which ever comes later. Nothing in this policy should ever prevent charitable organizations from providing care or services to whom ever they choose.
It is a blessing and responsibility of the individual, family and church to take care of the poor, indigent and marginalized, not the government. All blessings come from God. When the individual, family and church are the “free will” source of charity then all are blessed; the giver, the receiver and the common good of the community.iWhen the government is the source of blessings for those in need, then the government becomes the source of blessings; supplanting God, changing a blessing into a “right” (without the corresponding responsibility) of “entitlement” there-in making losers out of all involved by stealing the free will charity of the giver (taxation replaces charity), conditioning the receiver to demand his “right to be taken care of” without owing anyone–even God– a prayer of gratitude, and conditioning the community towards atheistic socialism. The move (back–before 1930 there were no government entitlements! With few exceptions, the church –through her people –was the source of all charity.) to this new “charity of the heart and soul” paradigm must be gradual, but sure, to ensure that the transition allows for the prudent care of those in need. This can best be done by allowing a 100% tax deduction for gifts to charitable organizations, and by removing the ceiling on how much can be donated–as a percentage of income– while cutting back on the duration and degree of entitlements.
This is the opposite of what current representatives are proposing. There have been suggestions that all charitable donations deductions be deleted from the tax code… do you see what a Machiavellian power grab this is, do you see what an atheistic socialist and communistic power maneuver this is? And as a Catholic, who loves the Church deeply, I must tell you many Catholic religious have embraced the false notion that the government — not the church—should be required to take care of the needy. (Caritas in Veritate –Charity in Truth articulates an accurate implementation of these principles)
Well can’t go in the Vatican but the pope is applaud to the US picking up illegal aliens maybe our pope should stay out of politics. I’ve been a catholic for 80 years but this pope so far is far from the best.
And the Pope has the NERVE to try and Tellthe US to NOT enforce its own Immigration Laws????
Pope Francis needs to sit down and sgut up quite frankly.
First, I am a born, baptized, confirmed, and practicing Roman Catholic in the USA. And today, at Mass, we were “instructed” to contact our Congressmen to stand against “mass deportation”. Pope Francis, “people in glass houses (a.k.a. you)” shouldn’t throw stones.
The visiting priest also likened NOT speaking up about “mass deportation” was equivalent to Germans in 1939 not speaking up about concentration camps being built. Am I the only one who sees these 2 events have NOTHING in common?
The U.S. policy of mass deportation is aimed at CRIMINALS who are illegally in MY country. Also, these deportees are being returned ALIVE to their native countries, they are are NOT being exterminated or wrongly treated in any way.
Pope Frances needs to remember that the Vatican started building THEIR walls in the 9th century and has maintained them ever since. Again, “glass houses”! Vatican immigration policies are more stringent than the Untied States policies.
Who cries for the murdered, beaten, extorted, sexually abused, those who are sold into human trafficking, and their families? I do and every other American who had to witness these horrendous acts CAUSED by the 4 years of Biden/Harris open border policies.
Pope Francis, stay in your lane and out of all countries political policies.
It appears to me that Pope Francis was a NIMBY.