Many women at a US Women of the Church conference have expressed pain, frustration and hurt by experiences of sexism in the Church. The Women of the Church conference was for Catholic women leaders. It took place recently. All was not bleak, as highlighted by Women of the Church keynote speaker, theology Professor Kristin Colberg Read more
Promoting better collaboration between women and men in the Catholic Church is not primarily about equality. It’s about allowing the church to fulfil the mission given to it by God, said women at an international conference on priesthood at the Vatican last week. Organized by Cardinal Marc Ouellet, the conference examined the theology of the Read more
Sexual abuse is rooted in abuse of power, which is very often the first step. While abuse of power can take many forms, many abusers rely on the excessive and, let’s say it, clericalist use of secrecy. For decades many Church bodies, including the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, have repeatedly called for Read more
It is almost two years since Pope Francis said he would re-form the commission on female deacons. Although he announced the new members’ names in April 2020, their meetings have been delayed as a result of COVID 19. On Monday, however, the new commission confirmed it will hold its first meeting in Rome in the Read more
The Austrian Bishops Conference (ÖBK) broke with tradition and invited women to attend the first day of its plenary assembly last week. They would be listening carefully to their views, as the conference wants to find ways to include more women in Church decision-making, says Archbishop Franz Lackner, the ÖBK president. . The 14 women Read more
Anne-Marie Pelletier has been a papally appointed observer at the Synod of Bishops (2001), was the first woman to win the Ratzinger Prize for theology (2014) and authored the meditations used at the papal-led “Via Crucis” on Good Friday (2017) at Rome’s Colosseum. Pope Francis, just this past April, appointed the 74-year-old Paris native and Read more
The apostolic exhortation on the Amazon has disappointed those hoping for an opening of clerical roles to married men and women. Many are saying that in Querida Amazonia (“Beloved Amazon”) Pope Francis has failed to extend his prophetic voice about environmental injustice to injustices to the church. They are also outraged over its language of Read more
Ireland’s Association of Catholic Priests (ACP) says the vocations crisis has become so critical that sacraments like baptisms and marriages are likely to “disappear” from some parishes in the near future. The ACP, which represents over 1,000 Catholic priests in Ireland, says reform is urgently needed to prevent parishes from closing across the country. “We’re Read more