The Struggle to Serve
The Ordination of Women in the Roman Catholic Church
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About the Book
Appointed by Pope Paul IV to examine the role of women in the Bible, the Pontifical Biblical Commission found, in part, that the will of Christ would not be disobeyed if the Roman Catholic Church ordained women. The Commission reported: “The New Testament does not settle in a clear way … whether women can be ordained priests, scripture grounds alone are not grounds enough to exclude the possibility of ordaining women [and] Christ’s plan would not be transgressed by permitting the ordination of women.”
Further, it is attested among biblical scholars that although the Bible was written in a patriarchal culture, Jesus is predominantly portrayed as one who promoted the equality of women and men. Yet the Church has continued to exclude women for twenty centuries primarily on the basis of the precedent of twelve male apostles at the Last Supper.
It is clear that women will be needed, and in elevated roles, if a declining Church is to grow and prosper in the future. Catholicism is faced with a precipitous drop in the number of priests, portending parishes without pastoral care—unless women are ordained. Addressed here are the conflicts and questions surrounding the struggle by women to serve.
About the Author(s)
Bibliographic Details
Simone M. St. Pierre
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 215
Bibliographic Info: notes, appendices, annotated bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2011 [1994]
pISBN: 978-0-7864-6716-7
Imprint: McFarland
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction 1
1. THE ORDINATION OF WOMEN 7
The Conclusions of the Pontifical Biblical Commission 7
The Development of the Christian Priesthood 8
Tradition in the Church 10
The Church’s Fidelity to Christ 12
The Argument in Terms of Male Representation 15
The Restriction of Women 16
The Use of Aquinas 16
Jesus’ Maleness 18
Can Women Represent God? 20
Does the Priest Represent Jesus’ Humanity or His Maleness? 21
2. WOMEN IN THE MINISTRY OF JESUS 29
Jesus’ Maleness 30
Jesus’ Message 30
Jesus’ Attitude Towards Women in the New Testament 31
The Women in Mark’s Gospel 32
The Women in John’s Gospel 33
The Women in Luke’s Gospel 34
The Women in Matthew’s Gospel 35
Women in Jesus’ Ministry 36
Mary and Martha 36
The Unknown Woman 37
Mary Magdalene 40
Mary of Nazareth 42
The Twelve 45
Why “Twelve” Men? 46
Why Twelve “Men”? 47
3. THE ROLE OF WOMEN IN THE EARLY CHURCH 51
Can Scripture Determine Appropriate Roles for Women? 51
Paul and Women 52
Towards a Biblical Methodology 53
A Feminist Historical Reconstruction 56
Women’s Roles in Paul’s Writings 56
Silence for Women in the Church 57
I Timothy 2.8-15 60
Roles for Women in the Pauline Tradition 62
Phoebe 62
Apostle 64
Prophet/Prophetess 66
The “House” Church 66
The Order of Widows 67
Searching for Historical Documentation 67
4. OVERCOMING THE LAY-CLERGY DUALISM 71
The Lay-Clergy Distinction
The Laity in the Early Church 72
The Theological Implications 72
The Official Treatment of the Laity 74
Vatican II 74
The Implications of the Term ‘Zaity” 74
The Problem 75
The Effects 75
The Code of Canon Law 78
The Bishops’ Synods 80
The Bishops’ Synod 81
The Canadian Interventions 82
Ministry in the Church 85
Lay-Clergy Tensions in the Early Christian Community 85
Jesus’ Ministry 86
The Concept of Ministry in the Early Church 87
The Role of “Apostolic Succession” 88
The Council of Chalcedon 89
5. WOMEN IN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH 93
The Problem 94
“No” to Women Priests 97
Ministry for Men and Women 98
The Structure of the Church 99
Women’s Struggle for Equality 102
The Resistance to Change 104
Pastoral and Liturgical Roles for Catholic Women 105
The Bernier Case 106
Arguments Against the Promotion of Women 107
Arguments for the Promotion of Women 112
A Comparison 114
Women’s Inequalities 115
6. A CONTEMPORARY UNDERSTANDING OF THE ORDINATION OF WOMEN 117
“On the Dignity and Vocation of Women on the Occasion of the Marian Year” 117
Men and Women in the Created Order 118
Jesus’ Attitude Towards Women 118
Equality versus Diversity 119
Bridal Imagery 121
What Does the Official Church Offer for Women? 122
The Theology of the Ordination of Women 124
Understanding How God Was Revealed 124
Understanding Tradition in the Early Church 124
The Church’s Ministry of Service 127
A “Christian” Ministry of Service 129
Bernard Cooke 129
Denise Lardner-Carmody 131
Edward Schillebeeckx 133
The Official Teaching on Vocations 134
The “Vocations” Prayer 135
The Problem with the Lack of Vocations in the Roman Catholic Church 136
Towards a Renewal of the Hierarchy 136
The Legitimate Call to Vocation 137
Equal But Different 137
The Spiritual Effects of Women’s Exclusion from the Ministerial Priesthood 138
A Theology of Liberation from Clericalism 141
Conclusion 145
Chapter Notes 149
Appendix 173
Bibliography 177
Index 199
Book Reviews & Awards
“well-researched…highly relevant and insightful…. An essential purchase”—Library Journal; “clear, concise, yet broad in scope…. Undergraduate (all levels)”—Choice; “both timely and well thought out…. The book could not be more welcome”—Booklist.
