Role of women in the Roman Catholic Church

THE EDITOR, Madam:

Since the passing of Pope Francis, there has been much discussion of the role of women in the Roman Catholic Church. Much of this giving the impression that women still play a very limited role in the Church. However, women are very much part of the church and their role has been evolving.

The most revered woman in the Catholic Church is Mary, the mother of Jesus. In fact, the Church, as a body, is female.

Since 1212, there have been formal orders of religious women. One order, the Franciscan Missionary Sisters of our Lady of Perpetual Help (the Blue sisters, was founded in Jamaica in 1929. These religious women have focused on education, healthcare, childcare, and various religious and charitable works.

A woman, Sister Pascalina Lehnert, played an important role during the pontificate of Pope Pius XII (1939-1958).

An American religious woman, Mother Angelica, founded the now worldwide catholic television channel, the Eternal Word Television Network.

Women, through the centuries, have been canonised as saints. Among the latest, many know of Mother Teresa of Calcutta.

The doctors of the Catholic Church are men and women whose writings have made a significant contribution to Church teachings/doctrine. The women in this category include St Catherine of Sienna, St Teresa of Ávila, St Thérèse of Lisieux, and St Hildegard of Bingen.

For years, in some countries, including Jamaica, women and girls have participated in the liturgical celebrations as Eucharistic ministers, lectors (readers), cantors (lead singers), and altar servers. Pope Francis formalised women and girls in these roles in about 2021. There are now also female acolytes, assistants to the priests and deacons.

Pope Francis also appointed women to senior lay administrative positions in the Vatican and included women in recent Church assemblies.

When most people speak of women in the Catholic Church, they emphasise women becoming priests. There is, however, another tier of ministers of religion in the Church. These are the deacons as established in the Acts of the Apostles (the permanent diaconate).

In the early Church, there were deaconesses to serve women. It is quite possible that women could be ordained deacons in the Roman Catholic Church. Pope Francis might have wanted to move into this direction.

We will see what the future hold.

MARCIA THOMAS