Archives: News and Events

2019-2020

Statement of Solidarity and Commitment

Feast of the Holy Trinity

Media Release

7 June 2020

We, the undersigned International Bishops of Roman Catholic Womenpriests, express our anguish over the murder of George Floyd by police officers in the U.S.  We decry the failure of other officers to intervene.  We grieve this tragic, unnecessary death and all unjust deaths of African Americans,  people of color and indigenous peoples.

We acknowledge the systemic racism throughout the world which is the legacy of colonialism and slavery.  We acknowledge that all white people, regardless of life circumstances, are recipients of white privilege and entitlement in virtually every aspect of life.[1]

We soundly reject the assumption that white people’s lives matter more than the lives of people of color.  We affirm unconditionally that Black Lives Matter equally.

We are grateful to all those who participate in peaceful protest around the world to call for change, despite pandemic conditions. We are grateful to the law enforcement officers who participate in peaceful protests and make public acts of solidarity with victims of racism.  We are appalled by the lack of leadership at the highest levels of our governments that continues the plague of systemic racism.

Jesus of Nazareth reached out to the religious and political leaders of his time in service to their needs and in protest of unjust practices.  He reached out to individuals who were victims of racism, sexism, poverty and lack of access to health care. 

As Christian leaders, we commit to educating ourselves and those we serve about our complicity in racism and all forms of discrimination.  We commit ourselves to speak out against racial violence and all dimensions of racism in our various countries.  We commit to the task of dismantling racism in ourselves and in the communities we serve.  We invite all followers of Jesus to actively participate in these efforts.

 +Jean Marie Marchant, Bishop, RCWP–USA Eastern Region – Boston, Massachusetts

+Nancy L. Meyer, Bishop, RCWP-USA Midwest Region – Brownsburg, Indiana

+Suzanne Thiel, Bishop, RCWP-USA Western Region – Portland, Oregon

+Jane Via, Bishop, RCWP-USA Western Region – San Diego, California

+Patricia Fresen, RCWP South Africa –Johannesburg, South Africa

+Jane Kryzanowski, Bishop, RCWP Canada – Regina, Saskatchewan

+Christine Mayr-Lumetzberger, Bishop, RCWP Europe – Pettenbach, Austria

+Ida Raming, Bishop, RCWP Europe—Stuttgart, Germany

+Marie Evans Bouclin, Bishop Emerita, RCWP Canada – Sudbury, Ontario

+Merlene Olivia Doko, Bishop Emerita, RCWP-USA Western Region – Pismo Beach, California

+Andrea M. Johnson, Bishop Emerita, RCWP-USA Eastern Region – Annapolis, Maryland

+Joan M. Houk, Bishop retired, RCWP-USA Great Waters Region – South Bend, Indiana

 Mary Keldermans, Bishop-elect, RCWP-USA Great Waters Region – Springfield, Illinois

 ________________________________________

[1] See the article of African American theologian Brian Massengale, S.J.  https://www.ncronline.org/news/opinion/assumptions-white-privilege-and-what-we-can-do-about-it)


Roman Catholic Women Bishops respond to Querida Amazonia

Media Release

16 March 2020

Recently, Pope Francis issued his Apostolic Exhortation, Querida Amazonia.  This document accompanied the final report on the Synod on the Amazonian Region, thereby endorsing the report and, in effect, making it a part of the magisterium.  Both documents speak eloquently about concern for the environment and the people of the Amazon Region.

Pope Francis sets forth his dreams in four areas: social, cultural, ecological and ecclesial.  The dream for the church is: “Christian communities capable of generous commitment, incarnate in the region, and giving the Church new faces with Amazonian features.” (7) 

His vision is for the church to journey alongside the people and growing in a culture of encounter.  The people have a right to hear the Gospel and the church should not become just another NGO.  By the presence of her ministers and their service, the church will foster “a holiness born of encounter and engagement, contemplation and service, receptive solitude and life in community, and the struggle for justice.” (77)

What is of concern to us bishops is that while the Pope acknowledges the great work that women do in the Church to achieve this vision, his statement reinforces the tradition of the Church’s designation of a “special” place for women, which suggests their role is in some way exceptional and set apart from or above and beyond the human norm. Yet, while women play such an important role, they are deemed inadequate to serve as priests or deacons to meet the “pressing need to provide the sacraments of the church to accompany God’s children, to heal and strengthen them.” (84)  The Church, which is to be a Mother called to show the people God’s mercy through the sacraments, denies that the maternal face of God can be shown through the sacramental ministry of such dedicated women.

Reinforcing the theology of Pope John Paul II, Pope Francis assigns a complementary role to women when he writes, “God has shown God’s power and love through two human faces: Christ and Mary.” (101) By putting them side by side, he is suggesting that men are similar to the former (Christ) and, therefore, can be ordained, while women are similar to the latter (Mary), and, therefore, cannot be ordained. This takes away from the teaching that both woman and man are created in the image of God and thus both are, can and should be acting in persona Christi.   

Fundamental to the Christian faith is the conviction that Christ adopted human nature inclusively, thus every human being, male and female, can be saved and is indeed divinized in Christ.  Women and men are baptized into Christ is the same way to share in Christ’s own priestly, prophetic and servant ministry. The Letter to the Galatians 3:28 states clearly that in Christ there is no distinction – “neither Jew nor Greek, male nor female, slave nor free, for we are all one in Christ.”

Unfortunately, throughout the history of the church, men with power and authority have defined women as deficient to represent Christ because they do not possess the male physiology of Jesus.  This is the thesis of the Apostolic Letter Ordinatio Sacrdotalis (1994) which has been shown to contain many theological and historical mistakes. Failure to use historic critical exegesis of the Bible perpetuates such errors and dismisses the findings of the Pontifical Biblical Commission (1976) that there is no scriptural basis for exclusion of women from ordination.

Roman Catholic Women Priests are called by God to live the fullness of their Baptism as priests and are ordained according to the Rite of the Roman Catholic Church.  We no longer abide by the unjust laws of the institution that denies the equality of women and men baptized in Christ.  By our prophetic witness the ever renewing and reenergizing Spirit of God gives voice to women in order to bring the light of truth regarding their role in the church from the earliest days and to create ways to enrich the mission and ministry of the Church. Thus, we hope to meet “the pressing need to provide the sacraments of the church to accompany God’s children, to heal and strengthen them.” (84)  Only with equality and justice for women in the church throughout the world can the dream Pope Francis has for the church be realized: “Christian communities capable of generous commitment, incarnate in the region, and giving the Church new faces with [local cultural] features.” (7)

The International Bishops of Roman Catholic Women Priests:

+Jane Kryzanowski, Bishop, RCWP Canada – Regina, Saskatchewan

+Jean Marie Marchant, Bishop, RCWP–USA Eastern Region – Framingham, Massachusetts

+Nancy L. Meyer, Bishop, RCWP-USA Midwest Region – Brownsburg, Indiana

+Suzanne Thiel, Bishop, RCWP-USA Western Region – Portland, Oregon

+Jane Via, Bishop, RCWP-USA Western Region – San Diego, California

+Patricia Fresen, Bishop, RCWP South Africa –Johannesburg

+Christine Mayr-Lumetzberger, Bishop, RCWP Europe – Pettenbach, Austria

+Ida Raming, Bishop, RCWP Europe—Stuttgart, Germany

+Marie Evans Bouclin, Bishop Emerita, RCWP Canada – Sudbury, Ontario

+Merlene Olivia Doko, Bishop Emerita, RCWP-USA Western Region – Pismo Beach, California

+Andrea M. Johnson, Bishop Emerita, RCWP-USA Eastern Region – Annapolis, Maryland

+Joan M. Houk, Bishop retired, RCWP-USA Great Waters Region – South Bend, Indiana

 

March 16, 2020

Contact:  +Jane Kryzanowski – photina61@gmail.com

 No One Catholic Preeminent Priority

Media Release, 25 November 2019

We, the undersigned Roman Catholic Women Bishops call upon our brother bishops to re-evaluate their latest statement regarding the priorities for the Catholic people.

On November 12, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops adopted a letter that will serve as the introduction to a voting guide that will be issued before the 2020 U. S. election.

In that document, the bishops cite a singular “preeminent priority” for Catholics to consider as they cast their ballots, which effectively dilutes the importance of all other prominent social issues.

We concur with and applaud the efforts of Bishop McElroy, Cardinal Cupich and Cardinal Tobin who warned the bishops against advocating for exclusive, single-issue choices. Pope Francis, in his exhortation, Gaudete et Exsultate, also pointed to the danger inherent in the reductionist approach of defending only one issue.

We are vitally concerned with the extremely urgent issue of a climate emergency, which will affect all of God’s people and all of God’s creation. We are vitally concerned with U. S. immigration policies that separate children from their parents and hold children and adults in cage-like structures, while denying many asylum-seekers due process. In addition, we abhor the current efforts to deport DACA recipients. We are vitally concerned with gun violence, with overt and covert racism, and white supremacy in this country. We are vitally concerned with the inequity of health care, especially as it pertains to the poor. We are vitally concerned with the lack of equality for women and the lack of respect for women’s leadership both in the Church and society.

As people in search of the common good, we must grapple with many social justice problems without the limitations implied by one preeminent priority.

It is our fervent hope that all citizens will exercise their responsibility to inform themselves and weigh the consequences of each and every moral issue of the day.

In Christ,

+Suzanne Thiel, Bishop, RCWP-USA Western Region – Portland, Oregon suzthiel@yahoo.com

+Jean Marie Marchant, Bishop, RCWP–USA Eastern Region – Framingham, Massachusetts

+Nancy L. Meyer, Bishop, RCWP-USA Midwest Region – Brownsburg, Indiana

+Jane Via, Bishop, RCWP-USA Western Region – San Diego, California

+Patricia Fresen, RCWP South Africa –Johannesburg, South Africa

+Jane Kryzanowski, Bishop, RCWP Canada – Regina, Saskatchewan

+Christine Mayr-Lumetzberger, Bishop, RCWP Europe – Pettenbach, Austria

+Ida Raming, Bishop, RCWP Europe—Stuttgart, Germany

+Marie Evans Bouclin, Bishop Emerita, RCWP Canada – Sudbury, Ontario

+Merlene Olivia Doko, Bishop Emerita, RCWP-USA Western Region – Pismo Beach, California

+Andrea M. Johnson, Bishop Emerita, RCWP-USA Eastern Region – Annapolis, Maryland

+Sibyl Dana Reynolds, Bishop Emerita, RCWP-USA Western Region -Pebble Beach, California

Joan M. Houk, Bishop retired, RCWP-USA Great Waters Region – South Bend, Indiana

 

Statement on Care of Creation

21 September 2019

We, the undersigned Roman Catholic Women Bishops of North America, express our support for international efforts to care for creation, to protect the environment and reduce the causes of climate change.

  •  We support the youth of the world like Greta Thunberg who are speaking out, challenging our leaders to take seriously the science of climate change and to take action now for the sake of the future.
  • We support the United Nations in calling leaders of nations to adopt concrete and realistic action plans that will reduce carbon emissions over the next decade and for the future.
  • We support Pope Francis in his call to protect the Amazon region as one of the great lungs of the planet and to address the needs of the indigenous people who are most severely affected by those who promote the exploitation of the natural resources of the region.

We call on all people of good will to learn about the environmental crisis we face and to adopt as a spiritual practice some effort to reduce one’s personal carbon footprint as part of a global effort to care for our common home.

 

In Christ,

+Jane Kryzanowski, Bishop, RCWP Canada – Regina, Saskatchewan photina61@gmail.com

+Suzanne Thiel, Bishop, RCWP-USA Western Region – Portland, Oregon

+Nancy L. Meyer, Bishop, RCWP-USA Mid-West Region – Brownsburg, Indiana

+Jane Via, Bishop, RCWP-USA Western Region – San Diego, California

+Jean Marchant, Bishop, RCWP–USA Eastern Region – Framingham, Massachusetts

+Andrea M. Johnson, Bishop Emerita, RCWP-USA Eastern Region – Annapolis, Maryland

+Merlene Olivia Doko, Bishop Emerita – RCWP-USA

+Sibyl Dana Reynolds, Bishop Emerita – RCWP-USA

+Joan M. Houk, Bishop retired, RCWP-USA – South Bend, Indiana

+Marie Evans Bouclin, Bishop Emerita – RCWP Canada – Sudbury, Ontario

 

Background

Throughout the world communities of faith observe the Season of Creation annually from Sept. 1 to October 6. This observance originated in 1989 when the Patriarch of Constantinople, Demitrios I, decreed the first day of September as a day of special reverence and prayer for the Safeguarding of Creation. In 2008 the World Council of Churches began promoting The Season of Creation and since then it has expanded throughout the world. In 2015 Pope Francis issued the Encyclical Letter,

Laudato Si, which has drawn even more attention to care for creation and earth as our common home.

Youth around the world, through Global Climate Strikes inspired by Greta Thunberg of Sweden, are adding energy to the Season of Creation by drawing attention to the urgency to listen to the science of climate change and to urge civic leaders to take action now for the sake of the future of our planet and all creatures.

Greta Thunberg brings this sense of urgency to the UN Climate Action Summit, September 23, 2019. UN Secretary-General António Guterres is calling on all leaders to come with concrete, realistic plans to enhance their nationally determined contributions by 2020, in line with reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 45 per cent over the next decade, and to net zero emissions by 2050.

The Vatican Synod on the Amazon being held October 6-26, 2019 in Rome draws special attention to the moral responsibility of the church to protect the Amazon region as one of the great lungs of the planet and to address the needs of the indigenous people who are most severely affected by those who promote the exploitation of the natural resources of the region.

Call to Action

We call on all people of good will to learn about the environmental crisis we face and to adopt as a spiritual practice some effort to reduce one’s carbon footprint:

  • Refuse – make the choice not to generate waste in the first place
  • Reduce – make decisions that decrease the amount of waste produced
  • Reuse/repair – expand the shelf-lives of products; repair and reuse items
  • Replace – next time consider the recycled and green option
  • Recycle – reclaim the raw materials

25 January 2019

To Members of the Planning Committee for the Clerical Sex Abuse Conference called by Pope Francis:

Reverend Hans Zollner, Germany
Cardinal Blase Cupich, Chicago, U.S.A.
Cardinal Oswald Gracias, Mumbai, India
Archbishop Charles J. Scicluna, Malta

The ongoing worldwide scandal of clergy sexual abuse and cover-up dramatically affects all of God’s people. Sexual abuse of any kind is a crime which must be reported and dealt with by civil authorities so that justice can truly be served.  Healing the spiritual wounds suffered by victims of abuse requires that Church authorities listen with the heart of Christ if the Church is to heal this wound to the Body of Christ.  Pope Francis has responded by convening a meeting of the heads of bishops’ national conferences in February. You are tasked with preparing for this meeting. We hope you will consider the following observations and recommendations.

Pope Francis has stated, “To say ‘no’ to abuse is to say an emphatic ‘no’ to all forms of clericalism.” (Letter to the People of God, par. 2.4)  We agree that clericalism is a key issue because it maintains the Church’s clergy/lay structure, which is seriously flawed since it reserves decision-making to a small minority of unmarried men.  Unfortunately, they are more akin to a secular pyramidal corporation rather than a college of Apostles whose mission is to teach, govern and sanctify through sacrament and example, the whole People of God.  Real change against abuse must start with essential change to the Church’s clergy/lay structure.  Two changes we consider essential to restore the credibility of the teaching authority of the Church are the inclusion of women in all ministries of the Church and the end to mandatory celibacy.

We speak as women who love the Church and have accepted, in prophetic obedience to the Holy Spirit, to exercise a leadership of service within Catholic faith communities, tending the broken souls of those wounded by the Church.  We minister to victims of clergy sexual harassment, exploitation and assault, and to their families. We also journey with offending priests to help them find forgiveness and healing.

The absence of women in positions of ecclesial authority denies the Church the wisdom and insight women bring to the processes of discernment and decision making.  Patriarchal gender stereotyping silences the voice of half of humanity. Women know from experience that the hierarchy of the Catholic Church is a primary carrier of the global toxic virus of misogyny and the violence it engenders. The cure for that virus is equality: the inclusion of women in all ministries of the Church so that men and women are equal partners in gathering and shepherding God’s people.

Further, if the Church would recognize the dual call to priesthood as well as marriage, the insights of family life would enrich the ministry of its priests as it does with its deacons. An end to mandatory celibacy would afford priests and bishops the emotional support and stability of family life (see Gen 2:18; I Tim 3:2-5) and would provide a role model for parishioners. This is not to say that we do not honor the charism of celibacy in those who receive it.

The members (women and men) of the international Roman Catholic Women Priests movement join their voices with all who hope that your meeting in Rome will produce the real changes necessary to restructure Church governance.  A conversion from clericalism and entitlement to service is imperative in order to heal the grave wounds to the Body of Christ and move the Church into the 21st century.

We earnestly pray that the Spirit will guide your deliberations and your decision making, to bring the Church out of the darkness into Christ’s light, “for the Holy Spirit Itself is a burning and shining serenity, which cannot be nullified, and which enkindles ardent virtue so as to put all darkness to light” (St. Hildegard of Bingen).

Respectfully,

Roman Catholic Women Priests:

+Marie Evans Bouclin, (Sudbury, ON, Bishop Emerita, RCWP Canada)
+Merlene Olivia Doko, (Pismo Beach, CA, Bishop Emerita, RCWP USA)
+Patricia Fresen, (Capetown, RCWP South Africa)
+Joan M. Clark Houk, (South Bend, IN, RCWP-USA, Great Waters Region)
+Andrea Michele Johnson, (Annapolis, MD, RCWP USA, Eastern Region)
+Jane Kryzanowski, (Regina, SK, RCWP, Canada)
+Christine Mayr-Lumetzberger, (Pettenbach, RCWP Austria/ Europe)
+Nancy Louise Meyer, (Indianapolis, IN, RCWP USA, Midwest Region)
+Ida Raming, (Stuttgart, RCWP Germany)
+Sibyl Dana Reynolds, (Pebble Beach, CA, Bishop Emerita, RCWP USA)
+Suzanne Avison Thiel, (Portland, OR, RCWP USA, Western Region)
+Jane Via, (San Diego, CA, RCWP USA, Western Region)

On behalf of the members of the Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests:

+Olga Lucia Alvarez (Colômbia, S.A., ARCWP)
+Michele Birch-Conery (Windsor, ON, ARCWP)
+Mary Eileen Collingwood (Hudson, OH, ARCWP)
+Bridget Mary Meehan (Sarasota, FL, ARCWP)

Contacts:

Jane Kryzanowski
photina61@gmail.com
306-737-2927

Bridget Mary Meehan
sofiabmm@aol.com
703-505-0004

enclosed: A Litany for Renewal


A LITANY FOR RENEWAL

Compassionate Holy One…

In our season of brokenness, you call us to walk a higher road:

— As we follow the Way of Jesus, guide us as a community of equals, to build a reconciled and renewed Church for today’s world.

In our season of brokenness, we seek healing for ourselves and those who cross our paths:

— As we follow the Way of Jesus, may we embody his teachings of merciful and unconditional love, forgiveness, and inclusivity.

In our season of brokenness, the fervent needs of our brothers and sisters are before us:

—As we follow the Way of Jesus, open our hearts and eyes to fully witness the depths of human suffering. Inspire our courage and fuel our spirits with the grace of acceptance to embrace diversity, use our voices for the voiceless, and speak truth to power.

In our season of brokenness, nature and all life upon this earth are in grave jeopardy:

— As we follow the Way of Jesus, we pray for your people, especially those in power,  to cherish our natural resources and watch over your creatures. Help us to value and care for the vast interconnectedness and myriad threads within the fabric of your Creation.

Compassionate Holy One…

As we follow the Way of Jesus, make us hope-bringers, truth-tellers, and messengers of Peace.  Unite our hearts through our prayers, heal our brokenness, and inspire the co-creation of a vibrantly re-imagined and welcoming Church. Together, let us envision a blessed season of radiant wholeness…ablaze with Christ’s Love.

2016

ROMAN CATHOLIC WOMEN PRIESTS

Africa      Asia      Europe      North America     South America

 

May 18, 2016
His Holiness, Pope Francis
Apostolic Palace
00120 Vatican City

Dear Pope Francis, our Brother in Christ,

In this Year of Mercy, we write to express our concern about the exclusion of women from ordained ministry in the Roman Catholic Church and the effects this has on the Body of Christ.

We are Roman Catholic priests, deacons, and bishops who are ordained in apostolic succession.  In 2002, our movement began when seven women were ordained on the Danube River.  Our international movement includes women who are qualified theologians and pastoral ministers.  Some were active witnesses of Vatican Council II and wrote petitions to the Council for admission of women to the diaconate and priesthood (see Gertrud Heinzelmann, ed., Wir schweigen nicht laenger! – We Won’t Keep Silence Any Longer! Women Speak Out to Vatican Council II, Interfeminas-Verlag, Zuerich, 1964, pp. 61-76).  Under the leadership of prominent scholars, they provided substantive theological research concerning the exclusion of women from the priesthood. Our engagement in the struggle for women’s ordination has been constant for more than fifty years.  Our scholarly research demonstrates that the exclusion of women from ordination is based on culturally conditioned, long-lasting discrimination, documented in many sources from church history and Sacred Tradition.  This discriminating practice continues in our Church today.

Nonetheless, God is freely calling women to priestly ministry, and we firmly believe that no one can limit the call of God (see 1 Cor.12:11). Church law (CIC c. 1024: Sacram ordinationem valide recipit solus vir baptizatus) is a formulation of man-made doctrine and structures, as is Church doctrine (Ordinatio Sacerdotalis (1994)).  In 1976, the Vatican’s own Pontifical Biblical Commission found that there is no scriptural basis for prohibiting women’s ordination, yet this determination was never published. Why is it possible for man-made doctrine to override research that concerns the well-being of our Church and the will of God?

In this Year of Mercy, our hope is that you will initiate an open conversation with us to explore our lived reality and ideals of reform that promote justice for women in our Church.  We appeal to you, Pope Francis, to enter into dialogue with us concerning the future of priestly ministry in the Roman Catholic Church – a future that will include women as priests and will foster right relationships among the whole people of God.  We make this appeal in the spirit of your homily announcing the Year of Mercy: “No one can be excluded from the mercy of God; everyone knows the way to access it, and the Church is the house that welcomes all and refuses no one.  Its doors remain wide open.”

Mindful of our call to priesthood, we are following our consciences and acting according to our dignity as free human beings, made in the image of God (Gen. 1:27), baptized into Christ, and clothed with Christ (Gal. 3:27).  We act on the principle that “We must obey God rather than men.(Acts 5:29).  Our movement is growing rapidly, and we now have two hundred twenty-five members witnessing to and serving the people of God in twelve countries on five continents.  We are educators, lawyers, healthcare professionals, musicians, spiritual directors, authors, chaplains, counselors, and pastoral leaders. We minister with people who desire spiritual growth in a community of acceptance.  Our ministry is centered in Christ’s boundless love for all our sisters and brothers. We advocate for social justice through outreach to the poor, homeless, abused and imprisoned, the aged, the addicted, the victims of sex-trade and rape, and those who are marginalized and abandoned physically or spiritually. We find that people who are joining our communities of faith hunger for the spirit of inclusiveness and compassion that undergirds their new spiritual home.

Pope Francis, in recent months you have traveled the road from condemnation to conversation with the Society of Pius X, who denied the tenets of Vatican Council II. Their schismatic status was overturned by lifting their penalty of excommunication.  So, too, can excommunication be lifted from Roman Catholic Women Priests who invoke primacy of conscience in answering the Spirit’s call to ordained ministry in our Church.

We call you to action with your own words: “Who are we to close doors that the Holy Spirit wants to open?”

In this spirit, initiate dialogue with us during this Holy Year of Mercy, and remove all ecclesiastical punishments, including excommunication, against our members and supporters;

In this spirit, open wide the arms of the Church because we answer God’s call in prophetic obedience to the Spirit;

In this spirit, remove the barriers which separate us in our efforts to serve the people of God as ordained ministers;

In this spirit, illuminate the sacramentality of the Church that belongs to all the people of God through ordained ministers who reflect the whole Body of Christ.

Thank you for your attention to this appeal.

In the Spirit of Jesus, we are:

 

Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests

Dorothy M. Shugrue
10901 Santa Margherita Lane, #102
Bonita Springs, FL 34135 USA
1-203-535-5444 (c)
1-239-444-0218 (h)
dottyshugrue@yahoo.com

Roman Catholic Womenpriests-USA

Jennifer O’Malley
1057 E. Appleton St., #1
Long Beach, CA 90802 USA
310-408-9122 (c)
jomalley72@gmail.com

Contributing Members:

Olga Lucia Alvarez Benjumen, Colombia

Barbara J. Billey, Canada

Michele Birch-Conery, Canada

Mary Bergan Blanchard, USA

Marie E. Bouclin, Canada

Silvia Brandon-Perez, USA

Mary Eileen Collingwood, USA

Olivia Doko, USA

Joan C. Houk, USA

Alice M. Iaquinta, USA

Andrea M. Johnson, USA

Caryl Johnson, USA

 

Nori Kieran-Meredith, USA

Jane Kryzanowski, Canada

Puanani Lalakea, USA

Christine Mayr-Lumetzberger, Austria

Bridget Mary Meehan, USA

Ida Raming, Germany

Sibyl Dana Reynolds, USA

Kathleen Gibbons Schuck, USA

Janice Sevre-Duszynska, USA

Suzanne Avison Thiel, USA

 

News Articles: 2015 – 2016

Conference Shines Spotlight on Women Ordained As Priests

ABC News

Friday, September 18, 2015
Watch video from ABC News and read accompanying article at:

http://6abc.com/religion/conference-shines-spotlight-on-women-ordained-as-priests/991237/

Meet The Women Priests Who Are Defying The Catholic Church

Meet The Women Priests Who Are Defying The Catholic Church

7 Arrested After Group Seeking Ordination of Female Priests Protests Pope Francis in Washington

7 Arrested After Group Seeking Ordination of Female Priests Protests Pope Francis in Washington

Source: Newsweek

By Polly Mosendz

 

Women Battle to Become Roman Catholic Priests

Women Battle to Become Roman Catholic Priests

Source: Al Jazeera America News Daily

September 7, 2015

Three women are ordained as Catholic deacons in Santa Cruz, California

Watch video at:

http://america.aljazeera.com/watch/shows/live-news/2015/9/women-battle-to-become-female-priests.html

Catholic Women Priests Fight for Inclusion -- For All

Catholic Women Priests Fight for Inclusion — For All

Source: NJ.com

By: Di Ionno

Read article at:

https://www.nj.com/news/2015/05/catholic_women_priests_fight_for_inclusion_–_for.html

2014

ROMAN CATHOLIC WOMENPRIESTS CELEBRATE 8TH ANNIVERSARY OF FIRST ORDINATION IN THE U.S.

August 2, 2014

This week Roman Catholic Womenpriests-USA joyfully celebrates the 8th anniversary of the first ordination of Roman Catholic Women in the United States.

On July 31, 2006, Eileen McCafferty DiFranco, Olivia Doko, Joan Clark Houk, Kathleen Kunster, Bridget Mary Meehan, Roberta Meehan, Dana Reynolds, Kathy Sullivan Vandenberg were ordained as Roman Catholic priests. Four deacons were also ordained at the ordination. The ordination took place on a riverboat in Pittsburgh, PA.

On the day of the ordination, Joan Houk said she hoped that as priest she would be able to “Connect with people who are Catholic who have walked away or are not participating…” Today there are approximately 180 RCWP members worldwide; more than 150 of these women are located in the United States. Roman Catholic Womenpriests are ministering in house and parish communities, perform weddings, baptisms and funerals; are chaplains and offer sacraments to the sick and elderly, serve the homeless and provide spiritual direction and retreats.

The movement within the Church began in Germany with the ordination of seven women on the Danube River in 2002, by male Roman Catholic Bishops and in 2003 two of the “Danube 7” were ordained Bishops.

RCWP rejects Canon law that does not allow women to be ordained priest today. Many historians and theologians can provide evidence that women were ordained Deacons, Priests, and Bishops in the early church. In addition, in 1970, because of the Soviet Bloc, a Czech Bishop ordained women to serve in the women’s prisons where men could not go.

Read More about the Historic Day:

Pittsburgh Post Gazette: Group Ordains 8 Women as Priests.

The Washington Post: Reclaiming the Feminine Spirit in the Catholic Priesthood

2012

KALAMAZOO BISHOP WARNS CATHOLICS NOT TO PARTICIPATE IN 'WOMENPRIESTS' ORDINATIONS

May 27, 2014

Bishop Paul Bradley of the Catholic Diocese of Kalamazoo is warning Catholics not to participate in a ceremony Saturday in which a Three Oaks woman will be ordained by the group Roman Catholic Womenpriests.

The May 31 ceremony for Lillian Lewis, 75, will be held at First Congregational Church in Three Oaks. The ceremony will be conducted by Joan Houk, a Womenpriests bishop…

READ MORE see: http://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2014/05/kalamazoo_bishop_warns_catholi.html

ROMAN CATHOLIC WOMENPRIESTS (PBS Article)

Roman Catholic Womenpriests
PBS, July 11, 2012

LESS POPE, MORE JESUS

Less Pope, More Jesus
Call to Action Conference, November 2012

"WE CANNOT WAIT FOR THE CHURCH TO CHANGE"

An article written in Spanish by Eusebio Valand translated by ZoomBookmarkSharePrintListenEnglish

A bishop and a priest Catholic dissidents explain their defiance of the Vatican

The two former nuns were not allowed to take communion in the church of San Pedro and were asked to leave the basilica. They are staying in one of the numerous Roman convents operated as hotels, five minutes walk from the Vatican. But they hide their status to avoid problems with the nuns. They put the collar on when entering the streets.

The Austrian Christine Mayr-lumetzberger, 56, is a founder of the dissident movement Roman Catholic Women Priests (RCWP)-Roman Catholic priests, and has already reached the rank of bishop. The American Juanita Cordero, 70, is serving as a priest in a worshiping community in Los Gatos (California). They are tourists in Rome, but take the opportunity to contact the press and made public in its sole discretion. “Our main goal is to testify that the priests are here to stay, we have been called to the priesthood, which are equal to men,” Cordero says with conviction. “God has called me, I know we can not wait for Rome to change,” drives home this petite and energetic widow. From the age of 17 to 27 years Cordero was a nun. Then she married a former Jesuit. They had four children and adopted a fifth African American. Cordero was always very active in her Catholic parish. She cannot earn money in the Church but just wants to do pastoral work, and continue her commitment to serve the people. Nothing more.” The Bishop was between 20 and 25 years, a Benedictine nun. Then she left the convent and got married. She clarifies that, despite its rebellious stance, she is still paying the voluntary levy that exists in Austria for Catholics. According to Cordero, the relationship between RCWP and the official Church is uneven. Both say they receive much support from the religious orders, especially the Jesuits and Franciscans, and less from diocesan priests, “but this support is growing quietly.” Mayr-lumetzberger warns that diocesan priests are afraid of reprisals, of losing their parishes and their salaries. – Where does the Church, after seven years as Pope Benedict XVI? -We asked. – Backward-answer, without hesitation, Cordero. The bishop and the priest of RCWP complain about the diminishing role given to women in the liturgy, including by deleting altar girls. Mayr-lumetzberger attributes it “the ministry of dictatorship,” which, in her view, overlooking the Church. “There is much fear of being thrown out of office,” she says. Both are convinced that there will be a collapse of existing structures, but that will be healthier for the faithful. “The issue is not only priests, but gays and lesbians, divorced Catholics, contraception, are closed questions for discussion.” laments Cordero. Mayr-lumetzberger confident that in the future, little by little, the Vatican accepts exceptions by the back door, as it has done with the inclusion of Anglican married priests or special status for traditionalists Lefebvrists. According to the bishop, the successor to the current pope may open hands with women. And remember: “The mission of the bishops, also the bishop of Rome, is to unite, not divide.”

PHOTOS

Recent Liturgy in Calgary
Summer 2012

Celebrants and Celebrations

2011

PHOTOS

Religious Ed Congress – March 2011
Anaheim, California

Call to Action – November 2011
RCWP-USA Booth in Exhibit hall
Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Recent Liturgy at Church of the Beatitudes
Santa Barbara, California

2010

VATICAN MISCATEGORIZES WOMEN'S RIGHTS ADVOCATES WITH CHILD ABUSERS

July 16, 2010

https://www.womensordination.org/2010/07/16/july-16-2010/

2009

MEDIA COVERAGE OF U.S. ORDINATIONS, 2009

The following articles have been published regarding the Ordination of WomenPriests in PHiladelphia in April, 2009. Please note that copyright is held by individual sources.

Roman Catholic Womenpriests Ordain Two Women in Philadelphia
April 26, 2009 By David O’Reilly, Philadelphia Inquirer
Robed in floor-length white linen and purple stoles, two Roman Catholic women will kneel this afternoon i n a spare Roxborough sanctuary, in a liturgy both ancient and audacious….

N.J. woman ordained as a priest in controversial ceremony
April 26, 2009 By Jeff Diamant, The Star-Ledger
Last July, Mary Ann Schoettly was automatically excommunicated from the Catholic Church after a ceremony that she says made her a deacon — a ceremony conducted in willful defiance of her religion’s ban on ordaining women. Today, in the eyes of a small group of renegade Catholics who believe women should be allowed into the Catholic priesthood, the 66-year-old Sussex County resident was ordained a priest, in a controversial ceremony held at a synagogue.

PHOTOS AND VIDEOS OF U.S. ORDINATIONS, 2009

RCWP Episcopal Ordinations April 19, 2009

YouTube movies of
ordination ceremony of first womenbishops ordained in the
United States by Roman Catholic Womenpriests Entrance Procession:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-tsOVVddBo

Clips of Bishop Patricia Fresen’s homily at Ordinations of Women Bishops – three parts:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJQFDNMnAO8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7I5T_ZC6es
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpZ1RAc7PqA

Examination of Bishops-Elect before the Community
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-mSG_PZ8cA

Prostration of Bishops/Litany of the Saints
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCk3yWVs4FQ

Laying of Hands
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=woC43RqYmdA

Anointing of the Bishop’s Head
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nA4UJp5Nd-U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyjolnnVc2c

Presentation of Book of Gospels
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1kGVF_q2Yc

Investiture with Bishop’s Staff
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hwr0fens4-Y

Bishop Patricia Fresen presents first women bishops
to be ordained in the United States to the Community
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6m2iexOXvU

2008

MEDIA COVERAGE OF U.S. ORDINATIONS, 2008

The following articles have been published regarding the Ordination of WomenPriests in Boston (July 2008), in Lexington (August 2008), and in Chicago (November 2008). Please note that copyright is held by individual sources.

List of National Catholic Reporter’s Articles on Fr. Roy Bourgeois support of ordination of women
See Bridget Mary’s Blog Spot for a complete listing with links to National Catholic Reporter’s Articles on Fr. Roy Bourgeois and his support of the ordination for women in the Roman Catholic Church.
http://bridgetmarys.blogspot.com/2008/08/list-of-natinal-catholic-reporters.html

Articles-Radio-TV Coverage of Janice Sevre-Duszynska’s Ordination as a Roman Catholic Womanpriest
See Bridget Mary’s Blog Spot for a complete listing with links on media coverage of Janice Sevre-Duszynska’s Ordination
http://bridgetmarys.blogspot.com/2008/08/abc-story-of-janice-sevre-duszynskas.html

Roman Catholic Womenpriests Ordained in Boston on July 20, 2008
See Bridget Mary’s Blog Spot for a complete listing with links on media coverage of RCWP Ordinations in Boston, July, 2008.
http://bridgetmarys.blogspot.com/2008/07/roman-catholic-womenpriests-ordained-in.html

In the first Roman Catholic Womanpriest (RCWP) ordination in Chicago, Barbara Zeman (Chicago) was ordained a priest, and Alta Jacko (Chicago), Linda Wilcox (Afton, MN), and Mary Styne (Milwaukee, WI) were ordained deacons by Bishop Dana Reynolds of California in St. Paul’s United Church of Christ in Chicago, Illinois.

Movies:

VIDEOS ON PAPAL VISIT, APRIL 2008
Videos on YouTube
RCWP Ree Hudson speaks at Press Conference: Pope Benedict’s Visit
 
RCWP Elsie McGrath speaks at Press Conference: Pope Benedict’s Visit
 
RCWP Bridget Mary Meehan announces first US RC Womanbishop: Dana Reynolds
RCWP Bridget Mary Meehan shares Bishop Dana’s Reynold’s Visit at Press Conference
 
Aisha Taylor from Women’s Ordination Conference
 
RCWP :Andrea Johnson’s Homily
 
Inclusive Catholic Mass presented by Catholic Women : Pope Benedict’s Visit
 
Opening Hymn for Catholic Mass

 

PRESS RELEASE: REGARDING EXCOMMUNICATION OF WOMENPRIESTS

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Theresa Padovano  (973) 539-8732

VOTFNJ Responds to the Roman Catholic Church’s Decree that Automatically Excommunicates Women Ordained to the Priesthood

In response to the Decree of the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith (CDF) against Women’s Ordination, we the members of Voice of the Faithful New Jersey support the following statement issued by CORPUS – National Association for an Inclusive Ministry.

Priesthood serves the People of God by bringing healing and hope through sacramental celebration and pastoral care. It is God’s People who must discern their leaders and it is the bishops of the Church who are called to validate this in the normal course of events. When that validation is withheld for reasons which have nothing substantial to do with ministry, then the baptized community must call bishops to respect biblical norms and Gospel imperatives. The life of a community and of the Eucharist cannot be held hostage to Church policies which undermine them. A baptized community has a human and evangelical right to community, pastoral care and Eucharistic celebration.

            For these reasons, CORPUS stands in solidarity with those ordained women who followed their calling and were selected for priesthood when bishops rejected them. When rejection is based on weak theological reasons and on a refusal to dialogue with or hear these women, then the community must act against what is sees as an injustice, indeed discrimination, and behavior which Christ could not endorse.

            To excommunicate all these women, “latae sententiae”, automatically, without a hearing and due process, is the mark of a frightened and absolutist leadership. No democracy or humane government in the world employs its harshest penalty automatically against its citizens, without due process, redress, appeal, open courtrooms, judicial restraint and equity. It astonishes us that a Church we love can act in so desperate and destructive a manner. We, therefore, in the conviction that the future church will find this action shameful and unworthy, stand in solidarity with our sisters who seek to serve God’s People and are treated as criminals. They are branded as sinners to be excluded from the very sacramental life of the Church which their ordination was intended to make more abundantly available. Irony is too weak a word to describe this; tragedy is a more accurate description.

In addition, we offer the following points:

1.      The Papal Commission on the ordination of women found no biblical justification for the exclusion of women from Holy Orders.

2.      The National Review Board set up by the bishops in Dallas in 2002, made clear that the “clerical culture” of the Roman Catholic Church was a root cause of the sex abuse phenomenon.  The ordination of women and of a married priesthood would help reform that culture.

3.   History informs us that ordained women ministered to their faith communities in the early Church and throughout the first millennium.

4.   As the faithful we have a responsibility in Church law to express our needs to our pastors.  The Holy Spirit has spoken to women among us.  They have courageously responded.

We know from our historical experience that silence implies consent.  Catholic theology and tradition teach that an unjust law must be resisted and that a dubious law need not be obeyed.

We believe the elements above are in accord with all the goals of VOTF.

– END –

PHOTOS

RCWP Episcopal Ordination – April 9, 2008
Asemwald, Stuttgart, Germany
Episcopal Ordination and Priest Ordination

Left to Right: Christel Hildebrand (Lutlevan Minister); Bishop Gisela Forster; Bishop dana Reynolds (newly consecrated bishop); Suzanne A. Thiel (newly ordained priest); Bishop Ida Ramin; Bishop Patricia Fresen; Unknown Luterhan Minister; Regina Laedwig (German deacon)

2007

MEDIA COVERAGE OF U.S. AND CANADIAN ORDINATIONS 2007

The following articles have been published regarding the United States Ordinations in Summer, 2007. Please note that copyright is held by individual sources

A year later, woman priest sees growth
July 31, 2007 · by Marylynne Pitz, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
On a brutally hot morning this month, Joan Clark Houk was preparing for out-of-town journeys, first to New York City and then to Minneapolis, Minn. .
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07212/805589-51.stm

A Place at the Altar
June 24, 2007
by Jan Jarboe Russell, The New York Times
On a late winter Sunday in San Diego, Jane Via, dressed in the traditional garb of a Roman Catholic priest.led the 100 or so congregants of the Mary Magdalene Apostle Catholic Community in a forbidden Mass.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/24/magazine/24wwln-essay-t.html?_r=1&ref=magazine&oref=slogin

Canada Catholics ‘ordain’ women
May 28, 2007 · by Lee Carter in BBC News, Toronto
An ordination ceremony that openly defies Roman Catholic doctrine has taken place in Toronto. Five women and a married man, all Roman Catholics, have been ordained as priests and deacons by Patricia Fresen, a female Catholic bishop. However, the Vatican says it will not recognize either the ordinations or the group carrying them out.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6697271.stm

Catholic Bishops Say No to Women Priests, Yes to Hookers
November 9, 2007 by Angela Bonavoglia · The Huffington Post
That about sums it up. In yet another empty defense of the Catholic Church’s blatant discrimination against women who it refuses to ordain, St. Louis, Missouri Archbishop Raymond Burke promised to excommunicate two Roman Catholic women who will be ordained priests in St. Louis on Sunday, November 11.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/angela-bonavoglia/catholic-bishops-say-no-t_b_71968.html

The Church Ladies
November 7, 2007 by Kristen Hinman · The River Front TImes
Two St. Louis women will soon become ordained Catholic priests – and in a Jewish synagogue, no less. The usual ordination of a Roman Catholic priest takes place in a cathedral and includes a vow of obedience to clerical superiors.
http://www.riverfronttimes.com/2007-11-07/news/the-church-ladies

PHOTOS

Roman Catholic Womenpriests Celebrate Eucharist at
CALL TO ACTION 30th Anniversary Conference
in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

2006

MEDIA COVERAGE OF ORDINATIONS 2006

The following articles have been published regarding the Ordinations in 2006. Please note that copyright is held by individual sources

Reclaiming the Feminine Spirit
July 30, 2006 · in The Washington Post
Washington Post: Reclaiming the Feminine Spirit in the Catholic Priesthood: N.Va. Woman, Bridget Mary Meehan is among 12 to receive an ordination not recognized by Church
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/29/AR2006072900849.html

Making a stand for the Church
July 28, 2006
in Boston Globe
Boston Globe: Making a Stand for the Church: Archdiocesan Official, Jean Marchant quits, saying she was ordained. Jean Marie Marchant, who for the last four years has been director of healthcare ministry for the archdiocese, offered her resignation to Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2006/07/28/making_a_stand_for_women_priests/

Going against Catholic law, 12 women seek ordination
July 30, 2006
in San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle: Going against Catholic law, 12 women seek ordination:  Kathleen Strack Kunster, Juanita Cordero, Dana Reynolds, and Olivia Doko are from California. They are willing to risk being excommunicated to try to change church doctrine.

Twelve women ordained in Pittsburgh on riverboat
August 6, 2006 · in National Catholic Reporter
National Catholic Reporter:Twelve women ordained in Pittsburgh on riverboat: ”I am utterly convinced that our ordinations are valid,” she said at an earlier news conference. “Although they break the [church] law, we believe we are breaking an unjust law.” Bishop Patricia Fresen
http://www.nationalcatholicreporter.org/update/nt080406.htm 

Women ordained as priests in riverboat rite
August 1 , 2006 · in The Post Gazette
Women ordained as priests in riverboat rite by Annie O’Neal and AnnRodgers. Testimony of Julie, daughter  of Kathy Sullivan Vandenberg telling story of her mother who blessed the school bus.
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06213/710207-85.stm

Catholic Women Claim Ordination as Priests
August 17, 2006 · on National Public Radio
NPR: Catholic Women Claim Ordination as Priests: Radio clips feature Bridget Mary Meehan’s first public Mass and homily. “Jesus was a rule-breaker, so are we. All are welcome at this table.”

Defying church, 12 Catholic women to be ordained here
June 15, 2006 · in Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06166/698388-85.stm

 National Public Radio: Weekend Edition Sunday
April 16, 2006 Inscriptions and images found on tombstones, frescoes and mosaics throughout the Mediterranean show that women held respected roles in the early Christian church that were identical to those held by men. They were apostles, priests, deacons and bishops.  by Sylvia Poggioli, NPR
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=534285

ARTICLES

Justice For Women

Victoria Rue, an ordained womanpriest who was ordained on the St Lawrence Seaway in July of 2005. She spoke about her call to ordination and her work as a …
http://cw-justiceforwomen.blogspot.com/search?q=rue

PHOTOS - ORDINATION OF WOMENPRIESTS, BODENSEE GERMANY

The Ordination of Roman Catholic Womenpriests and Womendeacons

June 24, 2006 in Bodensee, Germany

Presiding bishops: Gisela Forster,
Patricia Fresen and Ida Raming

VIDEO - ORDINATION OF WOMENPRIESTS, PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA

The Ordination of Roman Catholic Womenpriests and Womendeacons
July 31, 2006 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Presiding bishops: Gisela Forster, Patricia Fresen, Ida Raming of Germany

2005

ARTICLES

BBC NEWS | Americas | Nine ‘women clerics’ defy Vatican

Four of the nine women were ordained as priests and five as deacons aboard the Thousand Islander III boat that sailed on St Lawrence River. …
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4717277.stm

The Hindu : International : Vatican’s scourge

… be ordained on July 25 in a public ceremony on a boat on the St. Lawrence … The Vatican says that it is God’s will that women should not be priests. …
www.hindu.com/2005/07/22/stories/2005072203452400.htm

Nine Defy Vatican’s Ban on Ordination of Women

GANANOQUE, Ontario, July 25 — Nine women in white robes knelt on the deck of a … left, is congratulated by a supporter at rite on the St. Lawrence River. …
www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/ content/article/2005/07/25/AR2005072501586.html

 

PHOTOS

The Ordination of Roman Catholic Womenpriests and Womendeacons

July 25, 2005 on a Boat on International Waters

St. Lawrence Seaway, Canada

Presiding Bishops Christine Mayr-Lumetzberger,
Gisela Forster, and Patrica Fresen

2004

PHOTOS

The Ordination of Roman Catholic Womendeacons
on the Danube River, 2004

Ida Raming, reading the
Gospel, Danube 2004

Six women ordained to the diaconate,
Danube 2004

Genevieve Beney, Bishop Gisela Forster,
Danube 2004

Catherine Rue blessing
her daughter Victoria,
Danube 2004

For current news and articles related to the women’s ordination movement and renewal of the Catholic Church, please visit our Facebook, Twitter and Bridget Mary’s Blog. Bridget Mary’s Blog and the Association of Roman Catholic Womenpriests operate independently of Roman Catholic Womenpriests-USA, Inc. This third party blog is for informational purposes only. For semi-monthly news relating to the RCWP in Canada see RCWP Canada’s publication, The Review, at rcwpcanada.altervista.org

This website was created and is maintained by Roman Catholic Womenpriests-USA, Inc. (RCWP-USA, Inc.), a California 501 (c) 3 non-profit corporation, as an educational and informational service to the public. RCWP-USA, Inc. promotes and supports the ordination of women and men in a renewed priestly ministry in the Roman Catholic Church. This website provides information about RCWP worldwide, with special focus on RCWP in the USA. Every ministry convened by a RCWP member operates separately and independently from Roman Catholic Womenpriests-USA, Inc. RCWP-USA, Inc. disclaims any responsibility for the operation of these ministries. The biographical information and descriptions of the ministries are for informational purposes only. This website also contains links to third party sites. Such links do not constitute or imply an endorsement and/or sponsorship by RCWP-USA, Inc. RCWP-USA, Inc. is not responsible for such third party websites and is not liable for the contents therein.