Ordaining women

[-I---Love]

...so does anyone have any new thoughts or support for or against women being ordained Priests in the Catholic Church? I say NEW because I have already, 100 times, heard that "we do not have the authority to ordain women in the Priesthood," and that "all of Jesus' 12 apostles were men..."

If anyone can find for me the passage pertaining to women deacons in the New Testament please let me know because I lost my spot and cannot find it to no avail. (not 1 Timothy)

Also, if anyone has ever personally or knows someone who senses a call to the Priesthood that is a women I'd be interested in hearing the story.

I am not looking for a debate, but rather TONS OF INFORMATION, BOTH for AND against the issue.

Thanks ...

[musturde]

The mother of God wasn't a priest. Since Mother Mary wasn't a priestess and we can't compare ourselves to her how can we expect girls to be priestess'? (btw its a big tradition since about ad 30)

[jmjtina]

New thoughts on the subject? Actually the new thoughts are the same as the old ones, Women are not called to the priesthood.

However I know girls my own age (some on this board) who feel God is calling them to service in a special way. However this service is one of a nun, or a sister in a convent. Women are not called to the priesthood, men are.

Women in the Priesthood

Gen. 3:15; Luke 1:26-55; John 19:26; Rev. 12:1- Mary is God's greatest creation, was the closest person to Jesus, and yet Jesus did not choose her to become a priest.

Mark 16:9; Luke 7: 37-50; John 8:3-11 - Jesus allowed women to uniquely join in His mission, exalting them above cultural norms. His decision not to ordain women had nothing to due with culture. The Gospel writers are also clear that women participated in Jesus' ministry and, unlike men, never betrayed Jesus. Women have always been held with the highest regard in the Church (e.g., the Church's greatest saint and model of faith is a woman; the Church's constant teaching on the dignity of motherhood; the Church's understanding of humanity as being the Bride united to Christ, etc.).

Mark 14:17,20; Luke 22:14 - the language "the twelve" and "apostles" shows Jesus commissioned the Eucharistic priesthood by giving holy orders only to men.

Gen. 14:10; Heb. 5:6,10; 6:20; 7:15,17 - Jesus, the Son of God, is both priest and King after the priest-king Melchizedek. Jesus' priesthood embodies both Kingship and Sonship.

Gen. 22:9-13 - as foreshadowed, God chose our redemption to be secured by the sacrificial love that the Son gives to the Father.

Matt. 26:26; Mark 14:22; Luke 22:19 - because the priest acts in persona Christi in the offering to the Father, the priest cannot be a woman.

Mark 3:13 - Jesus selected the apostles "as He desired," according to His will, and not according to the demands of His culture. Because Jesus acted according to His will which was perfectly united to that of the Father, one cannot criticize Jesus' selection of men to be His priests without criticizing God.

John 20:22 - Jesus only breathed on the male apostles, the first bishops, giving them the authority to forgive and retain sins. In fact, the male priesthood of Christianity was a distinction from the priestesses of paganism that existed during these times. A female priesthood would be a reversion to non-Christian practices. The sacred tradition of male priesthood has existed uncompromised in the Church for over 2,000 years.

1 Cor. 14:34-35 - Paul says a woman is not permitted to preach the word of God in the Church. It has always been the tradition of the Church for the priest or deacon alone (an ordained male) to read and preach the Gospel.

1 Tim. 2:12 - Paul also says that a woman is not permitted to hold teaching authority in the Church.

Rom. 16:1-2 - while many Protestants point to this verse denounce the Church's tradition of a male priesthood, deaconesses, like Phoebe, were helpers to the priests (for example, preparing women for naked baptism so as to prevent scandal). But these helpers were never ordained.

Luke 2:36-37 - prophetesses, like Anna, were women who consecrated themselves to religious life, but were not ordained.

Check out this article on women deacons:

Women Deacons

from Catholic Answers:

The Fathers rejected female ordination, not because it was incompatible with Christian culture, but because it was incompatible with Christian faith. Thus, together with biblical declarations, the teaching of the Fathers on this issue formed the tradition of the Church that taught that priestly ordination was reserved to men. Throughout medieval times and even up until the present day, this teaching has not changed.

Further, in 1994 Pope John Paul II formally declared that the Church does not have the power to ordain women. He stated, "Although the teaching that priestly ordination is to be reserved to men alone has been preserved by the constant and universal tradition of the Church and firmly taught by the magisterium in its more recent documents, at the present time in some places it is nonetheless considered still open to debate, or the Church’s judgment that women are not to be admitted to ordination is considered to have a merely disciplinary force. Wherefore, in order that all doubt may be removed regarding a matter of great importance, a matter which pertains to the Church’s divine constitution itself, in virtue of my ministry of confirming the brethren (cf. Luke 22:32) I declare that the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women and that this judgment is to be definitively held by all the Church’s faithful" (Ordinatio Sacerdotalis 4).

And in 1995 the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, in conjunction with the pope, ruled that this teaching "requires definitive assent, since, founded on the written Word of God, and from the beginning constantly preserved and applied in the tradition of the Church, it has been set forth infallibly by the ordinary and universal magisterium (cf. Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium 25:2)" (Response of Oct. 25, 1995).

I hope that helps I love!!!!!

much peace and LOVE!!!! ;)

[musturde]

Don't anglicans allow female priests?

[nikkan_hanil]

Anyone heard of the "Old Catholic Church"? It's a church based on the church, has almost everything that the real Catholic church believes in, but a long time ago, I read an article on this "Old Catholic Church" saying that they were going to ordain their first woman preist. :blink:

[Ellenita]

Don't anglicans allow female priests?

Yes, they do and nearly split the church as a result. A number of people from the 'catholic tradition' within the church left, (some joined the Catholic church) and there are bishops who will not ordain women so it really does depend on finding a bishop who will.

It's funny, I would call myself a feminist, believe very strongly that women have a right to equality of opportunity, and have real issues about the (lack of) roles ascribed to women in the church, but I would not choose to attend a church led by a woman priest! :blink:

[foundsheep]

Anyone heard of the "Old Catholic Church"? It's a church based on the church, has almost everything that the real Catholic church believes in, but a long time ago, I read an article on this "Old Catholic Church" saying that they were going to ordain their first woman preist.

It can never have the churches authority. Our authoritative seat is in Rome with John Paul, so they can ordain all they want but it will not be recognized.

[hyperdulia again]

this subject is FORBIDDEN

[nikkan_hanil]

It can never have the churches authority. Our authoritative seat is in Rome with John Paul, so they can ordain all they want but it will not be recognized.

Yes, that is correct. I forgot to mention that it does not recognize the Papal authority, so nothing, all their practices and stuff are in vain because it is not under the true establishment of tha Rock.

[nikkan_hanil]

this subject is FORBIDDEN

How so?

[hyperdulia again]

we are forbidden to discuss this

[hyperdulia again]

by the holy father

[nikkan_hanil]

by the holy father

Fo' real? :blink:

[Joyful]

We're forbidden to discuss it? I don't doubt you, but where did you get this information?

[morostheos]

A good article about why women aren't allowed to be priests is by Robert Novak, called "Women, Ordination and Angels"

http://www.firstthings.com/ftissues/ft9304...cles/novak.html

This article addresses why tradition has been that women can't be priests. The reasons why don't have any doctrinal authority, but I thought they were very good, and it helped me to understand the topic more thoroughly.

I think we're allowed to read articles about why women can't be priests, we're just not supposed to discuss if they can or not.