Missionaries of the Sacred

We have become fairly used to adapting to change. Perhaps even more remarkable than the changes due to scientific progress is the on-going evolution of attitudes and the dimensions of social life. The Church which Christ founded on Peter the Rock must always be open to the signs of the times, which means that we experience change and growth as the world around us evolves.  Christ promised to send the Holy Spirit to lead and bring light.  It is a promise which does not fall short.

There is much interest today in the role of women in the ministry of the Catholic Church.  Whereas fifty years ago the question would not have attracted much interest or attention, today we assume that women have an essential part in the Church’s ministry and questions about future development abound.

The book of Genesis presents men and women as equals and as having the same human dignity.  “God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” (Gen 1:27). And God blessed them and shared with them the responsibility of caring for creation and everything within it.

We know that in patriarchal societies, which were characteristic of Biblical times, women were often considered inferior to men.  Legally dependent on her father or husband and considered property, a woman possessed few societal rights. It is not too difficult to imagine this setting in Biblical times because, unfortunately, the situation in some cultures has not improved greatly today.  Women in many places do not enjoy the same rights as their male counterparts and have less educational and career opportunities.

In his ministry Christ sowed the seeds of many changes.  The society of that time could not bring these seeds to maturation, but seeds once sown cling to life, even ones that lie dormant until better conditions prevail.  In the Church, the Holy Spirit is the source of fruitful waiting and continuing growth.

In contrast to the attitudes of the times, Christ displayed an unaccustomed respect for women.  Although this may not strike us as terribly revolutionary, Christ’s actions set him apart from many of his contemporaries. 

For example, ordinarily a man would not have spoken to a woman in public unless she were a close relative.  Jesus spoke in public with the woman at the well and treated the woman accused of adultery with respect.  Many times he showed his friendship for women like Mary and Martha, visiting their home and asking specifically to speak with them.   Remarkably he allowed some women to accompany him in his ministry along with the apostles. In this account Luke mentions that he had healed them of illnesses (often signified at the time as “impure spirits”), and the gospel records their names. (Luke 8:1-3).  Women are shown present at the cross and went early in the morning to the tomb on Easter morning.  The first person to experience the Risen Christ was Many Magdalene.  The New Testament places great emphasis on the Virgin Mary’s role in the coming of the Son of God into the world through her faith and her part in the mission of her Son.

This recognition continued to grow in the early Church.  Mary was with the other disciples when the Spirit filled their hearts on Pentecost.  Many women shared Paul’s ministry.  Paul noted that we are all equal through Baptism.  (“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”  Gal 3:28)

These seeds have kept growing in the Church and in the world right up into our times.  In western secular society the progress has at times been painfully slow but it has begun to stabilize in our times. The Catholic Church may not be recognized as leading the movement to recognize the place and contribution of women in ministry.  But in the years since Vatican II, the Church has begun to emphasize the ministry of all its members by virtue of Baptism.  In the past, more recognition was readily given to the ministry of priests and religious. Today, all baptized men and women are called to share ministry at the level of parish and diocese. Earlier resistance and prejudice have given way to the undeniable competence and commitment of those who now share so much of the Church’s ministry.  As Church we are beginning, slowly to be sure, to recognize the need to develop a complete ministry that more fully reflects the mission envisioned by Christ. The seeds he sowed are producing their harvest.

Fr. David Foxen, MSC

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