Matthew, thank you for this most valuable, dissective reading of the Petrocci Letter.
I have been involved in this "ground hog day" discussion for the past 60 years. We, the church, continue to tie ourselves into pretzels trying to copper-fasten historical precedence, theology and embedded praxis, all based on second order principles with a serious and ongoing need of reform. Meanwhile, pastoral urgency, albeit in different expressions, is burning away in faith communities around the globe.
Hopefully, this Pope, who says he is committed to a synodal church, will "punt" the issue back into the heart of the synodal process. He has said himself that unity is not uniformity which might suggest that not all geographical areas of the church need to be identical in expressiion when it comes to pastoral needs. He may, in the end, leave it up to Bishops Conferences to respond to the pastoral urgency in their local churches.
On the other hand, this "delay" may actual be an opening up of eccelsial space for the Holy Spirit to help us imagine new ways of "ordering" ministry in our church, away from the clericalism and exclusion that none of us--male or female--really want in our faith communities. Maybe our old wine skins are just not made to hold the new stuff. We will see.
"But soft! What light through yonder window breaks? It is the East, and Juliet is the sun!" Is she 90+ million miles away from Romeo? Is her surface temperature 10,000°F? Such questions are obtuse, even silly. Why? Because one cannot make reliable deductions from a metaphor. Similarly, does the "nuptial meaning of salvation" mean that those who represent the Savior must have male genitalia or a masculine gender identity? Metaphors are insight generators, not propositions. Analogical language is not univocal. To ignore the facts about figures of speech leads to the sterility of thought that blocks reasonable agreement or reasonable disagreement about theological issues like those around women in the diaconate.
This was a great summary- very helpful. I love the time and attention the topic is getting from the Vatican, both historically and doctrinally. From a contemporary perspective, I worry that the universal call to holiness would be slighted by an ordained female diaconate. Already I see in my parish (and in former parishes) the amazing daily ministerial contributions of women that, in my opinion, are not lessened by them not having the title deaconess. Thank you for this post!
The issue is not some "title." Women who are ordained to the diaconate would be ordained deacons and receive the grace of the sacrament. And do you think all those who minister do not need such grace?
Yes, that's my interpretation of LG Ch. 2, 11-13. I'm big on the priesthood of all believers and think that many men and women minister without the sacramental grace of holy orders.
"It is not only through the sacraments and the ministries of the Church that the Holy Spirit sanctifies and leads the people of God and enriches it with virtues, but, "allotting his gifts to everyone according as He wills, He distributes special graces among the faithful of every rank. By these gifts He makes them fit and ready to undertake the various tasks and offices which contribute toward the renewal and building up of the Church, according to the words of the Apostle: "The manifestation of the Spirit is given to everyone for profit."
These words accord quite well with my anecdotal personal experience of the ministry of many women I've encountered, from moms to bible study leaders to DREs to Catholic school teachers etc.
Yes, many women and men do "minister without the sacramental grace of holy orders" and do so very well. That's not the issue. The question is whether only males should have access to being ordained deacons and the responsibilities and grace incumbent on ordination.
Matthew, thank you for this most valuable, dissective reading of the Petrocci Letter.
I have been involved in this "ground hog day" discussion for the past 60 years. We, the church, continue to tie ourselves into pretzels trying to copper-fasten historical precedence, theology and embedded praxis, all based on second order principles with a serious and ongoing need of reform. Meanwhile, pastoral urgency, albeit in different expressions, is burning away in faith communities around the globe.
Hopefully, this Pope, who says he is committed to a synodal church, will "punt" the issue back into the heart of the synodal process. He has said himself that unity is not uniformity which might suggest that not all geographical areas of the church need to be identical in expressiion when it comes to pastoral needs. He may, in the end, leave it up to Bishops Conferences to respond to the pastoral urgency in their local churches.
On the other hand, this "delay" may actual be an opening up of eccelsial space for the Holy Spirit to help us imagine new ways of "ordering" ministry in our church, away from the clericalism and exclusion that none of us--male or female--really want in our faith communities. Maybe our old wine skins are just not made to hold the new stuff. We will see.
Thanks so much, again. Excellent work.
.
"But soft! What light through yonder window breaks? It is the East, and Juliet is the sun!" Is she 90+ million miles away from Romeo? Is her surface temperature 10,000°F? Such questions are obtuse, even silly. Why? Because one cannot make reliable deductions from a metaphor. Similarly, does the "nuptial meaning of salvation" mean that those who represent the Savior must have male genitalia or a masculine gender identity? Metaphors are insight generators, not propositions. Analogical language is not univocal. To ignore the facts about figures of speech leads to the sterility of thought that blocks reasonable agreement or reasonable disagreement about theological issues like those around women in the diaconate.
Thank you for this brilliantly accurate and careful account!!
Thank you! That means a lot from someone so immersed in the issue.
This was a great summary- very helpful. I love the time and attention the topic is getting from the Vatican, both historically and doctrinally. From a contemporary perspective, I worry that the universal call to holiness would be slighted by an ordained female diaconate. Already I see in my parish (and in former parishes) the amazing daily ministerial contributions of women that, in my opinion, are not lessened by them not having the title deaconess. Thank you for this post!
The issue is not some "title." Women who are ordained to the diaconate would be ordained deacons and receive the grace of the sacrament. And do you think all those who minister do not need such grace?
Yes, that's my interpretation of LG Ch. 2, 11-13. I'm big on the priesthood of all believers and think that many men and women minister without the sacramental grace of holy orders.
"It is not only through the sacraments and the ministries of the Church that the Holy Spirit sanctifies and leads the people of God and enriches it with virtues, but, "allotting his gifts to everyone according as He wills, He distributes special graces among the faithful of every rank. By these gifts He makes them fit and ready to undertake the various tasks and offices which contribute toward the renewal and building up of the Church, according to the words of the Apostle: "The manifestation of the Spirit is given to everyone for profit."
These words accord quite well with my anecdotal personal experience of the ministry of many women I've encountered, from moms to bible study leaders to DREs to Catholic school teachers etc.
Yes, many women and men do "minister without the sacramental grace of holy orders" and do so very well. That's not the issue. The question is whether only males should have access to being ordained deacons and the responsibilities and grace incumbent on ordination.