The Church is still stuck in “19th century mode” on the issue of women

— Mary McAleese says.

Three years ago, the Vatican started a synodal process to “provide an opportunity for the entire People of God to discern together how to move forward on the path towards being a more synodal Church.”

In October, the findings will be discussed in Rome and the role of women is expected to feature prominently.

On The Pat Kenny Show, the former president predicted there would be little change in relation to the role of women in Church which she said “still inhabits that old world” in relation to matters of gender.

“Not that terribly long ago – probably a century ago – you would have found all sorts of reasons why they shouldn’t be, couldn’t be and can’t be lawyers, doctors, politicians when they hadn’t the right to vote,” she said.

“But those were all broken down – every one of those arguments was bogus.

“They were nonsensical, they were gender based and rubbish and they were all eventually broken down under the sheer weight of the fact that they were rubbish.”

Dr McAleese said the Church’s stance on women stands in contrast to the views of many Catholics around the world – particularly when it comes to the issue of women priests.

“Even though consultation all around the world showed that the people of God – the laity in particular – wanted change in relation to leadership roles for women, decision making roles for women, access to the diaconate and ordination … regrettably what has happened is that we now have, essentially, paralysis on that,” she said.

“The issue of leadership of women in the Church has been off the synodal agenda and sent off to the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith for them to prepare a report.

“Which means it’s back in the hands of a bunch of men again – clerical men – who will then advise the Pope on the future leadership roles of women in the Church.”

The funeral of a priest, Holy Cross, Ardoyne, Belfast. (Dermot Blackburn / Alamy Stock Photo)

Dr McAleese, who obtained a doctorate in canon law after her presidency, said the Pope’s own views mean the status quo is likely to prevail on the issue of ordination of women.

“Regrettably, the Pope himself in an interview just a few weeks ago with an American television channel, he ruled out the… ordained priesthood for women,” she said.

“So, he’s already made up his mind on those issues and I presume what the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith will do is simply give him a document that flatters the opinion that he already has – which is what we already have… The Church is regrettably in that 19th century mode.

“Everything that is said about women and priesthood sounds terribly like the reasons why women weren’t allowed to be students at Trinity College 100 years ago.”

Priests in St Peter's Square — Beatification of Pope John Paul II on St. Peter’s Square.

Dr McAleese said that, while many westerners disagree with the status quo, the retention of the ban on women priests would delight the many Catholics who still hold more conservative ideals about the role of women.

“The Church is dying in the liberal western world where women’s issues have consumed a huge amount of political dynamism,” she said.

“But in the very conservative global south where the Church is flourishing, the seminaries are full, this document [that will be published] in October shows quite clearly the influence of the global south.

“Quite frankly, the global south has won out.”

In 2021, 69% of people in Ireland ticked a box in the census identifying themselves as Roman Catholics.

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July 14, 2024July 13, 2024

Rome Sends Mixed Signals as Eastern Orthodox Begin Ordaining Deaconesses

— Experts on female deacons urge Catholic Church to revive the female diaconate in the West

The newly ordained deaconess Angelic Molen administering the chalice at the St. Nektarios Mission Parish near Harare.

By Jules Gomes

The Roman Catholic Church is postponing its debate on deaconesses even as the Eastern Orthodox Church ordained its first female deacon to serve in the liturgy, in anticipation of more women to be ordained to the diaconate.

In a historic event, Metropolitan Serafim Kykotis, archbishop of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria and all of Africa, ordained Angelic Molen at the St. Nektarios Mission Parish near Harare, Zimbabwe, on Holy Thursday during the Orthodox Holy Week on May 2.

Eastern Orthodox Pope Authorizes Ordination

Molen’s ordination, authorized by His Beatitude Theodoros II, Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa, has triggered reactions ranging from hostile to affirming in the Eastern Orthodox churches — especially as her role, according to Serafim, “will include assisting priests in the liturgy and sacraments.”

“The Alexandrian Patriarchate in Africa felt the need to revive this order to serve the daily pastoral needs of Orthodox Christians in Africa,” states a press release from the St. Phoebe Center for the Deaconess, revealing that “this historic event would not be possible without the approval and support of the Alexandrian Synod and His Beatitude Theodoros.”

After unanimously voting to revive the female diaconate at its synod in Alexandria in 2016, the patriarchate ordained five sub-deaconesses in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2017.

“The ordination of Deaconess Angelic was the culmination of efforts around the world to renew the ancient order of deaconesses in the Orthodox Church, and specifically for the unique needs of parishes in Africa,” the statement added, explaining that Molen was ordained in the Byzantine rite.

Catalyst for Deaconesses in the Catholic Church?

Sources in Rome told The Stream that Molen’s ordination could spark debate on ordaining deaconesses in the Roman Catholic Church during the second phase of the October Synod of Bishops.

However, at a press conference on Tuesday the Vatican announced that the discussion on deaconesses “will not be the subject of the work of the Second Session” of the Synod.

The Instrumentum laboris (working document) released to the media stated that “the fruits of Study Group 5” (which dealt specifically with deaconesses), will “take into consideration the results of the two Commissions that have dealt with the question in the past.”

“While some local Churches call for women to be admitted to the diaconal ministry, others reiterate their opposition,” the document explained.

“The restoration of the tradition of ordaining women to the diaconate in the Greek Orthodox Church in Zimbabwe gives great support to those Roman Catholics who wish the tradition to continue in the West, where it has been largely abandoned for some 800 years,” Prof. Phyllis Zagano told The Stream.

Zagano holds a research position at Hofstra University, is regarded as a world authority on female deacons, and is author most recently of Just Church: Catholic Social Teaching, Synodality, and Women. In 2016, Pope Francis appointed her to serve on the Vatican commission to study female deacons.

“The question of restoring women to the ordained diaconate is before the Synod on Synodality, and one can only hope the process within Catholicism, and the Orthodox return to Tradition, will be respected,” she confirmed to the National Catholic Reporter.

“There is no Catholic doctrine against ordaining women as deacons,” Zagano told The Stream.

Orthodox Christians React with Support and Hostility

Molen’s ordination has triggered a heated debate within the Eastern Orthodox Churches between those who oppose women’s diaconate as a rupture with tradition and those who support it as a revival of an ancient practice that existed in the early days of the Church.

“The event caused many reactions, and gave rise to the free expression of various opinions and approaches,” Metropolitan Serafim wrote in a May 11 statement.

“The mission in Africa needs deaconesses, mainly for pastoral work and for the baptisms of adult women, as well as in special cases, such as widowhood, in stricter male-dominated environments, where for a long time the widowed woman is cut off from social and church life,” he explained.

Archdeacon Job Serebrov, an expert on the liturgies in the Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches, told The Stream that it’s hard to predict whether other Greek Orthodox Churches will follow suit,

There appears to be stiff resistance on the part of the Slavic Orthodox Churches to do so,” he said. “The main concern that has been raised is that ordaining deaconesses will lead to female priests. This fear has arisen from the misplaced notion that the diaconate is only a stepping stone to the priesthood, which has only been reinforced in Eastern Orthodox seminaries and by current practice.

“Within the Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox Churches only the Armenian Orthodox Church has also ordained liturgically serving deaconesses. However, until 2017, when a lay woman was ordained, that office was reserved for nuns,” he added. “With proper education about the diaconate, ordination of deaconesses can be a great benefit to the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches, especially when viewed in its correct perspective as filling a church need instead of correcting an imbalance in gender equality.”

Pope Francis Sends Mixed Signals on Female Deacons

In April 2020, Pope Francis appointed a new commission tasked with investigating the possibility of ordaining female deacons. Among the 10 theologians on the commission are two permanent deacons, three priests, and five lay women — all holding professorships at theological faculties.

Seven of the commission members hold the Church’s traditional position on reserving sacramental ordination to the diaconate and priesthood exclusively for men.

One of the most prominent scholars on the commission who has categorically concluded that women cannot be ordained deacons is Fr. Manfred Hauke, professor of patristics and dogmatics at the Theological Faculty of Lugano, Switzerland.

“Allowing women to be deacons would create great confusion for the faithful,” Fr. Hauke maintains. “You would have to explain to people the difference between male and female deacons.”

Moreover, calling women “deacons” would be “ambiguous” since they would not receive the sacrament of Holy Orders, he said.

Dr. Rosalba Manes, professor of biblical theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University, argues in favor of Phoebe as “deacon of the church of Cenchrea,” explaining that the term diákonos suggests Phoebe’s ministry is not limited only to “the sphere of charity, but that it also includes preaching and evangelization.”

However, in a May 2024 CBS interview, Pope Francis ruled out ordaining female deacons. “But women have always had, I would say, the function of deaconesses without being deacons, right?” he said. “Women are of great service as women, not as ministers […] within the Holy Orders.”

Complete Article ↪HERE↩!

July 12, 2024July 11, 2024

Women should receive ‘fuller recognition’ in the Catholic Church, Vatican says

Pope Francis responded with a flat “no” when asked if he was open to women deacons.

By Aoife Hilton

In short:

The Vatican has released a document calling for “fuller recognition” of women in the Catholic Church.
While the document does not open the door for women to serve as deacons, it does argue for baptised women to “enjoy full equality” among baptised men.

What’s next?

The document will inform bishops at their October summit, where the role of women in the Church is on the agenda.

The global Catholic Church is split on whether to allow women to serve as deacons, a Vatican document showed on Tuesday.

Catholic women do the lion’s share of the church’s work in schools and hospitals and tend to take the lead in passing down the faith to future generations.

But they have long complained of a second-class status in an institution that reserves the priesthood for men.

Deacons, like priests, are ordained ministers. As in the priesthood, they must be men in today’s Catholic Church.

Women deacons existed in early Christianity, but it is unclear what role they had.

Current-day deacons may not celebrate Mass — but they may preach, run a parish, teach in the name of the church, baptise, and conduct weddings, wakes and funeral services.

“While some local churches call for women to be admitted to the diaconal ministry, others reiterate their opposition,” the Vatican document said.

Known as “Instrumentum laboris”, the document was written by the Dicastery of the Doctrine of the Faith and presented after consultations with national bishops’ conferences and Catholic institutions and associations from around the world.

The Vatican announced the details of the doctrinal document shortly after its news conference — led by four men — on the preparatory work for their October summit known as the synod.

Church reform underway

Four men in black suits stand in font of a blue wall. — The Vatican announced the details of the doctrinal document shortly after its news conference — led by four men — on the preparatory work for their October summit known as the synod.

The working document will inform discussions at the synod, which represents the second phase of a church reform process that began three years ago.

Pope Francis initially called the first synod as part of his overall efforts to make the church a more welcoming place for marginalised groups, and one where ordinary people would have a greater say.

The process, and the two-year canvassing of rank-and-file Catholics that preceded it, sparked both hopes and fears that real change was afoot.

The first synod was held in 2023, using a working document that specifically noted the calls for a greater welcome for “LGBTQ+ Catholics” and others who have long felt excluded by the church.

However, synod delegates made no mention of homosexuality in their final summarising text.

They merely said people who felt marginalised because of their marital situation, “identity and sexuality, ask to be listened to and accompanied, and their dignity defended”.

A few weeks after the synod ended, the pope unilaterally approved letting priests offer blessings to same-sex couples.

He also named several women to high-ranking jobs in the Vatican and encouraged debate on other ways women’s voices can be heard.

That has included the synod process in which women have had the right to vote on specific proposals — a right previously given only to men.

Vatican offers ‘fuller recognition’ of women, but not as deacons

Two men in black suits speak into black-coloured microphones. — Cardinal Mario Grech (left) defended the pope’s decision on women.

The October summit will be the second synod and is expected to be the last.

While appointing women deacons will not be on the synod’s agenda, the attending bishops will discuss the possibility of giving women a greater role in the male-dominated Church.

The Vatican document stressed the need to “give fuller recognition” to women in the church, saying that “by virtue of baptism, they enjoy full equality”.

The document recommended “theological reflection” on the possibility of appointing women deacons, “on an appropriate timescale and in the appropriate ways”.

During his 11-year pontificate, the pope has appointed two commissions to study whether women could be ordained deacons.

In an interview with CBS’s 60 Minutes programme recorded in April and aired in May, he responded with a flat “no” when asked if he was open to women deacons.

But he added that women were often playing deacon-like roles, without formally having that title.

“Women are of great service as women, not as ministers,” he said at the time.

Cardinal Mario Grech, secretary general of the Synod of Bishops, was asked about the pope’s remarks on women deacons during a press conference.

“As of now, it is a ‘no’, but at the same time the Holy Father has said that the theological reflection and study must continue,” he said.

“For me this is not a contradiction.”

Move criticised as ‘crumbs’ for Catholic women

A group pressing for women’s ordination told Associated Press the Vatican document represented “crumbs” for women, noting that ordained men would once again be making decisions about women’s roles in the church.

Women’s Ordination Conference, which advocates for ordaining women priests, said the relegation of the issue of women deacons to the doctrine office was hardly the mark of a church looking to involve women more.

“The urgency to affirm women’s full and equal place in the church cannot be swept away, relegated to a shadowy commission, or entrusted into the hands of ordained men at the Vatican,” the group said in a statement.

‘Study groups’ suggesting more inclusivity

The document released on Tuesday also called for more inclusivity in the church, while acknowledging calls for greater transparency and accountability of church leaders and greater involvement of lay Catholics in church affairs — including in response to sex abuse, financial scandals and pastoral matters.

It was announced in a list of the members of 10 “study groups” looking into some of the thorniest and legally complicated issues that have arisen in the reform process to date, including the role of women and LGBTQ+ Catholics in the life of the church.

One study group is looking at particularly controversial issues, including the welcome of LGBTQ+ people in the church.

“A need emerges in all continents concerning people who, for different reasons, are or feel excluded or on the margins of the ecclesial community or who struggle to find full recognition of their dignity and gifts within it,” Tuesday’s document said.

Priestly celibacy — another contentious area for potential reform — was not mentioned, while the document said African bishops are studying “the theological and pastoral implications of polygamy for the church in Africa”.

Cardinal Grech said the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) would report on these issues at the October meeting.

The study groups are working with Vatican offices and will continue their analyses beyond the October meeting, suggesting outcomes this year won’t necessarily be complete.

Complete Article ↪HERE↩!

July 11, 2024July 10, 2024

Catholic Church split on women deacons, Vatican document shows

Pope Francis holds rosary beads as he presides over the closing Mass at the end of the Synod of Bishops in Saint Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican, October 29, 2023.

By Alvise Armellini

The global Catholic Church is split on whether to allow women to serve as deacons, a Vatican document showed on Tuesday, just weeks after Pope Francis ruled out any opening on the issue.

Giving women a greater role in the male-dominated Church is one of the issues up for the debate at a summit of bishops known as the synod.

An initial, inconclusive session was held last year. On Tuesday, the Vatican released a working document due to inform discussions at a second and final session in October.

“While some local Churches call for women to be admitted to the diaconal ministry, others reiterate their opposition,” it said.

Noting that women deacons will not be on the synod’s agenda, it said “theological reflection (on the issue) should continue, on an appropriate timescale and in the appropriate ways”.

Priestly celibacy – another contentious area for potential reform – was not mentioned, while the document said African bishops are studying “the theological and pastoral implications of polygamy for the Church in Africa.”

The Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) will report on these issues at the October meeting, Cardinal Mario Grech, Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops, told a press conference.

‘FULLER RECOGNITION’ FOR WOMEN

Deacons, like priests, are ordained ministers and, as in the priesthood, must be men in today’s Church. Women deacons existed in early Christianity, but it is unclear what role they had.

Contemporary deacons may not celebrate Mass, but they may preach, teach in the name of the Church, baptise and conduct wedding, wake and funeral services and even run a parish.

The Vatican document stressed the need to “give fuller recognition” to women in the Church, saying that “by virtue of Baptism, they enjoy full equality”.

In an interview with the “60 Minutes” programme of U.S. broadcaster CBS recorded in April and aired in May, Francis responded with a flat “no” when asked if he was open to women deacons.

But he added that women were often playing deacon-like roles, without formally having that title. “Women are of great service as women, not as ministers,” he said.

Asked about the pope’s remarks, Cardinal Grech said: “As of now, it is a ‘no’ (to women deacons), but at the same time the Holy Father has said that the theological reflection and study must continue. For me this is not a contradiction.”

INCLUSIVITY

Known as “Instrumentum laboris”, the document was presented after consultations with national bishops’ conferences, theologians, Catholic institutions and associations from around the world.

Turning to another hot-button issue, the text did not include any specific references to LGBT people, but called for more inclusivity.

“A need emerges in all continents concerning people who, for different reasons, are or feel excluded or on the margins of the ecclesiastical community or who struggle to find full recognition of their dignity and gifts within it,” it said.

It also acknowledged calls for greater transparency and accountability of Church leaders, and greater involvement of lay Catholics in Church affairs, including in response to sex abuse and financial scandals, and on pastoral matters.

Complete Article ↪HERE↩!

July 4, 2024July 3, 2024

Rome Takes Historic Step Towards ‘Full Communion’ with Conservative Anglicans

— Groundbreaking agreement will include only those Anglican dioceses that do not ‘ordain’ female priests.

By Jules Gomes

The Vatican is taking historic strides towards achieving “full communion” with Anglicans who do not ordain female priests. It is doing so by recognizing Anglican holy orders and churches, but not requiring them to merge with or convert to Roman Catholicism.

“We are scheduled to begin our talks at the Vatican this coming September 26-27,” Bishop Ray Sutton, presiding bishop of the Reformed Episcopal Church in the U.S., announced in an Ecumenical Relations Task Force Report of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) College of Bishops.

The ACNA bishops, who oversee 128,000 Anglicans in more than 1,000 congregations across Canada, Mexico, and the United States, met during a provincial council from June 20-25 at St. Vincent’s College in Latrobe, Pennsylvania.

Secret Vatican Meeting

The report reveals that Archbishop Foley Beach, who was then the primate of ACNA; Bishop Eric Menees, the chair of dialogue with the Roman Catholic Church; and Bishop Sutton flew to the Vatican for meetings at the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) in June 2023.

The Anglican bishops held talks with Catholic Archbishop Joseph Augustine Di Noia, who was then the adjunct secretary of the DDF, and his assistant, Fr. Andrew Liaugminas, who is seconded to the DDF by the archdiocese of Chicago.

In an unprecedented move, the process of Anglican-Roman Catholic union is being led by the DDF — the Vatican’s doctrinal watchdog — instead of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, which is the Holy See’s conventional means of dialogue with Christians of other denominations.

This correspondent learned of secret meetings between ACNA bishops and top officials at the DDF earlier this year and published an exclusive news story about the historic meeting in the summer edition of Mass of Ages, the quarterly magazine of the Latin Mass Society.

Proposal to Base Union on Malta I

According to the ecumenical report obtained by The Stream, the union between Rome and orthodox Anglicans aims to be based on a Malta II proposal — a manifesto that revives the Malta I agreement reached between Pope Paul VI and the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Michael Ramsey, in 1966.

The Malta I agreement resolved to overcome differences between Catholics and Anglicans in matters like Petrine primacy, papal infallibility, and Mariology by ensuring that “neither Communion is tied to a positive acceptance of all the beliefs and devotional practices of the other.”

According to Malta I, unity and reciprocal acceptance of holy orders would be founded on the acknowledgment that each Communion “embraces the fundamental truths outlined in the ecumenical Creeds and the shared tradition of the ancient Church.”

“The Malta Report put forward a way to unity and communion between Rome and Anglicanism without requiring amalgamation or conversion to each other’s churches,” Sutton’s report underlined.

Liberal Anglicans Excluded

Historical events and past decrees like the papal bull Apostolicae Curae, which was issued in 1896 by Pope Leo XIII, declaring Anglican ordinations to be “absolutely null and utterly void,” are set to be reevaluated “only to the extent that they can shed light upon the facts of the present situation.”

Bishop Sutton said that Rome’s agreement with ACNA would eventually be applied to the Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches (GFSA)/Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON), an association of conservative Anglicans in the non-Western world.

However, the process of working toward unity would not include “the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Church of England, the Anglican Church of Canada, or the Episcopal Church,” (Anglican bodies that ordain female priests and bishops), Sutton emphasized.

Roman Catholic officials holding senior positions in Rome have enthusiastically welcomed the proposal for “full communion” between Rome and the ACNA.

Catholics, Anglicans Welcome Proposals

Fr. Bryan Lobo, S.J., the dean of the Faculty of Missiology at the Pontifical Gregorian University, explained to The Stream the impact the move could have on the worldwide Church.

“Anglicans form the third largest body of Christians in the world (around 80 million members) behind the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches in more than 165 countries. Today, a majority (55%) of the world’s Anglicans live in sub-Saharan Africa,” Lobo observed.

“If this bold initiative works and is then broadened as the ACNA proposal states, communion between Catholics and Anglicans in the Global South would be an overwhelming witness of the Kingdom and mutually encouraging and empowering to both churches.

“I think ecumenism should be considered as one of the primary missions of the Church. I would therefore support any initiative of the Catholic Church towards ecumenism.”

Anglicans reciprocated with messages of hope that the joint venture would succeed.

“I’m an orthodox Anglican priest, so this would change my life, as I live in formerly Catholic Spain. I would love to help local Catholics by presiding at communion and hearing confessions,” said Fr. Duane Alexander Miller, an expert in World Christianity with a doctorate from Edinburgh University.

“I think it’s a good thing that the church is looking for unity since every single denomination already prays for Christian unity,” Fr. Calvin Robinson, a media celebrity and Old Catholic priest, told The Stream. “The ACNA has become the predominantly recognized orthodox Anglican body in the U.S., and while it still has some issues to work through, as do all denominations, the fact that they are engaging with Rome shows that they are serious about providing a Catholic perspective to the Christian faith in America.

“I know ‘ecumenism’ is a dirty word to some people, and there will be a lot of doubling down from people who do not actually want a united Church,” Robinson warned. “They will say there’s already the Ordinariate. Of course, the Ordinariate offers a very particular charism for very particular demographic, but it isn’t a way to reunite the church.”

Convert Clergy Hostile to Unity

Pope Benedict XVI established ordinariates in 2009 in the apostolic constitution Anglicanorum Coetibus as a means of receiving converted Anglican priests or laity into the Roman Church. Most Anglican priests were reordained unless they could prove they had been “validly” ordained as Anglicans.

Anglican clergy who converted to Catholicism and are now members of the Ordinariate responded with hostility to the proposals for communion between Rome and the ACNA.

“Surely they should just join the ordinariate, no?” Fr. Ed Tomlinson, an Anglican convert and Ordinariate priest, posted on Facebook. “During those talks they will be told to join the ordinariate — that is Rome’s offer and it won’t change.”

Fr. John Konstantin Tee, also a convert and Ordinariate priest, responded, “The traditional teaching of the Church has always been that the Church is One. It’s just some people have separated from that unity. You have two choices. You either join that Church of Oneness or you choose to remain apart from it. Ecumenism is a non-sense born from a faulty Council.”

“It already had a dividing effect on the ACNA. Groups have already left,” an Ordinariate priest and convert posted on Twitter. “Also, as was said at the time, all they did was turn the clock back 20 years. Most of the serious Anglo Catholics have gone Ordinariate or Orthodox.”

Same-Sex Blessings Stall Talks

A high-level ACNA source told The Stream that a major sticking point in the dialogue was Pope Francis’ recent pastoral declaration Fiducia Supplicans, which permits priests to offer informal and non-liturgical blessings to same-sex couples.

The dialogue ground to an abrupt halt days after the DDF issued Fiducia supplicans, with Anglicans arguing that ACNA and other orthodox Anglicans had split from the Episcopal Church in the U.S. precisely over the issue of the acceptance of homosexual unions by liberal Anglican jurisdictions.

Bishop Sutton explained the problem orthodox Anglicans had with the document:

Fiducia Supplicans has resulted in conflicting interpretations of it, as well as polarization within the Roman Church. Cardinals, Archbishops, and Bishops have even opposed it. The USCCB has offered a ‘sic et non’ (‘yes’ and ‘no’) and mitigating statement in response to Fiducia Supplicans. With our conciliar view of the Church, we see the failure of a Magisterium to maintain the integrity and unity of the Faith.

The ACNA report clarified that the DDF had reassured Bishop Menees that “Fiducia Supplicans is actually an attempt to “curb but not open up the practice of homosexual behavior.” The Catholic Church “still prohibits homosexual practice and by canon warns of removal from the clergy for such behavior,” it added.

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On Rome’s side, the sticking point is with Anglicans who ordain women to the priesthood and episcopate. “The door of union and mutual recognition of holy orders would remain open only for Anglican provinces that were orthodox and had not permitted the ordination of women or gay blessings/marriage,” an ACNA source confirmed.

Meanwhile, on June 13, the Vatican released a document titled “The Bishop of Rome,” which seeks to reconfigure the office of the Bishop of Rome from an absolute monarchy into a ministry of “first among equals” for the sake of ecumenical unity, The Stream reported.

“Today the Petrine ministry cannot be fully understood without this openness to dialogue with all believers in Christ,” Pope Francis affirmed in the document.

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