At the Vatican Synod, women’s issues were relegated to a side group

A month-long meeting of Catholic bishops and laity at the Vatican concluded on Saturday with a call for women to be given more leadership roles in the church. But on the question of whether women could be ordained deacons, the church said the possibility “remains open” and requires further contemplation.

Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, of Luxembourg, one of the senior officials at the meeting, said in a news conference Saturday evening that allowing female deacons was a sensitive issue, and that the meeting, known as the synod, did not deliberate for or against him.

“The question remains open,” he added, adding that the Pope signed the document approving the results of the meeting. “Who am I to oppose the Holy Father?”

The question of the role of women in the church, which emerged as a priority when Catholics around the world were polled before the meeting, was repeatedly discussed at the synod. But the issue of female ordination has been taken off the table and moved to a separate study group that will present its findings to Pope Francis next summer.

“There is no reason or impediment preventing women from assuming leadership roles in the church,” the final document, which was submitted Saturday evening, said. She also urged women to participate in the formation of priests in theological institutes.

Each paragraph of the document requires two-thirds approval. The clause on women’s roles did not receive the most votes, but passed by 258-97.

The document did not specifically address LGBTQ inclusion, another priority that emerged during the global voting process. But one of the participants, the Rev. James Martin, an American Jesuit who serves the LGBT community, said that compared to last year, when the first session of the synod was held, the discussions were friendlier and “more open.” Francis told the assembly on Saturday that the church should be open “to all, all, all.”

The Vatican meeting was hailed as a major event, comparable to a scaled-down version of the Second Vatican Council that modernized the church in the 1960s, and reflected Francis’ desire to include all Catholics — from cardinals to faithful in a remote diocese — in the meeting. Candid discussions to shape the future of the church.

The issue of women’s role has been hotly debated in an institution where women play a large role in its daily work. Critics say they are outnumbered by Catholic men who toil in hospitals and schools around the world, often serving as ministerial leaders in remote communities, but have little say in the areas where it matters.

However, many of these women, around the world, say their leadership is not always recognized.

Ellie Hidalgo, director of the center, said: Distinguished deaconsan organization based in Durham, North Carolina, that advocates for female deacons.

In an effort to make the church more inclusive, Pope Francis has appointed more women to top positions at the Vatican than any of his predecessors. While Francis has made clear that female deacons are not on his agenda, saying in a May interview that “women do great service as women, not as ministers,” his approval of the document on Saturday suggests the door has not been completely closed.

Deacons are ordained ministers who can preach and conduct weddings, funerals, and baptisms. But they cannot celebrate Mass.

For some, the increased leadership roles mentioned in Saturday’s document will not be enough.

Kate McElwee, Executive Director of… Women’s Coordination Conferencehe said on Friday. “It’s as if they are trying to open up different opportunities and make space where they think it’s right for women, but that will be largely insufficient if it doesn’t address the urgent need to recognize women’s full equality.”

The Vatican’s chief doctrinal official, Cardinal Victor Fernandez, explained This last week Francis decided that it was “not the time” to comment on the issue. ThursdayThe cardinal, who is overseeing the study group, told synod delegates that the issue required further review and that, in any case, he believed it was not a priority for most women in the church.

He added, however, that the study group was open to receiving opinions and hearing experiences about the role of women, a move praised by advocates of female ordination.

“So far, it’s been mostly a theological conversation or a historical conversation,” Ms. Hidalgo said Distinguished deaconshe said on Friday. She added that “actually taking into account what is happening on the ground and all the ways in which women’s leadership is called upon by their communities, priests and bishops” can lead to real change.

Throughout this month, various groups have organized events to raise awareness about the role of women in the church. Called a liberal group We are the church A. conducted Short play In a religious house in Rome, he condemned the “absurdity” of discussing whether women should be granted full equality. Ms McElwee’s group organized protest marches.

Others held events not explicitly permitted by the church.

Ms. Brown, of the Women’s Ordination Conference, attended a liturgy this month on the Tiber River in Rome, where the Association of Roman Catholic Priests, a group not recognized by the Vatican, conducted what it called the ordination of six women — three deacons and three priests.

For the Vatican, the event violates canon law prohibiting the ordination of women. But the women disagree, as they claim that it was the Argentine bishop who challenged his credentials, as he claimed to have ordained seven women on the Danube in June 2002.

Two years later, another bishop, whose identity was not made public, claimed to have ordained the first two women bishops. Since then, more than 270 people in 14 countries have performed the same ritual, said the Rev. Bridget Mary Meehan, who was appointed bishop of the society in 2009 and performed the Tiber ceremony.

She added that the decision to hold the event in the Italian capital was deliberate.

“We are making a visible witness to say that we support the synod, that we are part of it, that we are part of the church,” she said. She added that the Pope “talks about having conversations in the spirit.” “We’re ready. We’re here.”

Mary Catherine Daniels, one of the new ordinates, said she suppressed her feeling called to the priesthood for years because “I always wanted to be an obedient daughter of the church, and I knew that was forbidden.” But in the end, she said, she followed her heart because she believed it was God’s will.

Last year, Pope Francis gave Sister Linda Bucher, a theologian, carte blanche to organize a series of seminars on women and the church for the group of cardinals who serve as his advisers.

“I was given the freedom to open the windows of the room in which they were meeting and offer some different points of view,” Sister Bucher said last week as she presented four books containing those seminars, each with a foreword by the pope.

Sister Regina da Costa, a Brazilian theologian who spoke on the show, expressed the frustration of many Catholic women who, she said, are “tired of not being heard, tired of not being taken into account by the Church” and tired of being “left behind.” “Men in church.

“We would like to be side by side and move forward together,” she said.