Truth-Telling & Myth-Busting: Women’s Ordination in the Catholic Church
Myth 1: The Church has no authority to ordain women
Truth-Telling:
- Canon Law 1024 – if it wasn’t being done, they would not need to forcibly ban it
- 1976 Pontifical Biblical Commission “nothing in Scripture supports exclusion”
- Not an infallible papal ruling despite attempts to make it seem so – change is possible
Myth 2: The Bible prohibits women from having authority in the Church
Truth-Telling:
- In Scripture in women are appointed as teachers, witnesses, prophets, disciples
- Galatians proclaims equality – despite attempts to remove or reinterpret meaning
- Restrictive passages (1 Timothy) reflect specific cultural conflicts of early Church
Myth 3: Campaigners are clerical, cultural warriors and causing disunity
Truth-Telling:
- If clericalism is such a risk and a curse, why still welcome male vocations?
- Excluding women is high price to pay for what amounts to selective unity
- Racist claim “Global South” does not want equality – Synod proved the opposite
**MYTHS 4, 5 & 6 have accompanying art available here: Ally Kateusz Slides WOC50 and a link to peer reviewed articles, all images and academic debate by clicking on this link: https://allykateusz.org/ or scanning this QR Code: **
Myth 4: Jesus was male, so only men can represent Christ
Truth-Telling:
- The qualification for priesthood is “Will you be like Jesus“, not “Can you pee like Jesus“
- Christian discipleship starts at baptism where we are all “in persona Christi“
- Galatians – every race and status can image Christ sacramentally – why not women?
Myth 5: Women were never priests
Truth-Telling:
- Ancient Christian art (250 – 550 AD) depicts women concelebrating liturgical rites
- The oldest art portraying just one sex at the altar is women alone
- Oldest liturgical manuscripts describing who does what at the altar from 700s
Myth 6: Jesus ordained male apostles at the Last Supper and not his mother
Truth-Telling:
- Jesus never ordained anyone – said “Do this in memory of me” to men and women
- Jesus sent Mary Magdalene to teach disbelieving men – Apostle to the Apostles
- Mary the model for priesthood – symbols of authority including episcopal imagery
Myth 7: Women’s vocation is to motherhood, not priesthood
Truth-Telling:
- The Church recognizes diverse vocations for women, including religious life
- Women working in theology, education, healthcare – not just motherhood
- Priesthood should reflect a healthy balance of “mothering and fathering” roles
Myth 8: Priests must be male to represent Christ the Bridegroom
Truth-Telling:
- “Bridegroom theology” not rooted in the practice of earliest Christian communities
- This teaching automatically disqualifies vocations of women that should be tested
- Renewed focus on questionable theory betrays lack of reasons for exclusion
Myth 9: Early Church theologians established a permanent practice
Truth-Telling:
- Medieval theologians justified ban on women – but only 7 of 29 referenced Jesus
- Defective, inferior nature – ordination will not “take” in the body of a woman
- We continue to uphold an unjust law based on medieval misogyny.