We Are Church Intl.

[ Swedish ]

On the 25th Anniversary of ORDINATIO SACERDOTALIS (22 May 1994) we see even more clearly that equality for women is the Christian way forward for the Catholic Church.

Pope John Paul ll reacted to the ordination of women in the Church of England in March 1994 by declaring that only men could be ordained as priests and that his judgment should be definitively held.

The argument was based on:

• The church not having the authority to ordain women
• That Mary the mother of Jesus was never ordained a priest
• Tradition

None of these arguments stands up:

• The church has the authority to ordain women and stop treating them as second class
• Jesus did not ordain anyone
• Women were leaders in the church for many centuries

The Church must constantly reform itself to remain faithful to Christ’s message to love another and to understand the signs of the times. In the world today we see more clearly than ever that women and men are fully equal in Christ. They must also be fully equal in our Church.

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We Are Church International (WAC-I) founded in Rome in 1996, is a global coalition of national church reform groups. It is committed to the renewal of the Roman Catholic Church based on the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965) and the theological spirit developed from it.