EDITORIAL Norms speak louder than words on status of
women
By WILLIAM C. GRAHAM
It is my hope, dear sisters, that you will reflect
carefully on what it means to speak of the genius of women, not
only in order to be able to see in this phrase a specific part of Gods
plan ... but also in order to let this genius be more fully expressed in the
life of society as well as in the life of the church. -- Pope John Paul
II
The genius of women! It is a powerful, inspiring
phrase the pope returned to several times in his Letter to Women
written just before the 1995 Beijing Conference.
But what the church often does conveys more clearly and painfully
what the church really means.
Consider the Vaticans former norms, which allowed a widowed
deacon to remarry and continue in his ministry only if three conditions were
simultaneously fulfilled: his work as deacon was much needed by the local
church; no scandal was involved; and he had young children in need of motherly
care. The rule spoke volumes about the genius of women, not to
mention the sacrament of marriage.
Not only was the diaconate reserved for men only, but a widowed
deacon, no matter how valuable to the church, was obliged to embrace celibacy
if he wished to continue his ministry -- unless, that is, a woman had to be
acquired to take care of the kids.
Now, the Vatican has announced, the norm has been modified --
slightly (NCR, Aug. 29).
Under the new regulations, any one of the following conditions by
itself might merit a dispensation for remarriage: that the deacon is much
needed in the local church; that he has young children requiring care; or that
he has elderly parents or parents-in-law in need of care.
Theres a bit of progress here to be sure, but the function
of women remains even clearer than before.
They are caregivers -- for the very young and the very old. No
mention of how the sacrament of marriage might aid the deacon in his work
within the church, not even a consideration of how the new wife might
contribute to the ministry.
She is a caregiving functionary. It is her genius. This is not to
deny that caregiving is a valuable ministry. But caregiving, it appears, is the
basic charism women have to contribute within the structure of the diaconate.
Talk about the genius of women and the equally lofty,
oft repeated complementarity of the sexes rings hollow in the face
of church norms, even modified ones.
National Catholic Reporter, September 12,
1997
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