WOW Statement on Appointment of Dr. Francesca Di Giovanni to Undersecretary for Multi-Lateral Affairs - January 17, 2020
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January 17, 2020: After twenty-seven years in the Secretariat of State, Pope Francis has promoted the very qualified Dr. Francesca Di Giovanni to the position of undersecretary for multilateral affairs. While Women’s Ordination Worldwide (WOW) welcomes any step toward recognizing women’s equality in the Church, we insist this must only be the beginning of a long overdue corrective toward pulling the Vatican wagon into the 21st century.
The global Church, and particularly the curia, can only benefit from elevating women into positions of leadership, decision-making, and ordained ministry. However, we long for the day when the bar for celebration is raised. WOW suggest the radical idea that qualified persons are empowered in their work and ministries, regardless of gender.
For as long as the Vatican continues to exclude women from decision-making processes and ordained ministry, our Church continues to endorse the second-class status of women wherever they may be.
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Women’s Ordination Worldwide Media Contacts:
Kate McElwee (USA and Italy): +39 393 692 2100; kmcelwee@womensordination.org
Miriam Duignan (Ireland and UK): +44 7970 926910; miriam.duignan@wijngaardsinstitute.com
Therese Koturbash (Canada): +1 204 648 5720; t.m.koturbash@gmail.com
Alicja Baranowska(Belgium & Poland): +32 488 67 60 20 alicja.baranowska@wp.pl
Women's Ordination Worldwide (WOW): Founded in 1996, WOW is an international network of groups whose current mission is the inclusion of Roman Catholic women in all ordained ministries. Founded on the principle of equality, WOW opposes all discrimination. 'There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus'. (Galatians 3:28)
