Women’s Ordination Advocates March to the Vatican asking: Pope Francis, How Long Must Women Wait for Equality? 05 October 2023
/Women’s Ordination Advocates March to the Vatican asking: Pope Francis, How Long Must Women Wait for Equality?
05 October 2023
For Immediate Release
Rome, Italy
On October 6, the Women’s Ordination Worldwide (WOW) will lead a procession through Rome toward the Vatican calling upon the Catholic Church to open all ordained ministries to women.
Activists from around the world will assemble on the steps of the Roman church that contains a relic of Saint Mary Magdalene’s foot. The inscription by the reliquary reminds us that her’s was ‘the first foot to be entered into the tomb of the risen Christ.’ Recognised by the Vatican as the ‘Apostle to the Apostles’, Mary Magdalene is the model of priesthood for women, empowered by Jesus to 'go and tell’ his followers the Good News of his Resurrection. The women of WOW walk in her footsteps, urging the church to listen to the voices of women calling out for equality’.
In the spirit of Pope Francis’ ongoing Synod on Synodality, a meeting to discern and attend to the needs of the church today, the demonstration will make visible the injustice of women’s exclusion from full participation in the life of the church.
If the church is truly listening, it must walk with women—especially those who have discerned a sincere call to priesthood— throughout the synodal process and recognize the vibrant and necessary gifts they bring to the church. If the church is to attend to larger issues of oppression, violence, and injustice in the world, it must begin with affirming women’s equality.
When: Friday, October 6th. Activists will gather at 2.30pm and begin to march at 3pm.
Where: Route begins at San Giovanni dei Fiorentini (Via Acciaioli, 2). We will proceed to Lungotevere Castello (where we have a permit to demonstrate) and some will attempt to process toward St. Peter’s Square, risking police interference.
What: “Walk with Women” is a witness organized by Women’s Ordination Worldwide, calling the institutional Catholic church to walk with women as equals and open all ordained ministries to people of all genders.
Who: Founded in 1996, Women’s Ordination Worldwide (WOW) is an international network of organizations and groups whose 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)
Press Contacts:
Kate McElwee
+ 1 607 725 1364
or + 39 393 692 2100
kmcelwee@womensordination.org
Miriam Duignan
+ 44 7970 926910
miriam.duignan@wijngaardsinstitute.com
Background: Women’s Ordination Worldwide has actively and faithfully engaged with the discernment of the Synod, encouraging broad and hope filled participation by women in the process, despite the Vatican’s minimal credibility in truly listening to the voices, vocations, and concerns of women. Yet against these odds, synod reports from all corners of the church have lifted up the call for women’s ordination, both as a pastoral need and as a matter of justice. WOW is hopeful that the inclusion of women in ordained ministry is clearly high on the agenda, and prays that the Holy Spirit is not constrained by misogyny, clericalism, or fear.
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)
WOW currently includes representatives from Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Belgium, Canada, Colombia, France, Germany, Great Britain, India, Ireland, Poland, Portugal, South Africa, and the United States.
