RCC Synod rules out the possibility of ordaining women as deacons

Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernández. Photo: Credo

On October 2, 2024, during the first working day of the Synod on Synodality at the Vatican, Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, the Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, dismissed discussions regarding the possibility of ordaining women as deacons. This was reported by Credo.

Cardinal Fernández stated that the Dicastery has judged, based on the analysis so far, which also takes into account the work of two commissions established by Pope Francis on the issue of women deacons, that "there is currently no room for a positive decision" by the Magisterium on allowing women to access the diaconate, understood as a degree of the "Sacrament of Holy Orders".

The Vatican’s doctrine chief also noted that going forward, the research group would focus on “an in-depth analysis of the lives of certain women who, both in the early and recent history of the Church, have exercised genuine authority and power in support of the Church’s mission.” According to him, their “authority or power was not tied to sacramental consecration, as would be in the case, at least today, with diaconal ordination.”

The women he named included Matilda of Canossa, Hildegard of Bingen, Bridget of Sweden, Catherine of Siena, Joan of Arc, Teresa of Ávila, Juana Inés de la Cruz, Mama Antula, Elizabeth Ann Seton, Maria Montessori, Dorothy Day and Madeleine Delbrêl. In an off-the-cuff comment, the cardinal invited synod delegates to submit additional names from “Africa, Indonesia, everywhere.”

“In the light of these testimonies, the question of women’s access to the diaconate takes on a different perspective. Meanwhile, the in-depth study of their multifaceted Christian witness can help today imagine new forms of ministry that can ‘create still broader opportunities for a more incisive female presence in the church,” concluded Fernández.

To support the in-depth study of theological and pastoral issues at the Synod, ten research groups have been formed. However, the work of “Group 5”, which is focused on issues related to the female diaconate, remains confidential. Unlike other groups, the names of the members of this group have not been disclosed.

It is reported that the Synod of the Roman Catholic Church on Synodality gathered 356 participants from around the world.

As the UOJ previously reported, in 2021, Pope Francis abolished a canon of the Roman Catholic Church's Code of Canon Law that restricted service at the altar to men only.

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