Wednesday, 18 April 2007

Women's Voice Silenced By The Church?

At the risk of appearing, chameleon-like, to have changed my spots, I think I would just like to have a wee rant-ette about the silencing of women by the Church...

Not, I hasten to add, by the Church's Magisterium... (Long live our beloved Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI !!)

...but there does seem to have been a little air-brushing going on in Southwark...

It was drawn to my attention that someone had been taking photos for the Southwark Diocese website at the Chrism Mass this year. So I went to have a look. Sure enough, there are lots of photos. I was sure that there would be one picture of a placard saying "Thank you to our priests," demonstrating the appreciation felt by the vast majority of women in the diocese. I know that the gesture was noted by priests.

However, despite being in a perfect position right at the Cathedral gates (outside the precincts... one year, one girl was physically manhandled out by the Dean, in case we upset the pro-women's ordination group who were also outside) it would seem that no attempt was made to capture a shot of these placards, or of the sizable group applauding the priests as they processed in...

It wouldn't have been difficult to take a snap of this mark of respect and love for the ministerial priesthood... in fact, if you look at the screenshot of the pictures from the website, you can just see a corner of one of the placards...


So it would seem that the cry of the feminists has an element of truth in it: the voice of women in the Church is being silenced...

...or perhaps it is only the voice of women faithful to the Magisterium?
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2 comments:

  1. Stephen Wikner11:51 pm

    I suggest you send copies of your remarks to each of the e-mail addresses on the Contact us page of the Archdiocesan website including the female (!) webmaster.

    I really would have thought that liberal Catholic structures - and, whether you like it or not, the 'official' RC Church in England at present is liberal - would have understood that with a built in male bias, the Church really does have to use every opportunity that presents itself to demonstrate participation of the other 50% of the population.

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  2. Simon-Peter Vickers-Buckley10:35 pm

    I don't think women need any encouragement in anything, do you?

    Er...Eve? Mary? Magdelene?

    No, you have it right at the end: anathema to women who understand the order of Melchizedek...you must be made unpersons.

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