WOC Statement on the Appointment of Archbishop Raymond Burke to Vatican Council
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 6, 2008
Media Contact: Erin Saiz Hanna, 703 352-1006, woc@womensordination.org
Statement of Women’s Ordination Conference Executive Director Aisha Taylor on the Appointment of Archbishop Raymond Burke to Vatican Council
Aisha Taylor, Executive Director of the Women’s Ordination Conference, issued the following statement about the Vatican’s appointment of Archbishop Raymond Burke of Saint Louis to the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts:
The appointment of Archbishop Raymond Burke is an all-too-familiar pattern that we have seen time and again. Church leaders are rewarded for behavior that goes against the main principles of Christianity. Archbishop Burke’s appointment comes less than two months after his unnecessary excommunication of three ordained Roman Catholic women. This seems to be nothing more than a pat on the back for his deliberate sexism.
The Women’s Ordination Conference is deeply disappointed by this Vatican appointment, especially on the heels of the pope’s visit to the US, where on the surface, it seemed to be a pastoral visit that provided some healing for U.S. Catholics. A deeper look shows that women were intentionally excluded when they could have been included, such as during the Papal Masses when only ordained men distributed the Eucharist.
Archbishop Burke has demonstrated callous disregard for his community and he is out of step with his brother bishops in many of his actions. In addition to the excommunications, he has consistently worked to promote his own ultra-conservative agenda. From his unwavering position on actions taken by Catholics who hold public office to his disputes with St. Stanislaus Kostka Church in Saint Louis, he has done nothing more than violate every aspect of the spirit of the Second Vatican Council.
The Women’s Ordination Conference is proud to represent and advocate for the vast majority of US Catholics that support the ordination of women. Together, we will tirelessly work until justice is achieved so Archbishop Burke and other church leaders who go out of their way to disregard women’s vital roles in the church no longer receive recognition for their blatant sexism.
###
Founded in 1975, the Women’s Ordination Conference is the oldest and largest national organization that works to ordain women as priests, deacons and bishops into an inclusive and accountable Catholic church. WOC represents the 63-70 percent of US Catholics that support the ordination of women as priests. WOC also promotes new perspectives on ordination that call for more accountability and less separation between the clergy and laity.
Background
On March 12, Rose Marie Hudson and Elsie McGrath of St. Louis received a 5-page declaration of excommunication from Archbishop Burke. The declaration stated Bishop Patricia Fresen was excommunicated as well. The two women were ordained as Roman Catholic Womenpriests in November 2007, and Fresen presided at the ordinations.They are the first ordained women to be excommunicated since 2002, when the seven women ordained on the Danube River were excommunicated by then-Cardinal Ratzinger, who is now Pope Benedict XVI.
However, the ordinations of Roman Catholic women continue! Just this weekend on May 4, three women were ordained in Winona, MN by Roman Catholic bishop Patricia Fresen, who was one of the three women excommunicated by Archbishop Burke on March 12.