RNS: Vatican report says church teaching bars women deacons, but stops short of final ruling
(RNS) — The Vatican released a document Thursday (Dec. 4) stating that current church teaching does not permit women to be ordained as deacons, while emphasizing that the opinion is not a final ruling.
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“Our sacramentality isn’t up for debate,” said Kate McElwee, executive director of the Women’s Ordination Conference, a grassroots organization that advocates for the ordination of women. “Either women are equal in the eyes of God or they’re not. Over and over again, we’re getting statements that the Vatican is trying to equivocate, you’re equal in this way, but not this way. It’s extremely frustrating.”
Thursday’s Vatican report, said McElwee, “reaffirms the importance of our witness. The Vatican is going to continue to keep the door closed until we push it open.”