We Will Not Be Silent

The recent papal letter “Querida Amazonia” has left many of us puzzled, disappointed and frustrated in varying degrees as we try to understand what this response – or lack of response – means in both the short and long term. Much has already been written about this and I don’t want to belabor the issue:  how shocked I was at the seeming heretical equating of Christ and Mary; how surprised at the document not incorporating or even commenting on the Synod’s most controversial recommendations about married priests and women deacons; how unsurprised I was that once again complementary theology dominates the mention of women, who need to be content with “other forms of service and charism that are proper to women” (102) and that the old chestnut of “spousal imagery” is present with its blurred image about exactly who is the bride and who is the groom. Despite its scriptural origins, this unsatisfactory metaphor reinforces stereotypes and sows theological confusion.  As WOW said in its statement, “through a gender fluid pansexuality” while the male priest stands in for groom, he also stands in for bride. And women have no standing.

The document’s sensitivity to the environment and to the indigenous cultures of the Amazonian region is exemplary – we are urged to “feel outrage” (150), “heal all these hurts” (21) and “be supportive without being invasive” (28).  Pope Francis devotes considerable ink to the deleterious effects of colonialism, globalization, industrialization and ongoing commercial exploitation.  He demonstrates good understanding of the complex ecological issues at stake (48 for example) – no surprise from the author of Laudato Si. 

Yet, this grasp of current ecological and socio-political challenges only serves to make me more hurt by the pope’s willful disregard for scholarship and contemporary research on the role of women in the church in the past and their capabilities in the 21^st century.  Francis tells us that “the cry of the Amazon region to the Creator is similar to the cry of God’s people in Egypt (cf. Ex 3:7). It is a cry of slavery and abandonment pleading for freedom”[70] (52), yet he does not listen to the cry of women in the church who have repeatedly expressed their desire for justice and for freedom to answer their vocational calls.  While environmental action is imperative, so, too, is recognizing the plight of half the church and healing their hurts, feeling their outrage, and being willing to devote time and study to this issue.

Once again a papal document has brought disappointment.  Yet organizations like WOC persist in providing inspiration for advocacy, education and support in the struggle for justice in the Church.  WOC’s upcoming demonstrations for International Women’s Day (March 8) and the presentations at the Commission on the Status of Women at the United Nations will mean all the more because we understand that our prophetic role for both church and society dictates speaking out. “Nothing strengthens authority so much as silence,” said Leonardo DaVinci.  WOC will not be silent.