Catholic women are going on strike this Lenten period in protest of the church not permitting them to be ordained.
The strike is organised by the Women’s Ordination Conference. It calls on women to rescind time, labour and finances from the church for 40 days, to highlight the significance of their contributions.
Many feel let down by the Catholic Church’s Synod on Synodality, which was a three-year consultation, running from 2021-2024. Research revealed that the role of women in the church was a top concern among many parishes and dioceses, with a majority saying they would like to see women’s decision-making abilities expand.
Yet prior to the synod’s final meeting in Rome, where women would be given a vote in the proceedings alongside bishops and clergy members – Pope Francis said the question of female deacons “was not yet mature”, and drafted a study group to discuss the issue further instead.
Currently, women make up 80 percent of ecclesiastical ministers in the Catholic church – but are not permitted to be ordained into priesthood or deaconry.
Kate McElwee, executive director of the Women’s Ordination Conference said: “We’re calling the women of the Catholic Church to join together in striking from sexism.
“Following the Synod on Synodality and the lack of concrete actions for women and women’s greater participation in the life of the church, there was a lot of disappointment, anger and heartbreak.”
Not all are partaking. One woman in Denver told Religion News: “I will not withhold my ministry because, to me, it would hurt other people. It would hurt mostly the women that I work alongside, because their workload would double,” she said, “but I do see the necessity of having more power, or at least have a place at the table in the church, and we really don’t have that.”
Another said: “Having more girls grow up seeing the likes of Bishop Mariann Budde, what she said from the pulpit, that’s what I want.”