Catholicism, Women, and Radical Politics
So hey.
Y'all know that I attended a Jesuit university for undergrad. Me, the commie, radical, baby-killer VOLUNTARILY entered into a private Jesuit university.
People often wondered why. Did I grow up Catholic, maybe?
Nope. Not even a little bit.
I wasn't drawn to Gonzaga because of faith, but rather because of the Jesuit's commitment to a well-rounded liberal arts education and because of their commitment to social justice. I figured that the matches on those fronts would more than make up for any residual discomfort I might have with being a part of a school that was founded and run on religious principles that I didn't share.
I was both right and wrong. At Gonzaga, I met some of the most wonderful human beings I will ever meet - progressive and invested in the world, in change, in being activists as a part of their way of being in the world. Some of these people were Catholics, more than a few of them were nuns and priests.
Gonzaga was many other things, as well, a topic for another day, but I can categorically say that I would not have known nearly as much I do about radical progressive politics, particularly in the world of peace activism, had I not known those people of faith.
So, when I see that the Vatican has threatened to excommunicate the founder of the School of Americas Watch because he gave a homily at the ordination of a woman, it makes me sad. Because that is the church that is hostile to those very people who inspired me and, the heartbreaking thing is, it's their own church! I wonder about my lovely friend Michael who has been a Jesuit for 28 years and his take on this. I wonder about the feminist nuns that I know who have committed their lives to the church and education and who constantly struggle with their church, though not their faith.
But then I read Fr. Boureois' letter to the Vatican and I remember that this is the kind of person who stays because they will change it from within. And that, that I am grateful for.
Women in our Church are telling us that God is calling them to the priesthood. Who are we, as men, to say to women, “Our call is valid, but yours is not.” Who are we to tamper with God’s call?
Sexism, like racism, is a sin. And no matter how hard or how long we may try to justify discrimination, in the end, it is always immoral ...
Silence is the voice of complicity. Therefore, I call on all Catholics, fellow priests, bishops, Pope Benedict XVI and all Church leaders at the Vatican, to speak loudly on this grave injustice of excluding women from the priesthood.
Y'all know that I attended a Jesuit university for undergrad. Me, the commie, radical, baby-killer VOLUNTARILY entered into a private Jesuit university.
People often wondered why. Did I grow up Catholic, maybe?
Nope. Not even a little bit.
I wasn't drawn to Gonzaga because of faith, but rather because of the Jesuit's commitment to a well-rounded liberal arts education and because of their commitment to social justice. I figured that the matches on those fronts would more than make up for any residual discomfort I might have with being a part of a school that was founded and run on religious principles that I didn't share.
I was both right and wrong. At Gonzaga, I met some of the most wonderful human beings I will ever meet - progressive and invested in the world, in change, in being activists as a part of their way of being in the world. Some of these people were Catholics, more than a few of them were nuns and priests.
Gonzaga was many other things, as well, a topic for another day, but I can categorically say that I would not have known nearly as much I do about radical progressive politics, particularly in the world of peace activism, had I not known those people of faith.
So, when I see that the Vatican has threatened to excommunicate the founder of the School of Americas Watch because he gave a homily at the ordination of a woman, it makes me sad. Because that is the church that is hostile to those very people who inspired me and, the heartbreaking thing is, it's their own church! I wonder about my lovely friend Michael who has been a Jesuit for 28 years and his take on this. I wonder about the feminist nuns that I know who have committed their lives to the church and education and who constantly struggle with their church, though not their faith.
But then I read Fr. Boureois' letter to the Vatican and I remember that this is the kind of person who stays because they will change it from within. And that, that I am grateful for.
Women in our Church are telling us that God is calling them to the priesthood. Who are we, as men, to say to women, “Our call is valid, but yours is not.” Who are we to tamper with God’s call?
Sexism, like racism, is a sin. And no matter how hard or how long we may try to justify discrimination, in the end, it is always immoral ...
Silence is the voice of complicity. Therefore, I call on all Catholics, fellow priests, bishops, Pope Benedict XVI and all Church leaders at the Vatican, to speak loudly on this grave injustice of excluding women from the priesthood.