Tag Archives: women

Press Release: CNWE Responds to the First Anniversary of Pope Francis’ Leadership

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CNWE CALLS POPE FRANCIS AND ALL CATHOLIC CLERGY TO WORK TOGETHER WITH THE CATHOLIC FAITHFUL TO REFORM THE CHURCH SO THAT IT REFLECTS THE EQUAL DIGNITY OF WOMEN
Media inquiries:
Atlantic Canada: Cathy Holtmann, (506) 476-1080, atlantic@cnwe.org
Central Canada: Mary Ellen Chown, (905) 330-1437, central@cnwe.org
Western Canada: Therese Koturbash, (204) 648-5720, western@cnwe.org

On this International Women’s Day, and approaching the first anniversary of the election of Pope Francis, the Catholic Network for Women’s Equality, (CNWE) calls Pope Francis and all Catholic clergy around the world to work with the Catholic faithful to reform the church so that it will reflect the equal dignity of women in its structures of ministry and governance.

Like many people around the world, we are inspired by Pope Francis’ personal commitment to justice and his desire for the Catholic church to be a ‘church of the poor’. By every conceivable measure, however, poverty is best alleviated when women are given equal access at all levels of society. It logically follows that if the Catholic church is to be in genuine solidarity with the poor, it must, as an influential global institution, reflect the full participation of women within its own structures. Presently, there is a ‘disconnect’ between Vatican teaching and practice – an inability to ‘walk the talk’.

Despite his seeming openness to positive reform in the church, Pope Francis, has stated that the door to women being ordained as Catholic priests is closed. Furthermore, he has yet to open any positions of power at the Vatican to women. What message does this send to Catholic women except to say that they remain ‘second class citizens’ in both church and society? As long as the Catholic Church hierarchy refuses to recognize the equal dignity of women ‘in its own house’, it legitimates the marginalization of women and remains complicit in contributing to imperiling the lives of women around the globe.

Pope Francis has stated that the Catholic church needs a ‘deeper theology of women’. We respectfully argue that women are not a new exotic subset to be curiously studied by an all male hierarchy. We have been participants in the church since its inception. When Pope Francis and Catholic clergy continually place women on a separate and special pedestal, it simply reinforces a patriarchal attitude that insults the dignity of women and prevents the full flourishing of our church. The only credible way forward for the Vatican is to recognize Catholic women, by virtue of their baptism, as equal partners in creating and leading a church worthy of the Gospel of Jesus.

Historical, biblical and theological claims for excluding women from equal participation at all levels of the Catholic Church simply do not stand up in the light of reason, Scripture and the lived tradition of the faithful. For Catholic teaching to claim a belief in the equal dignity of women and men before God, it must be manifest in the prayer, practice and governance of the Catholic church. If Pope Francis is truly committed to healthy critique and dialogue in the Church, he might begin by listening to the voices of women as equal partners in the conversation.

For over thirty years members of the Catholic Network for Women’s Equality have shared a faithful commitment to social justice for all women. We celebrate the fact that we are part of a long history of women’s contributions to the Christian faith. Our movement embraces a broad range of Catholic women and men across Canada for whom an inclusive church that is accountable to all of its members is important. Our work for women’s equality in church and world is internationally respected and part of a network of pro-change Catholic movements around the globe. For further information, see www.cnwe.org or visit us on Facebook at “Catholic Network for Women’s Equality – Canada”.

International Women’s Day, March 8, 2014

CNWE 2013 National Conference Press Release

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CATHOLIC NETWORK FOR WOMEN’S EQUALITY (CNWE)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
CNWE NATIONAL CONFERENCE IN SUDBURY (JUNE 21-23) TO ADDRESS THE PRIMACY OF CONSCIENCE FOR CATHOLIC WOMEN
Media inquiries:
Atlantic Canada: Cathy Holtmann, (506) 476-1080, atlantic@cnwe.org
Central Canada: Mary Ellen Chown, central@cnwe.org
Western Canada: Therese Koturbash, (204) 648-5720, western@cnwe.org
Website: www.cnwe.org

The Catholic Network for Women’s Equality (CNWE) will host its 2013 National Conference at Cambrian College in Sudbury June 21-23, 2013. Over 85 participants from across Canada will gather to collaboratively shape CNWE’s action for the coming year. Participants will also have the opportunity to hear keynote addresses from Louise Akers, SC, and educator Catherine Cavanagh and to explore primacy of conscience and its importance in living the Gospel in our times.
Louise Akers, a Catholic Sister of Charity had been working for social justice in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati and elsewhere for 40 years when, in 2009, Archbishop Daniel Pilarczyk informed her that she would not be permitted to teach for credit or make presentations in archdiocesan related institutions (all part of her ministry) unless she publicly disassociated herself from supporting the ordination of women in the Catholic church. Akers states: “For four decades I have devoted my ministry to advocating on behalf of the marginalized through religious congregations, justice organizations, ecumenical and interfaith groups. Women’s ordination is a justice issue. Its basis is the value, dignity and equality of women. I believe this to my very core. To publicly state otherwise would be a lie and a violation of my conscience.”
Catherine Cavanagh has worked in education and ministry in Canada and Africa for over twenty years. Author of Women Priests: Answering the Call and Soul Side: Articles of Faith, Catherine believes that “we are all God’s beloved and the we come closest to God when we reach out to others, especially those most marginalized.”
The conference will also feature the premiere public screening of its new promotional video telling the CNWE story. The video’s premier represents the culmination of CNWE’s “Reaching Out” tour which included gatherings of Catholic women in six cities across the country.
Louise Akers, Catherine Cavanagh and CNWE National Coordinator, Mary Ellen Chown are available for interview.
For over thirty years members of the Catholic Network for Women’s Equality have shared a faithful commitment to social justice for all women. We celebrate the fact that we are part of a long history of women’s contributions to the Christian faith. Our movement embraces a broad range of Catholic women and men across Canada for whom an inclusive church that is accountable to all of its members is important. Our work for women’s equality in church and world is internationally respected and part of a network of pro-change Catholic movements around the globe. For further information, see www.cnwe.org or visit us on Facebook at “Catholic Network for Women’s Equality – Canada”.

June 17, 2013

Press Release: Pope Benedict XVI Resignation

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CATHOLIC NETWORK FOR WOMEN’S EQUALITY (CNWE)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
CNWE RESPONDS TO POPE BENEDICT’S DECISION TO RESIGN
Media inquiries:
Atlantic Canada: Cathy Holtmann, (506) 476-1080, atlantic@cnwe.org
Central Canada: Mary Ellen Chown, (905) 339-0378, central@cnwe.org
Western Canada: Therese Koturbash, (204) 622-7000, western@cnwe.org
Website: www.cnwe.org

The decision of Pope Benedict XVI to resign as leader of the Roman Catholic Church comes as a surprise, given the long tradition that a Pope is elected to serve until death. The decision at a practical level is a sensible one in that leading a church of 1 billion members, when one’s physical and mental health is in decline, is neither good for the Pope as a person or for a worldwide organization. CNWE supports Pope Benedict’s decision in this regard.

CNWE believes that Pope Benedict’s resignation offers the Catholic Church leadership an opportunity to reflect on its mission and to choose a successor who will more fully engage the urgent needs of the Church and its members throughout the world. We call on Church leaders to ‘live into’ the vision of the Gospel, reflected at the Second Vatican Council and to make the work of justice, peace, equality, and care for all of God’s creation its highest priority. We call on the clergy to make accountability and compassion its hallmarks of servant leadership.

We call on Catholic Church leaders to ‘walk the talk’ of recognizing women’s equal dignity as baptized persons. Under Pope Benedict’s leadership we have witnessed the criminalization of those who support women’s ordination, an about-face on the use of inclusive language in the English mass, the bullying of nuns in the United States and the arbitrary removal of the woman who directed the largest Catholic aid organization in the world. Structural changes are necessary in order to ensure that the gifts of women are brought to all levels of church ministry and leadership. Pope Benedict’s resignation is an opportunity to renew the Catholic church in order to address the complex questions of a new millennium. We are hopeful that the deliberations of Catholic leaders in the coming month will respond to the growing calls for a church that is inclusive, accountable and focused on the work of justice for the flourishing of the world.

For over thirty years members of the Catholic Network for Women’s Equality have shared a faithful commitment to social justice for all women. We celebrate the fact that we are part of a long history of women’s contributions to the Christian faith. Our movement embraces a broad range of Catholic women and men across Canada for whom an inclusive church that is accountable to all of its members is important. Our work for women’s equality in church and world is internationally respected and part of a network of pro-change Catholic movements around the globe. For further information, see www.cnwe.org or visit us on Facebook at “Catholic Network for Women’s Equality – Canada”.

February 12, 2013