Ordination to Serve and to Represent Roman Catholic Explorations; The Canterbury Statement: Some conclusions

by J. M. Donahue, O.P.

From Pro and Con on Ordination of Women
Report and Papers from The United States Anglican-Roman Catholic Consultation, Cincinnati, June 1975.

I. The Canterbury Statement, Vatican Council II Documents: Emphasis on Service, Representation, Sacramentality.

II. Representation of what? Priest as representative of the faith of the Church would argue for the ordination of women (Kilmartin).

III. Priest as representative of Christ: The argument from the complementarity of male-female would exclude women (Sheets).

IV. The capacity of the Church to change liturgical, sacramental elements, to designate new signs and representations.

V. Key question: What is the will of Christ? Some answers: P. Paul VI, the Vatican Commission on Women, Athenagoras (Congar).

VI. Female diaconate: no biblical or theological opposition; Development of a diaconate independent of the “priesthood” (Hunermann).

VII. Some conclusions.

Ordination to Serve and Represent

This paper was written for presentation to the members of the United States Anglican/Roman Catholic Consultation prior to their meeting October 21-24, 1975, in Erlanger, Kentucky. It is a response to some of the issues dealing with sacramentality and sexuality which surfaced during the Anglican and Roman Catholic theologians’ discussion on the ordination of women held in Cincinnati, June 22-25. It is offered as one of a series of position papers which will define those issues.

Three of the twelve issues identified as “Questions for Further Study” are addressed by this paper: a) what is the theological significance of the ordination of women to the diaconate in relation to the question of their eligibility for priesthood and episcopate? What of the Roman Catholic view that diaconate, presbyterate and episcopate are one sacrament? b) What is the theological significance of the freedom with which the Church has modified the matter and form of certain sacraments including ordination, in relation to the question of ordination of women as presbyters and bishops? c) Would having women preside in the celebration of the Eucharist, which is the sacramental anticipation of the kingdom of God, be an eschatological sign of the unity of male and female in God’s kingdom, where there will neither be marriage nor giving in marriage? These questions are listed as 9a, 9b, 10, 12 in the list of Questions for Further Study.

I. The Canterbury Statement, Vatican II Documents: Emphasis on Service, Representation, Sacramentality.

It would seem appropriate that the discussion of the ordination of women should take place within the ambience of the Canterbury Statement which expresses the basic agreement of the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion on the wide areas of ministry.(1) The ordained ministry is presented within the broad context of various ministries, all of which are the work of one and the same Spirit.

The statement emphasizes service.

The life and self – offering of Christ perfectly express what it is to serve God and man. All Christian ministry, whose purpose is always to build up the community (koinonia) , flows and takes its shape from this source and model.(2) In several places the ordained minister is described in terms that are sacramental and representative of Christ. As herald and ambassador he is an authoritative representative of Christ and proclaims his message of reconciliation (3)…Christians came to see the priestly role of Christ reflected in these ministers and used priestly terms to describe them (4) . . . ordination denotes entry into this apostolic and God-given ministry, which serves and signifies the unity of the local churches in themselves and with one another (5)… in this sacramental act, the gift of God is bestowed upon the ministers (a footnote indicates that in formal documents the Anglican use of the word “sacrament” with reference to ordination is limited by the distinction drawn by the Thirty-nine Articles).(6)

The Dogmatic Constitution on the Church of Vatican Council II encouraged Roman Catholics to explore the richness of the words “sacraments” and “mystery” in ways that stretch beyond the seven sacraments.

By her relationship with Christ the Church is a kind of sacrament or sign of intimate union with God, and of the unity of all mankind. She is also an instrument for the achievement of such union and unity (7)…The Church, or, in other words, the kingdom of Christ now present in mystery, grows visibly in the world through the power of God (8)…Thus, the Church shines forth as “a people made one with the unity of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” (9)

The Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests of Vatican II applies the Pauline and patristic view of mysterion;

…All priests cooperate in carrying the saving plan of God. This plan is the mystery of Christ, the sacrament hidden from the ages in God. It is brought to fulfillment only by degrees through the collaboration of many ministries in the up-building of Christ’s Body until the full measure of His manhood is achieved. (10)

II. Representation of What? Priest as Representative of the Faith of the Church would Argue for the Ordination of Women (Kilmartin).

Theologians have found it fruitful to pursue the multiplicity of themes suggested by the words mysterion-sacramentum. Phenomenology develops the theme of personal encounter with God. Thus, Christ is the primordial sacrament; the Church, sacrament of the risen Christ; the sacraments, ecclesial celebration-in-mystery of the paschal mystery.(11) Another original work views the Church primarily as Ursakrament, the primordial sacrament; and thus the seven sacraments are the self-realization or actualization of the Church.(12) Thus to say that Christ instituted the sacraments is to say that Christ instituted the Church as primordial sacrament and implicitly those diverse basic acts of the Church which we call the seven sacraments.

The theology of mysterion-sacramentum is that God’s plan, will, is to save us by the free gift of himself, a gift the condition of which is our acceptance of it in obedience and faith. The sacraments, therefore, in simplest terms are acts of Christ and signs of faith. Every sacrament, including the Sacrament of Order, is a manifestation and a continuing presence in a certain way of the paschal mystery of Christ; every sacrament, including Order, is a sign and a continuing manifestation of the faith of the Church.

On October 5-11, 1973, the fifth session of the International Theological Commission, an advisory body of Roman Catholic theologians serving the Pope and the world’s bishops, discussed the nature of apostolic office and non-Catholic ordained ministry. The following summer it made public a document on “Apostolic Succession: A Clarification.”(13) This document states that: “the apostolic ministry is the sacrament of the effective presence of Christ and of his spirit in the midst of the people of God.” (14) Father Edward J. Kilmartin, S.J., professor of sacramental theology at the Weston School of Theology, uses this as a springboard for a study of the problem of the representative function that ministry plays in relation to Christ and the Church.(15) He concludes that “office directly represents the faith of the Church and only to this extent can it represent Christ.”(16)

From the general conclusion stated above, Kilmartin concludes with a number of theological consequences, one of which touches the question of ordination of women:

Since the priest directly represents the Church united in faith and love, the old argument against the ordination of women to the priesthood, based on the presupposition that the priest directly represents Christ and so should be male, becomes untenable. Logically the representative role of priest seems to demand both male and female office bearers in the proper cultural context; for the priest represents the one Church, in which distinctions of race, class, and sex have been transcended, where all are measured by the one norm: faith in Christ. (17)

The main conclusion of Kilmartin, that apostolic office directly represents the faith of the Church, flows from a profound argument based on recent studies, especially those of German theologians. The argument cannot be reproduced or evaluated here, but we can note that Kilmartin’s general conclusion is in line with traditional teaching. St. Thomas Aquinas gave classical expression to “fides et sacramenta fidei” when he said that each of the sacraments is a “signum rememorativum” of what preceded (the passion of Christ); “demonstrativum”” of what was achieved by the passion (grace); and “prognosticum” of what is to come (future glory).(18)

Tradition has seen the sacramentality of ordination as representing and demonstrating a variety of notes relating to both Christ and the Church. The more traditional approach would be to say that priestly actions directly represent Christ to the Church and in consequence the priest is a sign of the Church united in faith and love. Kilmartin would reverse this and say that because the priest represents the faith of the Church in his priestly actions, as a consequence he can represent Christ.

Even if we follow Kilmartin on this point, his conclusions about the ordination of women to the priesthood do not seem to follow necessarily. The priest’s representation of Christ in Kilmartin’s view is less direct and immediate, nevertheless there is a special note of the representation of Christ attached to the priesthood. The consequence which Kilmartin draws from this conclusion, namely that it is no longer tenable to say that only men should be priests, does not seem to be so strong.

III. Priest as Representative of Christ: The Argument from the Complementarity of Male-Female would exclude women (sheets).

The Church has always acted to designate how the sign of the eschatological presence of Christ’s presence would be manifested. Male and female office bearers would be one way in which the Church could demonstrate that distinctions of race, class, and sex have been transcended. The present discipline of the Roman Catholic Church designates celibacy as the way in which the priesthood would manifest the eschatological theme.(19) The religious life of the profession of poverty, chastity, and obedience is offered as “a sign which can and ought to attract all the members of the Church to an effective and prompt fulfillment of the duties of their Christian vocation…it foretells the resurrected state and the glory of the heavenly kingdom. .. reveals in a unique way that the kingdom of God and its over-mastering necessities are superior to all earthly considerations.”(20)

The sacramental sign of Orders is treated by Father John R. Sheets, S.J., Creighton University, in an article entitled “Ordination of Women: The Issues.”(21) After sections treating the historical facts and the rationale behind the historical facts concerning the ordination of women, Sheets treats the nature of the sign of Orders, which he considers to be the ultimate question for the Roman Catholic. He quotes approvingly an article from Vie Consacrée(22) which argues that the sign of salvation is of God and not from us. The basic sign is communion, unity. The priest effects this union in a unique way by “doing in memory of me” what Christ in his historical reality has done. In ordaining only men the Church attests that her priesthood comes historically from Jesus, who was a man, and that her unique Priest is that man, concrete and sexed.

Sheets offers his own outline to an approach which would be based on Bernard Lonergan’s ideas on the intentionality of the human spirit. Basic to the argument is the understanding of human sexuality as two inter-related, distinctive modalities of human intentionality:

The goal of all things is union, in an ultimate sense communion with Christ and the Father, in approximate sense union with one another. Masculinity and femininity are two distinctive ways of realizing union, and of symbolizing the ultimate union. It is not a question of one being superior or inferior to the other. Each has a real strength. Yet because of our fallen nature each can convert its real strength into an exploitation of the other. Masculinity (considered as a symbolic whole) signifies effectiveness in bringing about the union. Femininity (considered as a symbolic whole) signifies attractiveness in bringing about the union. Union is brought about only through the interaction of these two complementary intentionalities .(23)

We feel that only men can represent the priesthood for Christ, not because they are privileged or superior but because there has to be a congruence of intentionalities, or a congruence of symbolism to carry out those acts which symbolize and effect Christ’s union with the Church.(24)

The conclusion adopted by Sheets might be characterized as in line with the traditional Roman Catholic opinion,(25) and his interpretation of the meaning of sexuality would be questioned by many who maintain that characteristics which we associate with sexuality are environmental.(26) The literature on this subject is immense and beyond the scope of this paper to evaluate.

IV. The Capacity of the Church to Change Liturgical, Scramental Elements, to Designate New Signs and Representations.

Even those who accept an understanding of human sexuality such as Sheets proposes may question his conclusion that “only men can represent the priesthood for Christ.” Baptism initiates the faithful into the priesthood of Christ. If both male and female can represent Christ in the common priesthood, why not in the ministerial priesthood also?

The argument proceeds to explain that women have been excluded from the ministerial priesthood in the past because of historical and cultural reasons. Implicit in the establishment of the “Sacramental Church” is a certain capacity to adjust the liturgical signs and actions according to new circumstances of history and culture:

For the liturgy is made up of unchangeable elements divinely instituted and elements subject to change. The latter not only may but ought to be changed with the passing of time if features have by chance crept in which are less harmonious with the intimate nature of the liturgy, or if existing elements have grown less functional. (27)

A number of examples of the Roman Catholic Church modifying the sacraments to fit the times can be cited, although it must be admitted that the new determinations have been in reality rather small. At present the Church tends to reach back to the most ancient ritual to discover the sacramental meaning given by Christ and the apostles. Thus, in recent times we have seen Pope Pius XII settle the old dispute as to whether the handing over of the instruments customary since the Middle Ages was necessary for the rite of ordination and determine for the future the “matter” and “form” of the Sacrament of Order.(28) Other developments include a renewed appreciation of the imposition of hands in the sacraments of Confirmation and Penance.(29) A new name, Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick (Unctio Infirmorum) , and a renewal of purpose has been given to the Sacrament of Extreme Unction.(30) Everyone is familiar with the renewal of emphasis which has been given to the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist in the new Lectionary for Mass and the Sacramentary of the Roman Missal. Even more dramatic are the changes to be introduced by the Ordo Paenitentiae with its renewal of emphasis on reconciliation of the penitent with God and with the Church, its more public celebration, and the more extensive permission for use of the rite of general absolution.(31)

In this restoration the Church allows for the fact that Christ himself may have determined the outward material for certain sacraments, at least in general. We have the water of Baptism, the bread and wine of the Holy Eucharist. But, priests in the East consecrate leavened bread; in the West, un-leavened bread. Further what is bread? Does maize meal make bread? Evidently Christ did not want to lay down anything in this matter; nor in the matter of the kinds of wine or the manner of its preparation, so long as it is wine. A certain relativity naturally plays a part in the appreciation of these things. Ultimately it is the popular appreciatition, which can differ from one country to another; the Church judges and lays down concrete norms.

The sacramental word of faith, the so called “form ” which provides the sacrament its determination and clear significance has shifted from time to time in nearly all the sacraments. Only in Baptism and Eucharist do we have any formula which is from the words of Christ. Although the Trinitarian character and the essential meaning of the form has been preserved, great changes have been made in the Baptismal Ritual and “form” of the sacrament. The renewed emphasis on the epiclesis in the new Eucharistic Prayers of The Roman Missal calls attention to the fact that in certain times and places (especially the Greek Church) the epiclesis bore at least a share in the consecratory significance. In the Latin Church, nevertheless, there is a firm tradition which regards the words of institution as the eucharistic “form” laid down by Christ himself.(32)

V. Key Question: That is the Will of Christ? Some Answers: P.Paul VI, The Vatican Commission on Womemn, Athenagoras. (Congar.)

Granted the considerable liberty which the Church has taken with the determination of the elements of the various sacraments, can we say that it is within the competence of the Church to adjust the sacramental sign of Order so as to permit the ordination of women? The answer to this question would seem to depend on whether in fact Christ himself determined that only men should be ordained. The fact is that Christ did not choose women as his apostles. One can explain this by appeal to the historical and cultural conditions of the first century A.D. One can explain the rather unamimous tradition of the Church both in the East and the West in ordaining only males for her clergy as being historically, culturally, and sociologically conditioned. But, can we prove that women were restricted from ordained ministry only for historical-cultural-sociological reasons?

Pope Paul VI addressed this question when he spoke to the Vatican Study Commission for the International Women’s Year on April 18, 1975. The Pope spoke in French and this text has not been available to me as I prepare this paper. Two English versions of the speech have appeared with slightly different translations of the two key sentences. The Weekly Edition in English of L’Osservatore Romano reads:

Although women do not receive the call to the apostolate of the Twelve and therefore to the ordained ministries, they are the nonetheless invited to follow Christ as disciples and workers…we cannot change what Our Lord did, nor his call to the women; but we can recognize and promote the role of women in the mission of evangelization and in the life of the Christian community.(33)

The NC News Service translation reads as follows:

If women did not receive the call to the apostolate of the Twelve and therefore to the ordained ministries, they are nevertheless invited to follow Christ as disciples and co-workers…we cannot change the behavior of our Lord nor his call to women; but we must recognize and promote the role of women in the mission of evangelization and in the life of the Christian community.(34)

The brief two paragraph reference to the Ordination of Women to the Vatican committee is not the final and decisive word of the Roman Catholic Church on this subject but it does give a clear indication of the state of the question in the mind of the Holy Father.

The Vatican Study Commission on Women in Society and in the Church produced a “Study Kit” for the International Women’s Year 1975 which was recently published by the USCC. The section on biblical studies entitled “The Novelty of the Evangelical Outlook on Women” reads very much like the Pope’s message to that same commission last April:

“The women do not receive an official call to follow Christ, as do the men, they follow him spontaneously; but they are given a special mission in the apostolic community… the women have, as it were, a sort of intuition of the development of the plan of salvation . . . the apostolic experience would not have been what it is without the experience of the holy women, and particularly of Mary.”(35)

Pope Paul in his address and the Vatican Study Commission on women to an even greater extent singles out the Virgin Mary, “that Creature whom Christ himself, her Son, called several times by the significant name of ‘woman.’”(36) The section of biblical studies entitled “women in Holy Scripture” concludes:

The primitive Church integrated women into the Christian Assembly, recognized their particular responsibility and associated them in the work of the apostolic ministry. The scriptures also bring out the difference between man and woman. No longer is it a relationship between superior and inferior but mutual fulfillment, which finds its whole meaning in the union of the Church and Christ and its most perfect expression the Mary’s attitude before God. (37)

Archbishop Athenagoras in a letter to the Orthodox clergy and lay people on “The Question of the Ordination of Women” dated May 14, 1975, also appeals to the example of St. Mary the Virgin.(38) He remarks that Mary did not take part in the election of Matthias as the new Apostle. Why?

Precisely because she did not receive the mandate to do so… though St. Mary had transcended every degree of a humanly-possible perfection, though she had reached the highest degree of humanly-possible sanctity, she nevertheless was not given the apostolate of the Twelve; rather she remained in silence, worshipping God and teaching all Christian generations with her absolute piety and humility . . . it is therefore advisable that this example should be studied by those who seem to examine the Christian experience superficially, by claiming that there is no theological obstacle to ordination of women, that is, ordination to the Apostolic ministry, a task which St. Mary herself had no mandate to exercise.(39)

The position of the Orthodox in the United States on this question is of course clear from the Orthodox Anglican Consultation and from the letter of Alexander Schmemann in St. Vladimir’s Theological Quarterly.(40)

Father Yves Congar published a series of reviews of French and German works on the ordination of women in a Bulletin dated September 1974 which seems to indicate a shift of his position in the matter based upon the representative and sacramental role of the ordained minister.(41) In some “Simples Reflexions” published in 1972 Congar was of the opinion that the exclusion of women from priestly ministry is not purely a cultural phenomenon. On the other hand, he felt that it has not been clearly demonstrated to be of divine law. In that article he concluded that women should be admitted to the diaconate, but not to the priesthood.(42)

In the 1974 article Congar still expresses his preference that women be admitted to the ministry, but he is impressed with the study of Jean Galot.(43) Galot studies at length the attitude of Christ. He concludes that Jesus in fact positively excluded women from the ministries he instituted and from the public mission. The reason he finds in John 20:21 “as the Father has sent me, so I send you;” the Son of God assumed the masculine sex. Christ promoted women to those roles which are complementary to those of men. Galot concludes that it would be possible to ordain women to the diaconate but he does not think that it would be fitting. It would place women in an ambiguous position at the lowest position in the clergy where she would be thought of in clerical categories and cast into a masculine mold.

The biblical theme of the bridegroom and the spouse, Congar believes, when applied to the ministry and the Church is a value which justifies the reservation of the representative role of the ministry to men. The ministerial representation of Christ is not in the authority and power of the minister, but rather it is on the level of sign or signification which exists between the minister and the community, especially in the celebration of the Eucharist. Clearly Congar wants to support the partisans of the ordination of women, but he ends his Bulletin still asking the question: Is it in the divine plan?

VI. Female Diaconate: No Biblical or Theologiacl Opposition; Development of a Diaconate Independent of the “Priesthood.” (Hünermann)

Peter Hünermann, Professor of Dogmatic Theology at the University of Munster, has a “Note” in the June 1975 issue of Theological Studies entitled “Conclusions Regarding the Female Diaconate.” Hunermann finds that:

the discussion of the New Testament evidence and the data of tradition make clear that dogma provides no ground for misgivings about ordaining women to the office of deacon… for it, there is clearly a precedent in the Church’s history; about it theology has not the least misgivings…the desirable introduction of the female diaconate can be combined with the development and enrichment of the community’s life in the area of liturgy and the sacraments. (45)

Father Edward J. Kilmartin, whose article in Theological Studies was treated above, proposed that “office directly represents the faith of the Church and only to this extent can it represent Christ.” In contrast (in the same issue of Theological Studies) Hünermann maintains: “It is much better to understand official ministry with a view to the community and the world, as official repraesentatio of the mission of Jesus Christ.”(46) Hünermann envisions “a plurality of relatively independent offices.” These offices would be integrated by the office of the episcopate.

Hünermann would see the office of deacon, especially for female deacons, as not simply a participation in the “priesthood. ” The deacon would have his own relatively independent area of service. This independence would also be reflected in his liturgical or sacramental tasks or powers. Although he does not develop the idea, Hunermann is clearly arguing for a diaconate as official repraesentatio of the mission of Jesus Christ which would be built upon a model other than that of “priesthood.”

Historical studies on the subject by Roman Catholic scholars today are in general agreement that women have never been admitted to the priesthood or episcopacy. They also tend to agree that there was an order of deaconesses, but there is some disagreement as to the nature of the ordination and as to the function of the female deacons. Many Catholic theologians, as for example Hünermann, assert that it is not only possible but also desirable to introduce women into the diaconal ministry at this time.

Although Catholics maintain that there is only one Sacrament of Order, Vatican Council II attempted to distinguish diaconate more clearly from priesthood.

At a lower level of the hierarchy are deacons, upon whom hands are imposed “not unto the priesthood, but unto a ministry of service.”(47)

In their own special way, ministers of lesser rank. ..share in the mission and grace of the supreme priest. First among these are deacons. Since they are servants of the mysteries of Christ and the Church, they should keep themselves free from every fault, be pleasing to God, and be a source of all goodness in the sight of men (cf. 1 Tim. 3:8-10, 12-13)

The Permanent Deacons in the United States: Guidelines on their Formation and Ministry drawn by the Bishops’ Committee on the Permanent Diaconate attempts to define the deacon in terms of “who he is rather than of what he does”. (49)

A more penetrating view goes beyond those specific functions, which have varied according to different times and structures. Instead the deacon can be identified by his relationships to the Christian community that surrounds him. ..the vocation to the diaconal service effects a new relationship to the Holy Spirit. The deacon’s ministry becomes a visible response to the God who has called him. ..the entire community is committed to the deacon and the deacon to the entire community. Through the Bishop a new relationship to the entire Church becomes visible in the Christian who is ordained deacon . . . w i t h all the ordained priests of the universal Church. ..a relationship of mutual trust and acceptance…the call of the Spirit and the imposition of hands by the Bishop assume meaning and force only when the deacon fully and totally responds to and accepts the call with a responsible and permanent personal commitment.(50)

There has been an attempt to define the office of deacon with respect to its specific task of service of charity in the life of the community. The permanent deacon in the Roman Catholic Church should have an office that is other than priesthood but closely related to priesthood and to the whole People of God. As such, it would seem that ordination to the diaconate for women would not imply ordination to priesthood or to episcopacy.

VII. Some Conclusions.

At this point some conclusions are in order:

1. The process of consideration of ordination of women in the Anglican Communion was begun in 1968 and has reached the point where decisions are being made. The long-standing practice of the order of deaconesses developed into the recognition of the diaconate for women as indistinguishable from the male diaconate. The Roman Catholic Church is far behind in the process of consideration of the ordination of women. In fact, Pope Paul and the Vatican Study Commission on Women advocate that the “non-ordained ministries” should be open as much to women as to men, but give no indication of an openness to consider the question of “ordained ministry” for women.

In the encyclical letter Pacem in Terris (April 11, 1963) Pope John XXIII hailed the emancipation of women.(51) He wrote the following:

It is obvious to everyone that women are now taking a part in public life. This is happening more rapidly perhaps in nations with a Christian tradition, and more slowly but broadly, among peoples who have inherited other traditions or cultures. Since women are becoming ever more conscious of their human dignity, they will not tolerate being treated as inanimate objects, or mere instruments, but claim, both in domestic and in public life, the rights and duties that befit a human person. (52)

Human beings have, in addition, the right to choose freely the state of life which they prefer. They therefore have the right to set up a family, with equal rights and duties for man and woman, and also the right to follow a vocation to the priesthood or the religious Life. (53)

Some have interpreted these words of Pope John as perhaps unwittingly opening the door to the possible ordination of women.(54) Whatever the interpretation of the words of Pope John, it is clear that progress in the introduction of women into the offices of leadership in the Roman Catholic Church is proceeding at a pace which is slower than that of the Anglican Communion, perhaps slower also than the Roman Catholic’s own published guidelines.

2. The evidence for ordination of women to the priesthood and episcopacy is somewhat inconclusive. Biblical and theological considerations are not decisive either for or against ordination of women to the priesthood. Further study is not likely to uncover unassailable arguments in their favor; those opposed will continue to read the same facts in a different way. The Episcopal Church has a process for resolving this problem. Development of doctrine and the interaction of revelation with the new situations of our day is still a critical problem for the Roman Catholic Church.

The members of the ARC consultation on the ordination of women were in agreement that the current situation “has raised issues which cannot be answered adequately by merely citing traditional practices or beliefs…the Church, therefore, faces an issue which demands of it a new effort at self-understanding in regard to certain elements of its Gospel.”

It would seem that the Roman Catholic Church should not avoid its responsibility to institute a process for a solution of this question.

3. Arguments which describe the priest as sacramental representative or agent acting “in persona Christi” are of great importance to Roman Catholics who study the question of ordination of women. We have seen that various attempts at a solution have been made by Catholic theologians in recent years. No clear answer is forthcoming to the question: “Did Christ establish an ordained ministry in such a way as to exclude women from that ministry?” No solution satisfactory to all is likely to be forthcoming.

The following might be suggested as a solution. “Sacramental representation” is an analogical term which admits of degrees of participation. All service in the Church is significative and representative of the Servant who is Christ. That service which is rendered by ordained ministers has an official and public quality about it.

All the baptized, women included, are invited to that service of Christ in the Church which is in a general way assigned as a representation of the humble Servant. It would seem that at least some of the service which women render in the Church as catechists, teachers, counselors, doctors of body and spirit, leaders and superiors of religious women, planners, commentators, readers in the liturgical worship, etc. are indistinguishable from the responsibilities of the official ordained ministry to which men are admitted. Some recognition of this special “sacramental representation” of the Servant Christ by way of ordination for women would seem to be appropriate.

The most special sacramental representative activity of the priesthood, the action “in persona Christi” has reference to liturgical action, especially in the Eucharist. If this remains an area which Roman Catholic doctrine must reserve for men, then this most special sacramental representation should be clarified and made more visible to all. In spite of the attempts of Vatican Council II to dispel “triumphalism” the public image of priesthood and episcopate as offices in service of the humble Servant is still seen by many to be connected with the worst aspects of “power,” politics and clericalism.

4. It has been said that ordination of women is the key issue in the liberation of women and in the renewal of the Church. Such an action would show the world that the Church is in the lead of the feminine liberation movement; it would put the Church in a good position to direct and moderate that movement. Again, it is said that the introduction of women into the ordained ministry of the Church would change the Church like no other action conceivable. It would give a new vitality and a renewal of purpose to the priesthood.

On the other hand it is said that the priesthood should be a sign and center of stability in the Church and society which is already torn by so many problems. The priest is the res or the reality of the Church for the majority of men. On the other hand, he is the sacramentum or sign which points to Christ and his continuing presence in the world.

Both the arguments for and against making ordination of women the focal point of the Church’s response to the feminine liberation movements have their merits. Both arguments also have their limitations. Either course of action will open the Church and her people to risks, pain; but unless the issue is faced the Church is doomed to a period of frustration.

Footnotes

1. “The Canterbury Statement,” Origins NC Documentary Service, 3 (December 20, 1973), 26; pp. 401-409.

2 . Ibid. , n. 3.

3. Ibid. , n. 8.

4. Ibid. , n. 13.

5. Ibid. , n. 14

6. Ibid., n. 15.

7. “The Dogmatic Constitution on the Church” (Lumen Gentium). n. 1, The Documents of Vatican II, ed. W. M. Abbott, (New York: Guild Press, 1966), p. 15.

8. Ibid . , n . 3: p. 16.

9. Ibid. , n. 4: p. 17.

10. “The Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests” (Presbyterorum Ordinis) , n. 22, “The Documents of Vatican II,” p. 575 .

11. E. Schillebeeckx, Christ the Sacrament of the Encounter With God, (New York:Sheed and Ward, 1963).

12. K. Rahner, The Church and the Sacraments, (New York: Herder and Herder, 1963).

13. International Theological Commission, “Apostolic Succession: A Clarification,” Origins , 4, (September 19, 1974), 13: pp. 194-200.

14. Ibid,. Section V; p. 199.

15. E. J. Kilmartin, “Apostolic Office: Sacrament of Christ,” Theological Studies, 36, (June 1975), 2: pp. 243-264.

16. Ibid., p. 255.

17. Ibid. , p. 263. In addition to this conclusion he also makes an interesting application to the case of the ordination of women which took place in Philadelphia, July 29, 1974, and to the validity of Protestant Eucharist, c.f. p. 262.

18. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae, Rome, Marietti , 1948, III , 60, 3.

19. The Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests, n. 16: p. 565-567.

20. The Dogmatic Constitution of the Church, n. 44: p. 75.

21. J. R . Sheets, “Ordination of Women: The Issues,” The American Ecclesiastical Review, 169, January 1975, 1: pp. 17-36.

22. J. Bodson, “La femme et le sacerdoce,” Vie Consacrée , 44, 1972, pp. 342-367.

23. Ibid., p. 33.

24. Ibid. , p. 34 .

25. E. Doronzo, De Ordine , tom. III De Causis Extrinsecis, Milwaukee, Bruce , 1962, art. 18, Utrum subiectum capax validae ordinationis sit solus vir ita ut sexus femininus lege divina excludatur, pp. 377-470. Father Doronzo , the former Professor of Theology at The Catholic University of America, is well known for his exhaustive treatment of the theology of the sacraments. This extensive study of women expresses the Roman Catholic position to the time of Vatican Council II. Some of the attitudes adopted by Father Doronzo in this article would be judged “sexist” by contemporary standards of feminine liberation, but the bibliography and the citations from Christian tradition are valuable for anyone undertaking a study of this topic.

26. Cf. The papers prepared in advance of the ARC discussion on the ordination of women, July 22-25, especially those of Letitia Brennan and Ruth T. Barnhouse. Other papers prepared for the ARC discussion touch upon this problem.

27. “The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy” (Sacrosanctum Concilium), The Documents of Vatican II, n. 21: p. 146.

28. Pope Pius XII “Apostolic Constitution Sacramentum Ordinis” 30 November 1947; “The Teaching of the Catholic Church”, ed. K. Rahner, Staten Island, (New York: Alba House, 1966), p. 350.

29. Cf. Apostolic Constitution on the Sacrament of Confirmation in The Roman Pontifical, Rites of Confirmation, Ordination and the Blessing of Oils, Washington, National Conference of Catholic Bishops, Bishops’ Committee on the Liturgy, 1972, p. 5; Ordo Paenitentiae, Rituale Romanum, Typis Polyglottis Vaticanis, (1974) n. 19: p. 18.

30. Pope Paul VI, Apostolic Constitution on the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick, Washington, United States Catholic Conference, 1973.

31. Ordo Paenitentiae , pp. 9-23.

32. E. Schillebeeckx , op.cit. , pp. 118-132. In this section Father Schillebeeckx has a helpful discussion of the role of Christ, of the Apostolic Church and of the Post – Apostolic Church in determining the outward shape of the sacraments.

33. L’Osservatore Romano, Weekly Edition in English, n. 18 (370) , (May 1 , 1975) p. 5 .

34. “Women/Disciples & Co-workers,” Origins, 4 (May 1, 1975), 45, p. 719. Cf. also The Pope Speaks, 20 (1975), 1, p. 39 (translation by Matthew O’Connell). The French text appeared in L’Osservatore Romano , April 19, 1975.

35. Vatican Study Commission on Women in Society and in the Church, International Women’s Year 1975 “Study Kit,” Washington, USSC Publications Office, (1975) pp. 20, 21.

36. Ibid. , p . 10 .

37. Ibid., p. 17.

38. Archbishop Athenagoras “The Question of the Ordination of Women,” an answer given to the Orthodox Clergy and Lay People, (May 14, 1975); Cf. L’ Osservatore Romano , 30 (383) (July 31 , 1975) .

39. Ibid. , p. 3.

40. Cf. Consultation on June 2, 1973; A. Schmemann, “Concerning Women’s Ordination: A Letter to an Episcopal Friend,” St. Vladimir’s Theological Quarterly, 17 (1973): pp. 239-243.

41. Y. Congar, “Bulletin de Theologie: Les Femmes et les Ministeres Ordonnes,” Revue des Sciences Philosophiques et Theologique, 58 (1974): pp. 638-642.

42. Y. Congar, “Simples Reflexions ,” Vie Consacrée, 44, (1972): pp. 310-314.

43. J. Galot, Mission et Ministere de la Femme, (Paris, Lethielleau, 1973) .

44. P. Hünermann, “Note: Conclusions regarding the Female Diaconate,” Theological Studies, 36 (June 1975), 2: pp. 325-333.

45. Ibid., pp. 331, 332, 333.

46. Ibid., p. 332.

47. The Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, n. 29: p. 55.

48. Ibid., n. 41, p. 69.

49. Permanent Deacons in the United States: Guidelines on Their Formation and Ministry, U.S. Bishops’ Committee on the Permanent Diaconate, Washington, USCC, (1971) p. 7.

50. Ibid., pp. 6-7.

51. P. John XXIII, Encyclical Letter Pacem in Terris, (New York, America Press, 1963) n. 4: p. 14.

52. Ibid.

53. Ibid. , n. 15: p. 7.

54. M. Daly, The Church and the Second Sex, (New York, Harper and Row, 1968),, pp. 157-158. Mary Daly quotes Msgr. J. D . Conway , writing in the National Catholic Review, (November 16, 1966): Pope John XXIII appeared to be “…opening just a crack in the door to the priesthood for women, perhaps without realizing it…Pope John might object to my taking his words literally but they deserve meditation. He noted with approval the fading of a stratified society in which some persons are put in an inferior condition, and others assume superior position, ‘on account of economic and social conditions, of sex, of assigned rank’.”