Religious sisters react to Sr Nathalie’s appoinement
Prioress Irene Gassmann
“I am very pleased with this news from Rome! It is another small step in the right direction. Pope Francis shows with this that for the development and shaping of the church the competences and experiences of the people count and not primarily the biological sex. This appointment, which came as a complete surprise to me, gives me hope that for future synods women will also be able to participate with voting rights. Let us continue to stay tuned, trust and hope, and get involved where it is needed!”
Sister Anne Béatrice Faye
“First of all, this is not the first time a woman has been involved in a curia dicastery. What is original here is her function with the right to vote. I think this is a great step that the Pope has just taken in involving women in important decisions in the Church. It is unprecedented for the Catholic Church. Sister Nathalie Becquart, a woman who was appointed under-secretary of the Synod of Bishops, becomes the number two in this very closed cenacle and the first to obtain the right to vote in this assembly that has been studying the major doctrinal questions of the Catholic Church since 1965. In my opinion, Pope Francis is sending a strong signal. It is an "open door" to encourage greater participation of women in the processes of discernment and ecclesial decision making. It is a sign of trust for women in the Church, for religious women and more broadly also for lay people. Pope Francis insists on the "need to listen," including minority points of view in those synodal assemblies where the great debates of the Church are played out, such as access to communion for divorced and remarried men or the possibility of ordaining married men to the priesthood, the place of women in the Church. Sister Nathalie Becquart is one of the new faces of the slow feminization of the Roman Curia. It may be that the right to vote could be extended to other women participants in the next synod on synods. The ball is in the under-secretary's court to propose that her sisters support her. I imagine that she will not be the only female vote during the synod and in other instances. I really want people to understand that a synodal church is a church of participation and co-responsibility. In the exercise of synodality, the Church is called to coordinate the participation of all, according to each one's vocation. Participation is based on the fact that all the faithful are empowered and called to place at each other's service the respective gifts received from the Holy Spirit.”
Sister Mumbi Kigutha
“Catholic women know intimately what it means to be disqualified from various positions, and all because of gender, a function of our God-given anatomy. Spiritus Dominus expanded and encoded roles that women could play in liturgical celebrations recently. For some in the world, it seemed like a gesture that came too late, in fact after popular culture had already adapted the practice, however, for many women in the world, this was one more step and invitation to inclusion, but more so a recognition of their full personhood and their centrality and importance to all aspects of church. So, my prayer is that the act of appointing Sr. Nathalie to this position is not a token, but the genesis of a new movement, a movement towards inclusion, so that the diversity present in the church will be represented at the table, their voices will be heard and help shape policy but more so that their votes will be the tiebreakers for the side of justice for all. As scripture tells us that Christ, “He bought us for God from every land, people, language and nation” and I might add, from every gender.”
Sr. Hildegard Schreier MC
Yesterday this message came from the voting undersecretary on TV news as well. I thought it was embarrassing. Because it's long overdue. 50 years after the introduction of women's suffrage in Switzerland, a woman is now allowed to vote in a bishop's synod. That's great! It was high time! If you didn't find the appearance of official ecclesiastical dignitaries until then, you're grinning one thing now... The rest of society rubs astonished eyes that this is worth a message.
Nevertheless, I assume that this actually opened a door. But what consequences it actually has will have to be revealed. The “gentle tour” is Pope Francis's politics; he gradually introduces women into certain posts and tasks and “undermines” the men's frets. (Of course, he's also dealing with the problem of having to tackle women's ordination to priestesses...) But if that continues at this rate, then maybe in 10 years we'll have two voting secretaries...
So what?
Sister Ulrike Soegtrop
“This is a long overdue decision. Thirty years ago, I would have had high hopes for it. Today it elicits only a mild smile from me. Whether it is a break with tradition or just a reassurance plaster for us women remains to be seen. "Opening a new door in the Church for women" has not been enough for a long time. To stay with the metaphor, it needs extensive renovation of the building. The clerical-male building fabric has outlived its usefulness. It may be that more women will be granted (voting) rights at synods in the future, and every woman more is a gain. But that does not change the fact that the church's clergy-laity/laity hierarchy structurally excludes women from equal participation in a synod of bishops. Only when the first women bishops are seated there will the Church's image be renewed. I wish Sister Nathalie Becquart good nerves, the clear word at the right time and joy in being able to give women a voice.”
Sr. Katharina Rohrmann OSB
“It is always amazing what a huge fuss is made when a thing that (actually) seems to be self-evident is implemented in the Vatican.... The Church is running behind the reality. I hope that for future synods it will NO LONGER BE A QUESTION whether or how many women are entitled to vote!”
Sister Shalini Mulackal
“The latest move of Pope Francis in appointing Sr. Nathalie Becquart as Under-Secretary of the Synod of Bishops with voting rights is a welcome move indeed. Ever since he became the bishop of Rome and the spiritual head of the Roman Catholic Church, he has been taking small steps, one at a time to bring women’s concern to the fore. After washing women’s feet on Maundy Thursday, he invited the whole Church to include women and other marginalized groups in the foot washing ritual. Recently he made amendments in the Code of Canon Law which prohibited women to be appointed as acolytes and lectors. Now women can be legally appointed as acolytes and lectors. The latest step is the appointment of a woman as Under-secretary of the Synod of Bishops. Pope Francis is slowly bringing in structural changes in a Church which has been patriarchal for two millennia. The steps he is making will definitely have a huge impact on the patriarchal mindset of many, both men and women. Partial fulfilment of what we hope for gives us fresh hopes that one day we can look for a Church where the equality of male and female do not remain at the theological level but will be translated into concrete action at every aspect of Church’s life.”
Sister Philippa Rath
“I am delighted about the appointment of Sr. Nathalie Becquart as Undersecretary of the Synod of Bishops. This is an important and, to some extent, courageous step by Pope Francis, which shows that he wants to get serious with his plan to involve more women in the decision-making processes of the Church and, at the same time, to strengthen the synodal processes at various levels. Importantly, Sr. Nathalie, who is a highly competent and very experienced professional, will have voting rights at the Synod of Bishops. This opens a door that gives hope for further steps in the future. For the goal must of course remain that in the future even significantly more women participate as voting members in synods of bishops.”
Sister Ingrid Grave
“In principle, this is a positive sign. Whether it has a groundbreaking effect, I doubt. Pope Francis is breaking with tradition here. If it's a new door for women in the church, it's a very small one for now. I think this right could be extended to more female participants if the will is there. I fear the resistance of the male participants who will thwart the Pope.”
Sister Madeleine Fredell
“I think it is a very smart appointment of a woman and religious sister as Undersecretary of the Synod of Bishops. For the first time, an appointment will give real power to a woman within the Holy See’s administration. However we cannot say that it is breaking with tradition as it does not have anything to do with fundamental faith-issues or doctrine. Yes, I think this appointment is a step towards voting rights for women in Synods. How far Pope Francis will go in relation to the next Synod is still too early to say. This is a very positive step in the right direction. Still, women need an acting place / position within the liturgy as well. In fact, that would be more powerful in the end as women need to be seen and heard within the local parish context on a daily basis. The first step to take would be to give lay people the right to give the homily (apostolic religious women are considered “lay” according to Canon Law).”
Sr. Mary John Mananzan
“I think this decision of Pope Francis to appoint a religious sister as undersecretary of the Synod with voting rights, is a move in the right direction. It brings back my hope that Pope Francis will go further in this direction. I think he and other openminded men in the Church know in their heart of hearts that there is really no sound theological reason for not giving women the right for full ministry in the church and equal decision making rights. At a time when the secular world has in great part accepted this fact and has acted accordingly, it is about time our church realizes the importance of the gender issue and should act according to it with consequence. I hope it will not be a token to quiet the voices of women in the church but a real step preceding a continuous move towards genuine gender equality in our church.”
