Feminists in the Catholic Church

[Padres1969]

As long as we’re having this discussion, I wonder are there any percentages online anyplace for how many female members of clergy in Protestant churches are ex-Catholics? Just curious now.

Not a definitive source, but several years ago an Anglican pastor provided a low level view on a similar question that might offer some insight…

The Rev. Gail Greenwell is rector of St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church, also in eastern Kansas and a large congregation (1,100 families) by Protestant standards. She estimates that 50 to 70 percent of 85 to 100 new members each year either come from the Catholic church or have a spouse who is Catholic. She includes herself in the latter category – her husband is a former Catholic.

…

Anecdotally, she said, she sees two trends. Among younger women, who often seem to be attracted to the idea of female leadership, some are distressed over the way in which the church has handled the sex abuse crisis. “Young people seem more interested in transparency.”

If those statistics hold true across the board, and I’ve no reason to doubt they do given my own diocesan experience where a good half of my incoming reception class was former Catholics, it would track that a number of incoming women do so because of the Ministerial/Priestly roles they can take in many Protestant faiths. I mean among the clergy in my church the majority of the younger clergy are women.

 

[Tis_Bearself]

Thanks for the info Padres1969.

 

[sisterangeline]

Hi everyone. First, I am sorry that some of you may think I’m a troll. I am not. I am a writer writing the story of a young nun going through a crisis of faith. I used the name sister angeline because after trying several different user names that were already taken, I decided to use the name of my main character. I feel her story coming through me, but I cannot honestly tell you why for sure. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to answer her questions in a satisfactory way, which is why I’m here. I’m also sorry I didn’t introduce myself. For some reason, I thought this was more of an informal site and introductions were optional. A Catholic friend told me about this site when she heard all my questions and suggested it as a safe place to ask whatever I needed. If my presence here isn’t ok, I understand and will unsubscribe. Again, please accept my apologies for not introducing myself earlier.

 

[pianistclare]

I think people are jumping on the troll and “posting and running” accusations a bit quickly here. It’s her first post. And it was only 6 hours ago; she hasn’t been back online since then. This may well be a sincere question and I think us regulars ought to treat it that way, at least until proven otherwise.

Been around a long time. It tends to work out that way. First post, something outrageous. Watch as posters scramble and a fight ensues, sit back, enjoy the ruckus. :coffeeread:
Plus, it’s summer. People with nothing better to do than try to pick a fight with the crazy Catholics.

It doesn’t matter.

The premise is deeply flawed. Show me a successful priest, and I’ll show you and army of women doing the heavy lifting. I work for a priest who appreciates me and values my opinion, and has put me in a strong leadership role in the parish. I have also worked for priests that treated me , well, like I was from the shallow end of the gene pool. But they had to admit, they needed me. I think that was likely the reason they were so prickly. They couldn’t do it all themselves and had no other men to turn to. Also women don’t argue back so much. It is SO much better when you can have a great dialog and work together, and such does exist in the Church.
It really does.
Peace, friend.

 

[pianistclare]

Hi everyone. First, I am sorry that some of you may think I’m a troll. I am not. I am a writer writing the story of a young nun going through a crisis of faith. I used the name sister angeline because after trying several different user names that were already taken, I decided to use the name of my main character. I feel her story coming through me, but I cannot honestly tell you why for sure. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to answer her questions in a satisfactory way, which is why I’m here. I’m also sorry I didn’t introduce myself. For some reason, I thought this was more of an informal site and introductions were optional. A Catholic friend told me about this site when she heard all my questions and suggested it as a safe place to ask whatever I needed. If my presence here isn’t ok, I understand and will unsubscribe. Again, please accept my apologies for not introducing myself earlier.

So it’s fiction? Yeah, thanks.
Unsubscribing.

 

[Gertabelle]

Hi everyone. First, I am sorry that some of you may think I’m a troll. I am not. I am a writer writing the story of a young nun going through a crisis of faith. I used the name sister angeline because after trying several different user names that were already taken, I decided to use the name of my main character. I feel her story coming through me, but I cannot honestly tell you why for sure. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to answer her questions in a satisfactory way, which is why I’m here. I’m also sorry I didn’t introduce myself. For some reason, I thought this was more of an informal site and introductions were optional. A Catholic friend told me about this site when she heard all my questions and suggested it as a safe place to ask whatever I needed. If my presence here isn’t ok, I understand and will unsubscribe. Again, please accept my apologies for not introducing myself earlier.

Thanks for returning and explaining a bit about yourself.

Introductions are not always necessary, but to be honest your original post was rather inflammatory in the way it was written – the assumption being that women are in fact second-class citizens in the Church, or that women who remain in the Church somehow don’t care about or are too stupid to understand their alleged victimization.

Well, that was my take on it.

May I ask why you are writing a story about a nun who is having a crisis of faith? I used to be a nun in a contemplative monastery and while there were some very interesting characters there, I can assure you it was no “Agnes of God” type thing.

Are you a Catholic?

 

[Gertabelle]

And we’re still waiting for an actual conversation with the OP… sigh

Well, here’s hoping the dear sisterangeline is lurking about the threads or the main Catholic Answers site learning something about Catholicism… or maybe even checking out the Catechism of the Catholic Church – that would be an awesome way to educate him/herself!

 

[sisterangeline]

May I ask why you are writing a story about a nun who is having a crisis of faith? I used to be a nun in a contemplative monastery and while there were some very interesting characters there, I can assure you it was no “Agnes of God” type thing.

Are you a Catholic?

I was raised Catholic, but left in my twenties because I felt women weren’t treated equally to men, (for a woman to be denied the right of priesthood puts women in an unequal position), I don’t believe homosexuality is a sin, or that there should be a ban on artificial contraception. I’m pro-choice and I’m angry that pedophile priests were kept in the system for so long. Yet. I can still feel my love of the sacraments and liturgy in my heart. So, I am exploring my feelings through writing. I’m writing through the consciousness of a nun because at one time I thought I was called to this vocation. I’m hoping that by viewing my perceptions through a different lens, I’ll be able to answer my original question with greater clarity.

 

[dshix]

sisterangeline, if you’re pro-choice, why don’t you think children in the womb should be given a choice to live?

 

[nunsuch]

Angeline, there are many Catholic feminist sites on the internet, and you may get an answer – or, at least, a different sort of answer – by checking those out. I don’t know why you would consult a site that is very explicitly in full support of official Catholic teaching to learn how to write about a character who is not.

HOWEVER, as others have suggested, you should write about what you know. Religious life is not something that one can simply write about without any knowledge. There is huge variation among religious communities, and you should not think of it as a “one size fits all” vocation. Yes, there are sisters who have struggled with issues such as ordination and a few of the others you refer to; some have stayed and some have left, and I suspect almost none of them are on this site. At the very least, perhaps consider framing your story in a world you are familiar with–that of a laywoman who has left the Church but still feels drawn to it in some ways?

 

[Tantum_ergo]

I was raised Catholic, but left in my twenties because I felt women weren’t treated equally to men, (for a woman to be denied the right of priesthood puts women in an unequal position), I don’t believe homosexuality is a sin, or that there should be a ban on artificial contraception. I’m pro-choice and I’m angry that pedophile priests were kept in the system for so long. Yet. I can still feel my love of the sacraments and liturgy in my heart. So, I am exploring my feelings through writing. I’m writing through the consciousness of a nun because at one time I thought I was called to this vocation. I’m hoping that by viewing my perceptions through a different lens, I’ll be able to answer my original question with greater clarity.

Might I suggest, as others have, that you not try to write about something (being a Catholic sister) that you know nothing about? How can you answer your original question when you’ve tacked onto it a whole ‘persona’ that you don’t really understand, and expect that to ‘explain’ something else you don’t understand?

I don’t know what you’re doing now, but if you can’t use your current profession, i.e., Catholic wife, mother, lawyer, doctor, teacher, administrator, whatever, why don’t you attend your parish RCIA? Then you could write as a “Catholic searcher” or “potential revert” and your character would be able to learn a lot about your questions through people who really know the Church and her teachings, and your character would benefit from having a real authenticity. Readers may like ‘escapism’ but they are drawn to characters who are ‘real’ and not cardboard stock figures.

 

[Gertabelle]

I was raised Catholic, but left in my twenties because I felt women weren’t treated equally to men, (for a woman to be denied the right of priesthood puts women in an unequal position), I don’t believe homosexuality is a sin, or that there should be a ban on artificial contraception. I’m pro-choice and I’m angry that pedophile priests were kept in the system for so long. Yet. I can still feel my love of the sacraments and liturgy in my heart. So, I am exploring my feelings through writing. I’m writing through the consciousness of a nun because at one time I thought I was called to this vocation. I’m hoping that by viewing my perceptions through a different lens, I’ll be able to answer my original question with greater clarity.

I totally appreciate your inner search and your desire to find clarity through writing. I was a nun for just over two years, and within a couple of years after leaving the monastery I left the Church, for a lot of the same reasons you mention in your post. I was outside the Church for about 15 years.

I am also a writer – short stories and some poetry. I completely understand being able to understand things better through writing about fictitious people. Creating stories has helped me on numerous occasions.

If you are writing for yourself, just to sort out your thoughts, write from any perspective you choose – whatever works for your process is what you should do.

If you are writing a work that you are hoping to have published, then see what Tantum Ergo writes below. In a piece of such deep personal exploration and reflection, your characters are going to need to be real and three-dimensional. Use characters you know and understand… maybe a woman considering religious life.

God bless you in your search and in your writing!

Might I suggest, as others have, that you not try to write about something (being a Catholic sister) that you know nothing about? How can you answer your original question when you’ve tacked onto it a whole ‘persona’ that you don’t really understand, and expect that to ‘explain’ something else you don’t understand?

I don’t know what you’re doing now, but if you can’t use your current profession, i.e., Catholic wife, mother, lawyer, doctor, teacher, administrator, whatever, why don’t you attend your parish RCIA? Then you could write as a “Catholic searcher” or “potential revert” and your character would be able to learn a lot about your questions through people who really know the Church and her teachings, and your character would benefit from having a real authenticity. Readers may like ‘escapism’ but they are drawn to characters who are ‘real’ and not cardboard stock figures.

 

[commenter]

Not a definitive source, but several years ago an Anglican pastor provided a low level view on a similar question that might offer some insight…
The Rev. Gail Greenwell is rector of St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church, also in eastern Kansas and a large congregation (1,100 families) by Protestant standards. She estimates that 50 to 70 percent of 85 to 100 new members each year either come from the Catholic church or have a spouse who is Catholic. She includes herself in the latter category – her husband is a former Catholic.
,…
If those statistics hold true across the board, and I’ve no reason to doubt they do given my own diocesan experience where a good half of my incoming reception class was former Catholics, it would track that a number of incoming women do so because of the Ministerial/Priestly roles they can take in many Protestant faiths. I mean among the clergy in my church the majority of the younger clergy are women.

Nobody leaves the Catholic **Faith ** now because women can’t become priests (for the past 2000 years!). People accept the Catholic Faith because they regard it as true. Some reject it because they regard it as false. If they reject the Magisterium as a false teacher, they aren’t joining some other group that mostly relies on the Magisterium’s teachings, like having “priests”, at all.

The phenomenon of people switching denominations usually is a result of “what’s trending now” in terms of what is popular, or rather what is most opposed, by the media. Churches that go along with “what’s trending now” often attract new, temporary members - as the parish referred to in the quote - but overall those denominations shrink - as the TEC. Women who join a denomination because the unreliable Magisterium is “sexist” won’t remain long, because their new mainline church uses the same unreliable concept of “clergy”, in the first place; same “sexist” NT canon, etc, etc.

Thus, the mainline keeps shrinking overall, despite individual exceptions.