My 15 yr old daughter just surprised me

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…by saying that she is unaware of any woman who is leader in the church locally, nationally or at the Vatican. She said she only heard and saw males representing the church. When she listens to Catholic radio she said the only time women were on was to talk about life issues.

There are plenty of women in our local parish and helping to run it but I guess they don’t get any publicity. I’m sure we can talk about humility and hiddenness but in this case I am concerned that she thinks women are invisible and the church doesn’t care about what 50+% of those in the pews have to say.
 
It’s too bad we don’t have another Mother Angelica around for your daughter to see. She was certainly not hidden for the several decades she was on air.
Or even another Mother Theresa making the news regularly.

Just tell your daughter we are currently having a shortage of strong visible church leader women, but there have been plenty of them throughout history. In addition to the above, we have had the great saints like St. Bridget of Sweden, Brigid of Ireland, Catherine of Siena, Teresa of Avila. Tell her to be the change she’d like to see in the world and become a strong Church leader woman herself.
 
In Australia here there is something called the Office for the Preparation of Women but I don’t know what they do on a practical sense.
Maybe your daughter might get some inspiration from Catholic/Christian you tubers or from the links below?
I know there’s one you tuber called Hannah Victoria.I don’t think she’s catholic but another denom but she seems quite balanced.
There are Catholic ones I came across from the below list but I’ve never watched their videos so can’t vouch for if they are moderate or “extreme minde” etc…

You might need to make your daughter aware that unfortunately mainstream media often only reports when something negative is involved or at most shows the Pope giving a speech at Easter but there are prominent women making a difference who (disappointingly!) aren’t given media attention, such as the Sisters who run Talithakum in Rome,an organization working to end human trafficking.

www.talithakum.info

Talithakum

www.talithakum.info www.talithakum.info

http://www.catholicaustralia.com.au/living-the-faith/women
https://lifedoesntgetmuchbetterthan...st-watch-youtube-channels-for-catholic-teens/
https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2019/04...Wmqn-BtBYaSEA9CNgsLQQBzsgfI3GnDXQIUmuqLVuKvx0
https://m.facebook.com/OPWWomenMatter
https://cruxnow.com/church-in-the-u...-praised-by-pope-to-meet-trump-at-the-border/
 
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Quite honestly I am sure there are plenty of women active in our parish and archdiocese that are doing amazing things for God and through his Holy Spirit. Unfortunately although she is at a local Catholic High School there is little mention of what women are doing.

Our local Catholic radio station is a good example. All the shows have men as the hosts and it’s rare to have a female guest or voice unless it’s a call-in show. The only time women host is for the Pro-Life topics. There is also a really good discussion show with a couple of local priests and a Catholic layman. There is one token woman on that show. The Catholic layman has the morning show and I think once a week his wife joins him.

I didn’t realise until she made that comment that women do go unacknowledged. I cannot think of a syndicated Catholic radio show that has a female host, unless it’s for the Pro-life cause.
 
Thank you, yes I have heard Teresa but I don’t think she is on our local Catholic radio regular lineup. The station owner is also at our parish. I think I will pray and perhaps approach him to ask for more female voices on the radio.

My daughter just said she never sees women representing the church and she could be onto something to be fair. I remember watching coverage of EWTN when a new Pope was being chosen and there were no women at all on their coverage.

I think we need to be careful not to alienate young women as they are the mothers of future Catholics (or not!).
 
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The Ursalines of New Orleans. They came from France ion 1727 and have been leading the people ever since.
 
You can listen live on your internet devices.

The Jen Fulwiler Show is on Sirus XM Catholic Channel
 
But what about lay women who look like and are doing the jobs of the millions of women in the pews? I have 3 teens, my eldest daughter is about to go to college and wants to be in the FBI, a detective or in business - she was a leader in High School, especially of retreats. The one who talked to me wants to be a doctor.

In the past women could often only persue education and leadership through being a religious sister but now women are in every walk of life. The church isn’t good at reflecting that, unfortunately.
 
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At our parish & school, the vast majority of both staff and volunteers are women.
 
While at our local Advent by Candlelight evening, one of our RCIA candidates made the comment how neat it was to realize the place of Mary - a woman - in the Church. I realize this this is a different take on your daughter’s observation, but worth a mention. Johnette Benkovic Williams has a program on EWTN - Women of Grace.
 
Catholic talk radio to me is not a good yardstick for “leadership”. Many people, including myself, don’t even listen to it. I like WAOB (We Are One Body radio), but it is operated by a religious order, primarily features Masses (by bishops and the Pope), homilies (by bishops, Popes, Cardinals and the like) and when not airing that, it is airing prayer programs and prayer reflections. The only “talk show” I have heard on there involves interviewing priests about stuff like why did they become a priest and other spiritual topics. There are women (both religious orders and secular) on there praying and they have at least one woman DJ/ host who just introduces the programs and talks a little bit to the listeners. I find this radio programming on WAOB to be edifying and helpful. I realize perhaps that is not your daughter’s preference to listen to at her age - I wouldn’t have liked it as a young person myself.

Talk radio to me is mostly just a lot of hot air and often it is pot stirring. I’ve yet to hear a talk radio host who could lead their way out of a paper bag.

Maybe take your daughter out and introduce her to women, perhaps right in the diocese, who are doing interesting things, and turn off the radio if it’s not providing useful programming for you and your daughter.

Or introduce your daughter on Youtube to some of the Steubenville sisters. They have some very dynamic ones. Sister Miriam Heidland for example, and there is another one I think who has an MBA and is a very good speaker. When I was at Catholic girls’ high school, I had great respect for some of the nuns (SOME, not all) even though all they were doing was teaching us girls. I’m not a lover of nuns or religious order members and my respect kinda has to be earned if you know what I mean, but these ladies were impressive. It’s too bad your daughter’s school doesn’t have more role models like that. Maybe I really did get a better experience at an all-girls’ school though at the time I didn’t see that as a blessing when I had trouble finding guys to date because I had no brothers to introduce me to guys and there were no guys at school.
 
I would also add that I think right now the Church is overemphasizing men because it is desperately in need of men to become priests, deacons and take on other leadership roles. There’s a bit of a fear that women are going to take over everything because frankly a lot of men are being lazy in their faith and not stepping up to do the tasks. I also think that a lot of the radio shows, etc are being driven by traditionalists who see the man as the one who goes out and earns the bacon while the wife is home minding the 6 kids and tending to “life” issues. Nothing wrong with that lifestyle if both parties are happy with it, but again this may not be the role model a young woman wants to see.
 
“Hot air” is how I see a lot of it too but I didn’t want to say it lol.
Doesn’t being on the radio/Tv/public spotlight just mean/equal having money and is money and influence necessarily a measure of “good fruit”?
It doesn’t necessarily equal to being a effective leader or that they were “elected” to be there.
Anyone with enough money or backing,male or female,can start a radio show.
 
Rozellelily said:
Doesn’t being on the radio/Tv/public spotlight just mean/equal having money and is money and influence necessarily a measure of “good fruit”?
It doesn’t necessarily equal to being a effective leader or that they were “elected” to be there.
Anyone with enough money or backing,male or female,can start a radio show.
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Yes, that’s how I see it too, especially when the person appearing is a lay person as opposed to a member of a religious order or priest who is likely not going to profit personally from their radio or TV appearances. Mother Angelica and Archbishop Sheen didn’t live some wealthy life from being TV personalities. Mother Angelica had to pay the costs of operating her TV network, and she also built a shrine and helped support her order. Archbishop Sheen sent donations he received to the missions (and got into a big dispute with the Archbishop of New York at the time because he wouldn’t give the Archbishop, who was living a wealthy and possibly questionable life, a cut of the money).

Many of these lay people, on the other hand, seem to be trying to build a career and support themselves and their families by enhancing their reputations as a speaker, apologist etc. I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, they may very well help bring souls to God. On the other hand, lay apologists and TV personalities are not “Church leaders” and often seem to have significant interest in feathering their own nests by becoming popular speakers on the lecture circuit, selling many copies of their books, or starting their own catechetical programs, Bible studies, other things that people have to pay them in order to be involved in. I generally don’t like to pay lay people for these things, although if it was a clergy or religious person I would not mind paying if I knew the money was going to support a shrine, a charity, an order, a diocese etc.
 
Through a woman Our Savior entered the world. If it wasn’t for Mary…
 
Yep Mary gave birth and then never showed up or influenced Jesus again.

Except that time in Cana…
 
As much as I love our lady I don’t think many lay male Catholics are encouraged to look to St. John as their only role model. We are 2,000 years later. It doesn’t need to be either/or. We can love Our Lady and ask for her help while also looking to contemporary women as role models.

I think actually the comments regarding lay apologists with a ministry may be relevant. Many of them (who I admire very much) are Protestant converts and often former pastors and ministers. So I think they are wanting to serve the Lord and the church and their model is a Protestant model: a ministry with talks and materials to purchase etc. There don’t seem to be many women who are using this model. Catholic Radio is often dominated by men with this style ministry. I think their work is wonderful and has born a lot of fruit. The thing is their experience is quite a minority in the church and so Catholic radio does not accurately reflect the church. Women are very active in parishes and in their faith life but they are almost invisible on Catholic media.

My daughter is not an individual who is looking to be a leader, and if she ever did it would be as a servant leader as she is involved in service and volunteering. But I don’t think there is anything wrong with seeing Catholic women as leaders.
 
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