The role of women in the church

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Mrs_Sally

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From Pope Francis’ Wednesday audience:
This is beautiful, and this is the mission of women, of mothers and women, to give witness to their children and grandchildren that Christ is Risen! Mothers go forward with this witness! What matters to God is our heart, if we are open to Him, if we are like trusting children. But this also leads us to reflect on how in the Church and in the journey of faith, women have had and still have a special role in opening doors to the Lord, in following him and communicating his face, because the eyes of faith always need the simple and profound look of love. The Apostles and disciples find it harder to believe in the Risen Christ, not the women however! Peter runs to the tomb, but stops before the empty tomb; Thomas has to touch the wounds of the body of Jesus with his hands. In our journey of faith it is important to know and feel that God loves us, do not be afraid to love: faith is professed with the mouth and heart, with the word and love.
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Sounds a lot like MULIERIS DIGNITATEM. 😉
 
In particular, this line stands out to me:
In our journey of faith it is important to know and feel that God loves us, do not be afraid to love: faith is professed with the mouth and heart, with the word and love.
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Tomster said:
Seriously, though, I have always believed that there is a special place in Our Lord’s Sacred Heart for all mothers. And the reason is because they all said “YES !” to life.
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Remember, not all women are mothers, however. 🙂
 
Limosa said:
Thank you.
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👍

I know the marginalization is not meant maliciously. More out of “not thinking it though”, but it does exist.

And being marginalized hurts. It’s a form of isolation. 😦
 
Marie5890 said:
LOL… 😃
God bless you and your wife . 😃
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Thanks for the blessings. I take 'em when I can get 'em. Wifey says I need all the help I can get. Really, and she’s usually right.

Back to the original post, though, it got me thinking about all of the wonderful women God has put into my life. The list is long and grace-filled. His mother tops the list.
 
Marie5890 said:
Remember, not all women are mothers, however. 🙂
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All women posess the potential for the virtues of motherhood. Witnessing these virtues in a woman, whether they are an actual mother or not, is one of the most beautiful things anyone can ever witness.

All the women of the Old Testament - Judith and Rachel and Esther and all the others - are our example. Mary is the primier example. These were strong women, fearless when even the men gave up, ran away and hid.

The story of Judith should be studied by every Christian. The men put God on a timeline and were going to give up if God didn’t act within five days. Judith remained faithful to God’s commandments in the midst of ovewhelming odds, walked straight into the enemy camp and through her femininity she single handedly saved all of Israel.

-Tim-
 
TimothyH said:
All women posess the potential for the virtues of motherhood. Witnessing these virtues in a woman, whether they are an actual mother or not, is one of the most beautiful things anyone can ever witness.

All the women of the Old Testament - Judith and Rachel and Esther and all the others - are our example. Mary is the primier example. These were strong women, fearless when even the men gave up, ran away and hid.

The story of Judith should be studied by every Christian. The men put God on a timeline and were going to give up if God didn’t act within five days. Judith remained faithful to God’s commandments in the midst of ovewhelming odds, walked straight into the enemy camp and through her femininity she single handedly saved all of Israel.

-Tim-
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I do understand what you are saying, and I agree.
Just remember that there are some women, who due to medical conditions remain children intellectually, so even their witness is different than the witness to motherhood.

Their witness is to simplicity and child-likeness. Not motherhood.
 
TimothyH said:
The first words in the Rule of St. Benedict are.

Listen my son. Listen with the ears of your heart.

-Tim-
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How true! He also said to work, pray and study. These are same things my wife has been telling me from day one. :okpeople:
 
Marie5890 said:
I do understand what you are saying, and I agree.
Just remember that there are some women, who due to medical conditions remain children intellectually, so even their witness is different than the witness to motherhood.

Their witness is to simplicity and child-likeness. Not motherhood.
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I’m afraid no one alive could construe my witness as either simple or childlike! 😃 But God calls women to far more than that. As per Pope Francis’s homily, the women at the tomb are being honored as passionate believers, joyful disciples, as “following him and communicating his face,” and as stubborn and insistent as they bring the extraordinary news to the other disciples. There’s quite a backbone in there!

They don’t call Mary Magdalen “apostola apostolorum” (apostle to the apostles) for nothing.
 
Marie5890 said:
I do understand what you are saying, and I agree.
Just remember that there are some women, who due to medical conditions remain children intellectually, so even their witness is different than the witness to motherhood.

Their witness is to simplicity and child-likeness. Not motherhood.
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During The Year of the Priest, my daughter and I enrolled in a program called “Spiritual Motherhood”. It is a very simple program to encourage prayer for priests.

Here is the document about it: usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings/vocations/parents/upload/spiritual-maternity-congregation-fo-clergy.pdf
Independent of age or social status, any woman
can become a mother for priests. This type of motherhood
is not only for mothers of families, but is
just as possible for an unmarried girl, a widow, or
for someone who is ill.
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A short daily prayer for priests (or others) is well within the capabilities of almost any woman or girl. I do think that there is something very specific about the love shown by a woman (female) that is different than that shown by a man, a difference in kind not necessarily intensity, but it can be noticed even between young children.
 
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