Catholic by Design > Religious rulings for women inappropriate

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Religious rulings for women inappropriate in contemporary Western world

Read the article / show / issue that provoked me to write a letter and my response below that or go straight to my response

Date Posted on this Site

July 25, 2006

Publication

Hamilton Spectator

Publication Date

July 14, 2006

Published Content

Re: Discover section (July 8)

Your latest version of Discover inadvertently gave examples of the power of religious authority.

The photograph on the front illustrates the dilemma of Muslim women who want to swim or play sports ("Working out under cover") while following the instructions of the Prophet to totally cover their bodies and hair.

Then, in the article "Why Rome is dead against women bishops," we read that Pope Paul justified the gender ban on the grounds that Christ chose his apostles only from among men.

In each case, the ruling is based on the patriarchal, not to say misogynist, norms that prevailed in Middle Eastern societies one or two thousand years ago.

They are not appropriate to the contemporary Western world and only survive because they are invested with religious authority.

Gary Smith's review of The Crucible, in the same issue, describes its power thus: "Even in the incontrovertible face of hard evidence ... they cannot trust their hearts and minds to believe something alien to prescribed thought."

My Response Letter

Christians believe that Jesus is God, who, in the "fullness of time", became human so that we might be saved. To think that Christ chose only male priests because of the prevailing patriarchal norms is to believe that He made a mistake by becoming human two millenia too soon! This does not mean women and men are not equal; it means certain people are chosen by God for certain roles. Christ chose men who could imitate him, acting "in the person of Christ" (in persona Christi), in the sacrifice of the Mass.

The idea that only current thought is relevant is complete hubris. Truth is eternal, whether it was spoken by Socrates in 425 BC, Christ in AD 33, or Gandhi in 1946.

Jason Gennaro

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