Are Women "Secondary" in Catholic Church?

[cbayer]

http://www.religiondispatches.org/dispatches/elizabethdrescher/6901/are_women__secondary__in_catholic_church/


March 11, 2013 12:07am
Post by ELIZABETH DRESCHER

We might not be surprised to learn that Canadian Roman Catholic cardinal Marc Ouellet, a leading candidate to fill the See of Saint Peter, sees the concerns of women in the church as “secondary.” In a recent interview with the CBC, Ouellet made clear that the second-class status of women in the Roman Church would not change were he to become pope.

“Obviously these questions [about the role of women in the church] are, have their importance,” he told the CBC, “but it is secondary, you know, and it has been always secondary.”

As International Women’s Day this year coincides with the gathering of cardinals in Rome to elect a leader of the oldest gender-biased religious tradition in the West, it seems worth considering how welcome women really are in Christian churches across the denominational spectrum. As mainline churches continue to decline in overall membership, Americans believe the Catholic Church is out of touch, and as the religiously unaffiliated continue to grow in number, how women—the majority of active church-goers—experience the church is hardly a secondary concern. Gendered church language seems as good a place to start as any.

The liturgies of most churches are lousy with sexist godtalk. This is the case well beyond the limited texts in which, arguably, tradition and aesthetics make make gender changes difficult. First on the list would be biblical texts, of course—especially perhaps the Epistles from the Apostle Paul, a historical person who, though he famously insisted that there was “no male nor female” in the Christian community, nonetheless addressed said community as though they were comprised of only one, normative gender. Alright. The language is historically gendered. Let’s give one to history and tradition, however sexist it might be.

more at link

[winterpark]

1. Women are secondary in almost every organized religion and culture based on religion. My observation

[aristocles]

2. I agree, but partially

Women are secondary in every religion arising in patriarchal societies. Semitic (Hebrews and Arabs), Greek, Roman, Scandinavian, Slavic, Indian.

Perhaps others can provide additional examples?

Is there any religion where women are not secondary?

[TygrBright]

3. Wicca n/t

[cbayer]

6. Many denominations have worked to remove sexist language from their

liturgy, and have also worked to level the playing field for women.

As the article points out, these include Episcopal, Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, and United Church of Christ (UCC/Disciples) denominations who "have all affirmed inclusive language".

[okasha]

7. Women are secondary

in every social institution based on patriarchy, whether that institution is religious or secular.

Women are not secondary in most Native American religions.

[nonoyes]

4. Isn't that like asking "Is the Pope Catholic?"

Or does a bear, well, you know what I mean.

[edhopper]

5. "Secondary"

gives them far more importance than the Church actually gives them.