Pope Francis: Women make ‘indispensable contribution' to society
(Vatican Radio) In his first Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii Gaudium, Pope Francis recognizes the “indispensable contribution” of women to society and underlines the “need to create still broader opportunities for a more incisive female presence in the Church”. “This presents a great challenge to pastors and theologians, who are in a position to recognize more fully what this entails with regard to the possible role of women in decision-making in different areas of the Church and Church life,” said Donna Orsuto, a professor of theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, citing the exhortation. “My hope is that it would become normative that women would be consulted, that women would be involved, that their gifts would be put at the service of the Church,” she commented. She underlined important distinctions the Pope makes in the exhortation in understanding women’s service in the Church in relation to the priesthood. First, she said, the Pope clearly states tha...