Expert: Christopher Heren - 1/18/2011

Question
1.Is there any limitation for women in the Church?

2. Why is it that most of the higher officials in the Church are men? Are there any reasons about this?

3. What are the roles of the Priest?

4. About the proposal of ordaining women, what are the reactions of Roman Catholic Church?

5. Do you think they are entertaining the idea?

6. Is there any rule in the Church that women are not allowed to be priests?

7. In the lack of priest, is it possible that women can take-charge with the task of the priest.

8. Should women be priest?

9. Is it true that whatever the Pope said everyone should comply with it? May you give some examples about it?

10. Is there any situation that you’ve encountered that is against to the will of the Church? What is it?

11. What are the basic roles of women in our Church?

Answer
John,

This is not the easiest of all issues to cover.  As for the responses, they will be brief, and what they are answering would need to be discussed in more detail with several sources (the New Testament not withstanding).  This also depends on which Christian tradition you are referring to.  In Protestantism, women pastors are often allowed by the major denominations (liberal mainline) but not by other more conservative elements.  In Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy, they are similarly not allowed.  However, each tradition has a different view of the pastoral ministry and a different emphasis which colors this discussion.  I can give you my thoughts briefly for each point, and if you have more questions, we can work through them so you can better understand where I am coming from.

1.  Yes

2.  This depends on what one means by "officials."  Certainly clergy have authority, but so do godly women who teach by their example and support, even if they are not clergy.  Nuns in the East are called "mother," and the priests in the Orthodox Church (who can be married) have a special title for their wife: Presbytera (in the Greek tradition) or Matushka (in the Russian tradition).  Most likely this develops because the disciples Jesus chose were men, and since men were their successors, rules became universal regarding gender (see 1 Timothy and Titus where the requirements for clergy are "a man" and "the husband of one wife").

3.  The priest (or elder) is subject to the bishop (or overseer).  Both do sacramental functions such as leading in the liturgy and devoting their lives to service to the church, including teaching.  The bishop however is the main office as the representative of the Father, and from his person stem the other two (deacon as Christ and the priest as the Holy Spirit) all bound together in love.  In the Lutheran tradition, which is a sacramental Protestantism, the pastor is the main office, and he represents or is an icon of Jesus (which is why the more conservative denominations say it should be a man).

4.  While some in the Roman Catholic Church support the move, they are a relative minority and they use arguments from the liberal Protestants (as do those in the Orthodox Church).  The pope (at least the current one) will not do such a thing nor does he approve of it.

5.  Not seriously.

6.  Yes, 1 Corinthians 14:34 and 1 Timothy 2:11-15 (with the statement about child-bearing perhaps a reference to the Virgin birth and a higher status of Mary in the early church as the New Eve).  

7.  This depends on what is being talked about.  For what is required in the church, perhaps (as Deborah took over the requirements that were necessary of priests).  However, this is precious little and should not be looked at as an excuse simply to change the current rules.

8.  No

9.  No, I am not Roman Catholic and as long as he still claims to be the universal head of the church and the Vicar of Christ he not only retains the status of antichrist to the Lutherans and some other Protestants, he also cannot come back into union with the Orthodox Churches.

10.  Yes.  The use of condoms and other aids to prevent STDs in Africa.  The opinion on this recently changed, but the great evil of using condoms is less than the evil of rampant sexual promiscuity leading to STD epidemics.

11.  Lead by example, imitating the Mother of God in their submissiveness, purity, humility, example, and even teaching (though not in the church's liturgy).  They have provided funds for the church, writings, sayings, and guidance both to men and women.  All in all, they are held in honor and dignity, and should recognize that while men seem to have the "upper hand" in the clergy, the highest dignity ever bestowed on a human person was that given to the Virgin Mary who was not only the Mother of God but also the Queen of Heaven who intercedes for us as the Queen Mother (the one greater than Bathsheba) to her Son Jesus Christ (the one greater than Solomon).