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Witnesses
Iris Lorena Ortiz Arce
Vocation Promoter, San Jose, Costa Rica
June 2, 2021
“Our ministry as consecrated women is incredibly powerful, but some of us, who feel called to be ordained as deacons, could do even more than what we are doing now. Having served as a missionary in various places in Africa with no priests, I have seen there are many services that could perfectly be carried out by women deacons. The way to lead the community would be much more circular, synodal and domestic. The biblical and theological contribution of a woman is often more connected and more likely to penetrate daily life issues.”
Iris Lorena Ortiz Arce is a vocation promoter in San Jose, Costa Rica.
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Witness
“I was not raised Catholic but converted in my adult life. As a child, Mother Mary would appear to me often…I believe Mary appearing to me as a child who knew nothing about the Catholic Church was more than her wanting me to find Christ through the Church. I believe she came to me because I was meant to do more for the Church.”
Christina Kovar
Adult Faith Formation Leader, Chicago, IL
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Witness
“I felt seen in my call to pastoral care, to teaching, to preaching—just as clearly as my ordained colleagues are seen in theirs. I felt valued. Not invisible. Not dismissed. I don’t know what the future holds—for me, or for the role of women in the Church. But I know this: I have hope.”
Jolaine M.J. Liupakka, PMin
Coordinator of Middle School & Confirmation, St. Thomas Becket, Eagan, MN
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Witness
“If I were a deacon, I would have the support of other deacons and a community where I could draw strength through prayer and discernment. Women would have the privilege of speaking about Catholic social teaching from the ambo. I do believe women as deacons would renew the face of the Church.”
Beth Brinkmann Cianci
Volunteer with the Ignatian Spirituality Project, Boston, MA
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