Behold the Mother Who Comes to Us: Juan Diego’s Unveiling, Our Awakening
This week, as we prepare to celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe on December 12, the Mother who gathers all the peoples of the Americas under her mantle, we find ourselves reflecting on the newly released Petrocchi Commission report on women and the diaconate. You can read our statement here.
In moments like this, we remember that discernment in the Church does not unfold in headlines alone. It unfolds on holy ground — in the encounters, questions, hopes, and lived experiences of God’s people. That is where we at Discerning Deacons continue to place our attention and our trust.
The Commission’s summary is one step on a much longer journey. It raises important questions and even calls for wide-ranging study on the diaconate itself — a sign that the Church is still seeking clarity and listening for the Spirit. There is much in the report that warrants deeper explanation, especially how testimonies from women in ministry were gathered, interpreted, and weighed, and how this process will be shared transparently with the People of God.
Some parts of the report feel contradictory or seem to diminish the real, Spirit-filled diaconal service women are already offering in so many communities. Yet this does not close the discernment. Far from it. The global synodal process has made clear that the question of women’s access to diaconal ministry remains open and needs to continue.
And so we receive this moment not as an ending, but as an invitation—one that echoes Our Lady’s gentle but insistent call at Tepeyac.
During our own synodal pilgrimage to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City in 2022, we were deeply moved to discover the Marian dimensions of the diaconate — rooted in Mary’s Magnificat, which sings of God’s preferential option for the humble, the poor, and those on the peripheries. A diaconate shaped by that song naturally sends us outward in service, hope, and solidarity.
At the time we wrote: The diaconate is a ministry for the poor and for the earth. The diaconate is a ministry of bridge building through listening and creative response.
As we honor La Morenita this week, we invite you to spend time with a story that has shaped our ministry. You can read and/or revisit our pilgrimage report here which we submitted as a contribution to the Synod’s Continental Stage, together with the Women and Ministeriality Core Group of the Ecclesial Conference of the Amazon (CEAMA).
Just as St. Juan Diego discovered his vocation through encounter, we trust that the Church, too, is discovering — slowly, humbly — how God is calling all the baptized to serve in our time. We remain grateful for every person who is helping the Church listen more deeply. And we stay committed to walking this path in hope, dialogue, prayer, and mission.
Our Lady of Guadalupe still whispers to us today:
“Am I not here, I who am your mother?”
Yes. She is with us.
And she is still guiding the Church toward the future God desires for our one human family.
With Advent Hope,
Ellie and Casey
Co-Directors
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