“I know there is great hunger for the sacraments, and I believe women deacons could help the Church significantly in much-needed sacramental ministry. Further, I believe having women preach the Word would help the gospel be more accessible and spiritually fruitful to a greater percentage of the population.”
“This project is helping our Church to discern how the extensive ministry of women could be enriched and graced in a new way through their ordination as deacons. It would bring a new degree of official recognition to their indispensable role in the Church.”
“I am a witness to the powerful ministry of women in Catholic health care and beyond. Let’s support Pope Francis in this important discernment process. Ordaining women to the diaconate would dramatically enrich the sacramental ministry of the church.”
“Restoring women to the diaconate would enable many more Catholic communities around the world to be nourished by gifted women breaking open the Word.”
“Our Church would be greatly enriched by inviting women into high-profile leadership positions. The lack of doing so does not express a welcoming attitude toward women in the Church.”
“The restoration of women to diaconal ministry is a way for us to witness to the Holy Spirit at work in the world and to faithfully respond to the Spirit’s promptings as a community.”
“For years, the Church has been researching and discerning the role of women in the diaconate. As soon as St. Paul VI renewed the diaconate in 1967, the question was raised by bishops, and those discussions have continued under every pope since. Pope Francis has intensified the process through two Papal Commissions. Discerning Deacons is supporting the Church’s discernment in a prayerful way, much like the early ‘deacon circles’ that led to the renewal of the diaconate at Vatican II.”
“Women have undertaken the Church’s diakonia or diaconal ministry from the very beginning as attested in the New Testament, Patristic writings and other sources. Some held the title of ‘deacon’ or ‘deaconess’ through a formal liturgical rite. Throughout the centuries women have engaged in diaconal ministry in myriad, competent and often heroic ways. Recently women have asked the Church to explore the restoration of women in the diaconate in service of the Church’s mission. Discerning Deacons is a timely forum for listening to voices in the Church and advancing this discussion.”
“I heard God’s voice in the depths of me saying serve like this.”
“After seven years of formation, the men were ordained, and I received a certificate.”
Copyright All Rights Reserved © 2021 Discerning Deacons
Discerning Deacons – 3710 Shannon Road #51879 – Durham, NC 27717
For press or media inquiries, contact comms@discerningdeacons.org
This is the hub where we share relevant news, events and opportunities to participate in the work.
*We will send the newsletter only once each week, and we will never share or sell your information.
