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Monday, April 04, 2005
Oledan: Structure
By Radzini Oledan
Spice of Life
CATHOLIC faithfuls mourn the death of its leader, Pope John Paul II who died due to a long debilitating illness.
He was considered as a great leader "who exercised warmth with moral power and a call to care for the poor."
In recent years, one of the controversial stance and pronouncement by Pope John Paul II was his apology for the "mistakes of the past."
During a homily in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, the Pope included an apology to the historic treatment of women "who are too often humiliated and marginalized"; to contempt for other cultures and religious traditions; and to hatred for society's weakest members.
He also asked pardon for the "divisions among Christians, for the use of violence committed in the service of truth and for attitudes of mistrust and hostility assumed towards followers of other religions."
It was an unprecedented step of publicly confessing the sins of the church.It acknowledged that the church has at times betrayed the gospel by using violence in the service of truth, that it has sinned "against the dignity of women and the unity of the human race," and that it has not always stood in solidarity with the poor and oppressed.
Pope John Paul II's sweeping acknowledgement of errors by the Roman Catholic Church over 2,000 years may not have been as comprehensive as it could have been.Nevertheless, it was a remarkable statement that sets a constructive tone for the future and invites reflection.
For one, the Church needs to recognize that its unequal treatment of women has worldwide effect as it permits cultural structures to continue their own subordination of women.
However, to truly act to prevent violence against women, the Church needs to actively and aggressively pursue new structures that recognize the full humanity of women and invite all men and women to be members of, not just belong to, the Church.
The Catholic teaching often refers to adequate opportunities for women to participate in the life of the Church but this array of opportunity is not adequate if it does not include decision-making roles in Church activities. Currently, women are rarely consulted, and never have a voting role in Church decisions or the formation of doctrine.
The full participation of women in all structures of the Church is necessary for the Catholic Church to give full witness to the gospel. Women are equally involved in the ongoing tragedy of sin and the mystery of grace, equally called to mission in this world, equally destined for life with God in glory.
Oftentimes, Catholic nuns who equally work tirelessly and dedicated their lives to Christ in providing education, healthcare and social services are under-utilized and under-respected.
Through their training, experience and devotion many are equipped to deliver a sermon, celebrate a baptism, celebrate eucharist, bless a marriage, and administer the sacrament of healing for the sick.
Yet, the Church persists to hold that only men can be ordained as priests.
The role of women in today's Church places them in a position of being owned by the Church. In this respect, it endorses discriminatory practices in many cultures, which allows women to be owned and dominated by men.
The Church then functions as an agent of oppression, and fails its mission to give witness to Christ.
In our Catholic lectionary, readings that portray women as positive role models are largely missing from the liturgy. Women are also largely unrecognized as canonized saints.
Consider this: more than 75% canonized saints being male. Original canon criteria emphasized clergy, education, academia--the persons who devised the rules were honoring themselves. This is in contrast to the emphasis on purity for women to be canonized.
When reading their stories, female saints were most often young girls who were pledged to marry a nobleman but refused. Their lives are interpreted as models because of their fight for virginity, not their fight for dignity.
The Catholic tradition has taught that the female body is a source of evil. Women are described as harlots, bloody, and corrupt. Redemption is found through silence, submission, virginity and childbearing.
This tradition trains women to be controlled, instead of partners. At the same time, it teaches men that it is appropriate to dominate others.
These are the current challenge for the Catholic Church and the next Holy See. For God is not just a He. The Bible use a variety of images to describe God: as a mother, father, companion, beloved, friend, advocate, liberator, king, dairymaid, shepherd, farmer, laundress, potter, fisherman, midwife, merchant, teacher, nurse, homemaker, angry mother bear, protective mother hen, giving birth to the world, giving life to the world, light, water, fire and rock.
The Catholic Church hurts all Catholic men and women when the full humanity of women is not recognized and made a reality. The Catholic Church has to work hard to change structures and to do better. We need to do better.
For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here. (April 4, 2005 issue)
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