The Portrayal Of Men And Women In The Catholic Church

For centuries, women have been perceived as secondary to men in all aspects of life, especially within the Catholic tradition. Catholicism, one of the largest denominations of Christianity, holds the belief that there is only one G-d, and that Jesus Christ is the divine son of G-d. This primarily male centric vision and rhetoric used to describe G-d is what has led to priests being solely male within the Catholic Church. Priests, one of the most revered religious leaders within the church, have been given the sacred power to serve, teach, and lead G-d’s people through their interpretations of the word of G-d. Women, however, have historically been forced to stay within the domestic sphere, perform household duties, and remain “silent” and “subordinate”

Instead of men and women being recognized as equals and having equal opportunities, women have been deemed as less holy, secondary, and subordinate to men within scripture. In fact, one of Jesus Christ’s apostles, Paul or Saint Paul, even declares how women are prohibited from teaching or having authority over men and are told to remain submissive, “I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet,” (Timothy 2:12). This rhetoric of asserting women as inferior to men is extremely impactful to how women are treated and valued within the Catholic Church. It is evident that scripture plays an enormous role in how women are treated within society and the church, a concept that feminist theologian Rosemary Ruether highlights within her analytical essay titled, “The Female Nature of G-d.” Ruether connects how the ways in which scripture portrays women directly correlates to how women are regarded in all aspects of society, as “women are regarded as relating to G-d only secondarily and through inclusion in the male as their ‘head,’” (Ruether 278). Similarly, Ruether touches upon the rhetoric of Saint Paul and how his prejudices against women within scripture have contributed to women being regarded as less holy, and thus unqualified for leading G-d’s people in any capacity. Saint Paul declares

According to the Women's Ordination Conference, one of the largest organizations fighting for women's ordination and full equality within the Catholic Church, ordaining women should not be determined on the basis of gender because “a priest's job is to serve the people of G-d,” (WOC). Gender should not have any relevance when it comes to priesthood, and seeing as both men and women have been created in G-d’s divine image, this means that “both may represent Christ as priests,” (WOC). Through expanding ordination to include women, the church would be solving a “severe worldwide shortage of priests,” (WOC). Over the past few decades, the Catholic population has been decreasing dramatically, and through excluding female ordination, it has led several churches without priests. Ordaining women has the potential to solve this crisis along with working towards a more gender inclusive environment within the Catholic Church. Similarly, there has been evidence of their being women priests, deacons, and bishops within early Christianity, so to allow the ordination of women today would not be going against early or traditional religious practices as so many may have previously believed. Finally, one may argue that priests hold a caregiving role, tending to G-d’s people, and in doing