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You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/may/12/pope-francis-consider-ordaining-women-female-deacons-catholic-church-commission
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| Pope Francis to consider ordaining women as deacons | Pope Francis to consider ordaining women as deacons |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Pope Francis has opened the door to female deacons in what could be a major shift by the Catholic church, which maintains a prohibition on women serving as clergy. | Pope Francis has opened the door to female deacons in what could be a major shift by the Catholic church, which maintains a prohibition on women serving as clergy. |
| Related: Pope praises women and lays out vision to reinvigorate Catholic church | Related: Pope praises women and lays out vision to reinvigorate Catholic church |
| The pontiff, who has previously ruled out the possibility of female priests, said he would appoint an official commission to study the issue, which required some “clarity”. | The pontiff, who has previously ruled out the possibility of female priests, said he would appoint an official commission to study the issue, which required some “clarity”. |
| While the remarks appeared to have been made off the cuff in response to a question before an audience of hundreds of nuns, Francis also indicated that it was an issue he had grappled with in the past. | |
| He said he had once inquired about the role female deacons had played in the early centuries of the church. “What were these female deacons?” the pope recalled asking a “good, wise professor” who had studied the issue. “Did they have ordination or no?” | He said he had once inquired about the role female deacons had played in the early centuries of the church. “What were these female deacons?” the pope recalled asking a “good, wise professor” who had studied the issue. “Did they have ordination or no?” |
| Related: I'm a Catholic feminist, and my church needs me more than ever | Kristina Keneally | Related: I'm a Catholic feminist, and my church needs me more than ever | Kristina Keneally |
| He then floated the possibility of constituting an official commission to study the question. “It would do good for the church to clarify this point,” he told the nuns. | He then floated the possibility of constituting an official commission to study the question. “It would do good for the church to clarify this point,” he told the nuns. |
| The appointment of women as deacons would greatly expand the role of women in the church. Deacons can perform many functions performed by priests, including saying mass, celebrating weddings, and baptising children. They are barred from giving communion or taking confessions. | The appointment of women as deacons would greatly expand the role of women in the church. Deacons can perform many functions performed by priests, including saying mass, celebrating weddings, and baptising children. They are barred from giving communion or taking confessions. |
| The church reinstated the role of deacon in the 1960s but restricted the role to “mature married men” over the age of 35. | The church reinstated the role of deacon in the 1960s but restricted the role to “mature married men” over the age of 35. |
| Although Francis has said that the “door is closed” to the possibility of women becoming priests – the Catholic church teaches that women cannot become priests because Jesus willingly chose only men as his apostles – he has also advocated expanding the role women within the church. | Although Francis has said that the “door is closed” to the possibility of women becoming priests – the Catholic church teaches that women cannot become priests because Jesus willingly chose only men as his apostles – he has also advocated expanding the role women within the church. |
| Related: Protesters urge pope to ordain female priests and stop 'legitimizing sexism' | Related: Protesters urge pope to ordain female priests and stop 'legitimizing sexism' |
| Francis’s comments are likely to fuel anxiety among traditional and conservative Catholics that the pope is seeking to push the church in a more liberal, progressive direction. | Francis’s comments are likely to fuel anxiety among traditional and conservative Catholics that the pope is seeking to push the church in a more liberal, progressive direction. |
| The pontiff also told the audience of nuns that the church needed to treat them with more respect, saying he has seen many times that sisters are made to do the “work of servitude and not service”. | The pontiff also told the audience of nuns that the church needed to treat them with more respect, saying he has seen many times that sisters are made to do the “work of servitude and not service”. |
| Should someone “ask you to do something that is more of servitude than service, you are courageous to say no!” he told the gathering. “Your vocation is for service, service to the church … but not of servitude.” | Should someone “ask you to do something that is more of servitude than service, you are courageous to say no!” he told the gathering. “Your vocation is for service, service to the church … but not of servitude.” |