The female diaconate probably not discussed in the CES – Swiss Catholic Portal

The Network of Women in the French-speaking Swiss Church met, on October 30, 2024, with Mgr Charles Morerod, Bishop of Lausanne, Geneva and Friborg (LGF). The question of the place of women in the Church, in the context of the orientations of the Synod, was mainly addressed.

“Lots of listening, a very warm welcome and good dialogue.” Marie-Christine Conrath, coordinator of the network, describes to cath.ch the meeting which took place at the bishopric of Friborg between the group of representatives and Mgr Morerod. It was not the first interview of this kind, but the conclusions of the Synod on synodality, which ended on October 26 in Rome, gave another tenor to the discussions.

The final document, which was directly approved in its entirety by Pope Francis, has indeed given the universal Church new directions. In particular, he reaffirmed the need for broader responsibilities for women and lay people, not closing the door to the female diaconate. The text also opened the way for greater autonomy of local Churches, in particular of episcopal conferences.

The female diaconate of Rome

On this basis, the representatives of the Network and the bishop outlined the prospects for development of the place of women and the laity, both within the diocese and the Church in Switzerland. According to Marie-Christine Conrath, Mgr Morerod clarified to the group which themes would or would not be likely to be discussed within the Conference of Swiss Bishops (CES). “It supposes that questions such as the participation of women and lay people in the liturgy, in particular the possibility for women to preach, could be debated among the bishops,” notes the pastoral agent in the canton of Neuchâtel. The same applies to the accession of women to leadership of communities and pastoral teams.

On the other hand, the question of the ordained female diaconate was seen as “too important to be decided by episcopal conferences.” The bishop of LGF thinking that such authorization could only come from Rome.

The fear of “tailor-made ministries”

“In any case, I welcome the openness and understanding shown by Mgr Morerod,” assures the Network coordinator. While recognizing that the bishop has only limited prerogatives in matters of reform, she regrets that things are not moving forward more decisively and quickly. “I was very doubtful about the preparatory document, which seemed to close a lot of doors. But the final document clearly gives signs of hope. It is extraordinary that the Pope approved it directly. I think the two essential points are the reaffirmation that baptism is the foundation of the Christian faith and that the baptized are not beneath the clergy. The autonomy given to episcopal conferences is also a big step forward. But now the Swiss bishops must act. The ball is in their court.”

The great fear of Catholic women is that we are moving towards “ministries specific to women”, that the diaconate will ultimately only be instituted and not ordained. “Under the guise of progress, the temptation certainly exists to once again confine women to separate roles, and thus to endorse the idea that women are ultimately different human beings.” (cath.ch/arch/rz)