World Synod: Catholic Church postpones women’s issue

Women remain excluded from the most important positions in the Catholic Church until further notice: they are neither allowed to become priests nor deacons, one level below. This is one of the results of the great world synod led by Pope Francis. The deliberations of more than 360 bishops and other representatives of the Catholic Church in the Vatican ended after almost four weeks with a statement that remained vague on key points. Reformers’ hopes of opening up were dashed.

The joint declaration – a text of 45 pages – was adopted with a large majority. The Pope then immediately approved it. Regarding the demands to be able to ordain women as deacons, as in other Christian churches, it simply says: “The question of women’s access to the diaconate remains open.” Nevertheless, there were almost 100 dissenting votes on this point.

The 87-year-old Francis had previously made it clear several times that he personally did not think the time was ripe. Ultimately, he alone decides on such questions. A deacon is allowed to do everything a priest is allowed to do – except lead a Eucharist and hear confessions.

Surveys in Germany repeatedly show that a large majority of believers demand access for women to church offices. Every year hundreds of thousands leave the church, partly because nothing is happening here. In other parts of the world, however, the Catholic Church continues to gain members, according to the latest figures. It now has around 1.4 billion believers worldwide.

Under Francis, European influence has declined. The Argentine native has been in office since 2013, as the successor to the now deceased German Pope Benedict XVI.

Vague final document reflects a wide range of opinions

The chairman of the German Bishops’ Conference, Georg Bätzing, described the formulation of the women’s diaconate as “timid”. “And I have to be honest, that makes me sad.” The world synod, which has been running since 2021 – for the first time with around 50 women who had the right to vote – nevertheless shaped a new way of being together and reflected the “globality” of the church in the 21st century.

Outside Europe, believers and especially bishops are sometimes much more conservative. Observers see this as a key reason why the final document is worded very vaguely: it must cover a wide range of opinions.

It is significant that reformers criticized the results just as much as conservatives. The German Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Müller accused the Pope of “avoiding a dogmatically clear answer” on the women’s issue. Conservatives believe it is incompatible with Catholic principles to ordain women as priests because Jesus was a man and only called men to be apostles. Other theologians point out that women certainly played an important role in Jesus’ life – especially by the standards of antiquity, when women were clearly subordinate to men.

German bishops disagree

The fact that the declaration allows for very different interpretations was also shown at the final press conference of the German bishops. The most controversial church policy project in Germany is currently the preparation of a synodal council in which bishops and so-called lay people – believers who are not ordained like priests – will discuss and make decisions together. This council is currently being prepared by a synodal committee.

While Bätzing viewed the text as a confirmation of the German course, the conservative Passau Bishop Stefan Oster set different accents. Oster, who, like Cologne Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki, is boycotting the Synodal Committee, said that the text aims to involve as many believers as possible in the decision-making process. However, as always, the decisions themselves would be made by the Catholic hierarchy – in other words: by the bishops. “It remains reserved for the hierarchy.”

Pope: “Always keep moving”

The President of the Central Committee of German Catholics (ZdK), Irme Stetter-Karp, also viewed the document as a reinforcement of the German path. She pointed out that at one point it was said that the particular churches of the Catholic universal Church could progress at different speeds. “It encourages us to continue on our path,” said Stetter-Karp to the German Press Agency.

The World Synod was considered one of Francis’ most important projects. There is no date for a new synod. It is unlikely that there will be any major turning points during the 87-year-old’s term in office. Even though Francis called on his church in his sermon in St. Peter’s Basilica to always keep moving: “To really live, you cannot remain sitting. Living always means: getting moving, setting off, dreaming, planning, being open to be the future.”