"After Vatican’s Rebuke of Nuns, Time to Hear Mary’s Voice in Catholicism" by Lisa Miller/Washington Post

"Imagine the fury of the men of Galilee when a young, unmarried girl showed up in their village pregnant. They must have talked about punishments. Stoning — a legitimate penalty, condoned by Deuteronomy — would have been appropriate, although the more compassionate among them might have suggested something gentler: ostracism or banishment.
If the girl had been allowed to speak for herself, which she probably wasn’t, she might have tried to explain. The Gospels testify that something supernatural happened while she was out of doors; she had an encounter with an angel. In that case, who would have believed her? Historians put forth other theories: a rape, a lover. Those explanations would have assured her guilt.

In Luke’s Gospel, the girl with the commonest name of the time — Mary — spends the first several months of her pregnancy out of town with a cousin. The Gospel of Matthew suggests that Mary’s condition made her “a public disgrace.” Joseph agrees to marry her anyway.

When I see that a department of the Vatican, in Rome, has rebuked a group of American nuns for “radical feminism” and for speaking out of turn and has called in a man — a superior — to set things right, I think about Mary. When I see American bishops wanting to make rules about sexuality and contraception for ordinary people, I think about Mary.A woman is at the very center of the Christian story, yet that story has been told and controlled for millennia by men...."

Bridget Mary's Reflection:
Mary's Prayer, the Magnificat, reflects the liberating activity of God who is always acting on behalf of the poor and the oppressed in our world. Her hymn of praise found in chapter 1 of Luke is a critique of the dominator, patriarchal model used by political and religious leaders to subdue and oppress God's people. Now in this latest deplorable action by the Vatican, the take-over of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, we see the "Fathers know best" approach in action. The smart money is on the triumph of the nuns over the hierarchy!
 I believe that Mary, first disciple and loving mother, is supporting the nuns and all women, including women priests, on our journey to live justice and equality in the church and world. She taught her son well. For centuries, the church practiced a devotion to Mary, as the first priest- She was the first one who could say "this is my body, this is my blood!" In our struggle for human rights for all, especially the poor and marginalized, Mary is our role model, guide and cheer-leader. Our inclusive Catholic community, in Sarasota, Florida, bears her name: Mary Mother of Jesus Catholic Community.