Release
date: May 30, 2013, Feast Day of St.
Joan of Arc
Contact: Janice Sevre-Duszynska, D.Min, (Media)
rhythmsofthedance@gmail.com,
859-684-4247
Bishop
Bridget Mary Meehan, sofiabmm@aol.com,
703-505-0004
See:
arcwp.org, bridgetmarys.blogspot.org
Celebration
of Priestly Ordination for:
Barbara
Anne Duff of Macon, GA, Barbara.Duff@cox.net,
478-718-0613
Joleane
Presley of Manassas, VA, joprsly@gmail.com,
410-900-3998
Celebration
of Ordination to the Diaconate for:
Mary
Collingwood of Cleveland, Ohio, mecreg6@yahoo.com,
216-408-4657
Marianne
Smyth of Silver Springs, MD, mtsmyth@comcast.net,
240-444-0781
Mary
Theresa Streck of Menands, NY, mtstreck@gmail.com,
518-434-2277
The
Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests calls on Pope Francis to embrace the
full equality of women in the church and world. Just as Clare and Francis were
partners in living out the Gospel with the poor and marginalized, we pray and
invite Pope Francis to do the same with women priests.
Today,
women priests continue to follow the tradition of women disciples living and
preaching the Gospel taught to them by Jesus. We are leading the Roman Catholic
Church into a new era of justice and equality for
women.
On
Saturday, June 22, 2013 at 1:00 p.m. Barbara Anne Duff (Macon, GA) and Joleane
Presley (Manassas, VA) will be ordained priests in the Association of Roman
Catholic Women Priests (ARCWP). Mary
Collingwood (Cleveland, Ohio), Marianne Smyth (Silver Springs, MD) and Mary
Theresa Streck (Menands, NY) will be ordained deacons in ARCWP. The presiding bishop will be Bridget Mary
Meehan of Falls Church, VA and Sarasota, FL.
The ceremony will take place at First Christian Church, 6165 Leesburg
Pike, Falls Church, VA 22044 www.fccfc.org (please consult for directions)
All are welcome.
Media
are invited to interview these women by email or phone. Respectful photo taking/videos during the
ceremony is acceptable.
The
candidates are theologically prepared and have many years of experience in
ministry.
Barbara
Anne Duff is a former Maryknoll sister, educator, Air Force Nurse and VA
Hospital Nursing Home administrator. “I am fulfilling my original call to
minister to those who are on the margins of society. We women priests are
working toward a renewed priestly ministry, supporting nonviolence and social
justice in our church and in the world.”
Joleane
Presley works full time as a Senior Chaplain at a rehabilitation hospital in
Maryland. She has her Masters of Divinity degree from Duke University and is
trained as a chaplain. “Working with people with disabilities and meeting their
spiritual needs has been a dream come true. Being ordained as a woman priest
brings all of these dreams full circle. God has called me from age seven to be a
priest and serve those who are hurting and ill. I believe that women who are
called are making a difference in this hurting world.”
Mary
Collingwood, wife, mother, grandmother, educator and outreach minister, has
served the church her entire adult life in diocesan offices, on parish staffs
and in Catholic schools and as a board member to various non-profit
agencies.
Marianne
T. Smyth has a Masters Degree in Counseling and four certificates from Global
Ministries in Theology and Scripture. A secular Carmelite for seven years,
Marianne was a caretaker for her elderly mother and worked with students with
learning disabilities and who were drug/alcohol dependent. She now ministers to those facing sickness,
dying and death.
A
former Sister of St. Joseph, Mary Theresa Streck earned an Ed.D. in Educational
Leadership. She is an artist and peace activist who is co-founder and director
of the Ark Community Charter School in Troy, New York, a school primarily
serving low-income families.
Women
priests are answering the call and our movement is growing since it began in
2002 with the ordination of seven women on the Danube. There are now 150 women
in our Roman Catholic Women Priests’ Movement in the world, including 100 in 30
states in the U.S. living and serving over 60 inclusive Catholic communities and
welcoming all to receive the sacraments.
According
to a recent CBS Gallup Poll, over 70% of Catholic in the U.S. support women
priests. There is no shortage of vocations as women are now saying “Yes” to this
call and are being ordained. In 2013, ARCWP will have ordained 13 women priests
and deacons. We have more than a dozen candidates who will soon begin
preparation for ordination.
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