Ruth
and Ordination…..
On Friday, I awoke to a particularly disturbing news story. In
Queens, just a few miles from where I live, an unknown man splashed acid upon
the face of a woman, Alexandra Dyer, who was ordained a Roman Catholic priest in 20014 through Roman
Catholic Women Priests. At this time, the specific intent of the suspect
remains unknown. Even so, given the use of a weapon that’s been wielded
against many women who have broken traditional religious law around the world,
it is difficult not to speculate about the connection. An ordained deacon
myself, I struggled with those implications, wondering how to respond. Today’s
first reading is helping me to do just that…..
In the opening chapter, Ruth, a Moabite woman, makes the
surprising choice of accompanying her mother-in-law, Naomi, to her homeland
rather than staying in her own familiar territory, among her own people. Her
words of commitment are familiar:
“Do not press me to leave you or to turn back from
following you!
Where you go, I will go;
where you lodge, I will lodge;
your people shall be my people, and your God my God”
(Ru 1:15).
Probably it is that familiarity that interferes with our ability
to comprehend how radical it was then for a woman to make such a commitment to
not only another woman but an elderly one at that. After all, in doing so, she
risked a lifetime of poverty, given the fact that both women were widowed and
without sons. Why, then, did she do it, especially since Ruth was not an
Israelite herself? The most obvious reason - she was listening to her heart,
one open to the will of God. And so, in spite of Naomi’s protests, she
went. Once there, Ruth gleaned the fields of one of Naomi’s
male relatives, Boaz, in order to fulfill their needs.
As I read those words, I couldn’t help but
think of those of us who have refused to listen to the protests of others to
follow our own hearts’ responses to God’s
loving presence in our lives through seeking ordination as deacons, priests,
and even consecration as bishops. In spite
of the challenges we face in venturing into unknown territory where few other
Catholics have gone, we have journeyed on, longing only to tend the fields, one
could say, of God’s creation. Many of us have
established small church communities that often serve the most vulnerable among
us, just as Ruth dedicated her life to serving the vulnerable and embittered
Naomi. One striking difference between
us and Ruth exists - the reactions of the men who see us serve.
In returning home, Boaz sees
the young foreign woman in his fields. Rather than banishing her
immediately, he asks about her, and then speaks to her himself. Upon learning
her connection with Naomi, he reassures her that he has ordered the young men
in his fields to leave her alone, thus offering protection. Later, at mealtime,
he extends an invitation to her. This is
what he says:
“Come here, and eat some of this bread, and dip your
morsel in the sour wine” (Ru 2:14). And so, the text tells
us, she joined the reapers and ate until she was satisfied, even having some
left over.
How differently the Vatican has responded to us! Rather than
seeking to know we are - and then to converse with us to better know us - the
official Church has determined on its own that our actions and our apparent
underlying motives to be so malicious that we are to be excommunicated,
spurned, even. After all, anyone who supports us is to be excommunicated when
discovered. Unlike Boaz, the Church has extended to us no invitation to share a
meal of bread and wine. Neither has it offered us protection by eliciting
statements that clearly state we are to be respected, that, at the very least,
we are to be left alone as we tend our fields, our small church communities, in
spite of the theological differences that may exist between us. Rather, they
have remained silent, respecting Pope John Paul II who stated back in the 1990’s
that no talk regarding women’s ordination was acceptable. That
silence has proven to be not only cruel, but harmful.
For one, many of us who maintain blogs and websites cannot escape
the malicious words of people who disagree with us. Like many other on-line
trolls, these people do not simply argue our perspective, they resort to
name-calling and worse, even while identifying themselves as Catholic or Christian.
As one example, months ago, I had to stop replying to stories about ordination
because I grew so weary of being told that I would be going to hell (and worse)
for trying to take people from the one, true church. That, however, may have
been proven to be rather inconsequential given yesterday’s attack. If
that man did target Alexandra due to her priestly status, what was it that he
saw in her loving service to her community? Disobedience? Audacity?
Impropriety? Evilness? What was it that convinced him that it was his right to
punish her so harshly? Of course, to do such an heinous act is a sure indicator
of mental instability, but yet….. but yet, questions must be
asked.
Could he have possibly come to believe that due to the Church’s
excommunication of we women that we are not worthy of any respect? Could he
possibly have thought that since the Church claims only to act according to God’s
will that God wants us women to be so spurned and rejected? And then, in taking
it even further, did he become so obsessed with our apparent willingness to
disobey not only the Church but also God that he decided to take it upon
himself to punish whom he could? Let me be clear here: I do not blame the
official Church for this attack - and I know the perpetrator’s
intentions are not yet clear - but yet,
given the fact that those in the Vatican continually insist that they and only
they rightfully know and communicate the will of God, neither do I think they
can continue to extend their silence.
And so, this is what I ask - no - this is what I demand:
First, Like Boaz in this beloved story of Ruth: Seek to know who
we are. Listen to those we serve; invite us for a meal of bread and wine. Allow
us to explain our call for ourselves. Do not presume to know our intentions and
motives.
Second, Act as Boaz did: SPEAK UP, telling your faithful to leave
us alone as we serve those in our communities.
Third: Note this final point from the story of Ruth:
A second time, in her story, Ruth breaks convention when she lies
at the foot of Boaz’ bed at night. Again, rather than
sending her away for such audacity, Boaz sees in her act only goodness, the
last proof he needs of her loyalty. It is then that he tells her that he will
do what he must to secure her hand in marriage, a marriage that, the last
verses of the book tell us, allowed for the Messianic line of David to
continue. With this in mind, this is what must be done:
The Church - for its own future and legacy - must stop denying
women full inclusion in the Church. They must come to see that it is only
through the full integration and union of all people within its community,
leadership and ministry, that the Church will truly flourish. Only through the
union of all - and especially through the resounding “Yes!”
of each - may the promise of Christ be fulfilled.
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