Vatican Police Ask Women Priest Campaigners to Leave/CNN

Erin Hanna, director of Women's Ordination Conference/USA
on right. (photo courtesy of Erin Hanna/used with permission of WOC)

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/europe/06/08/vatican.city.women.priests/

By the CNN Wire Staff

June 8, 2010 2:44 p.m. EDT

"Vatican City (CNN) -- Activists campaigning for the Catholic Church to ordain women as priests were asked to leave the Vatican on Tuesday. They argue that women in the priesthood could have helped lessen the impact of the child abuse scandal sweeping the church...

"If women and children were respected -- and that includes if they respected us enough to ordain us -- then that would set a different tone," said Mary Ann M. Schoettly."

"Any abuse of children or women or the pedophile crisis itself probably would have been mitigated," she said..."

"Schoettly rejects her excommunication and acts as a priest for a congregation of 40 to 70 people, she said. She has performed baptisms, and will officiate at her first wedding next month, "she said."

"The Catholic people have accepted us. Many priests accept us," she said of women priests, adding that there were now more than 100. "We are not going away," she said."

CNN's Hada Messia contributed to this report.