Why Women Priests’ Liturgical Rites Use a Theology of Blessing vs. a Theology of Atonement by Bridget Mary Meehan ARCWP

People who attend our liturgies for the first time often comment on the beauty of our prayers — prayers that emphasize God’s tender love and use inclusive language that affirms every person’s dignity. They notice how the words are spacious, gentle, and justice-oriented, unlike what they may have experienced in traditional church settings.

So I respond: what they are experiencing is not accidental, but intentional. Our liturgies are grounded in a theology of blessing, not a theology of atonement. We believe that God’s first and last word to creation is blessing, not condemnation; love, not fear. This choice shapes everything: how we pray, how we celebrate Eucharist, and how we live as a community of equals.

The liturgical practices of inclusive Catholic communities reflect a decisive theological reorientation. Instead of privileging a theology of atonement — reconciliation with God through Christ’s sacrificial death — these communities draw from a theology of blessing, centering on creation’s goodness, God’s indwelling Spirit, and the baptismal equality of all. This shift not only reshapes worship but reclaims an ancient Christian emphasis on life, inclusion, and Spirit-filled empowerment.


1. Atonement: The Traditional Framework

Classical Catholic liturgy and theology have long been shaped by atonement theories, especially Anselm’s Cur Deus Homo (11th c.), which argued that human sin required satisfaction only Christ could provide. Liturgically, this framework appears in penitential prayers, the language of unworthiness, and the priest functioning as mediator who re-presents Christ’s sacrifice.

Feminist and liberation theologians have critiqued this model: 

• Elizabeth Johnson notes that substitutionary atonement risks portraying God as a “punitive father demanding a violent satisfaction” and diminishes the life-giving dimensions of Jesus’ ministry and resurrection (She Who Is, 1992).

• Rita Nakashima Brock and Rebecca Parker, in Saving Paradise (2008), argue that for nearly a thousand years early Christians emphasized paradise, community, and resurrection life rather than crucifixion and appeasement.

• Joan Chittister similarly observes that liturgies shaped around guilt and atonement often reinforce patriarchal control rather than liberation (In Search of Belief, 1999).


2. Blessing: A Renewed Theological Vision

A theology of blessing shifts the center of worship from guilt to grace, from debt to gift. Rooted in the biblical witness — God’s original blessing of creation (Gen. 1:28), covenantal blessings, and Jesus’ Beatitudes — this theology recognizes the sacredness already present in humanity and the world.

Women priests’ liturgies embody this vision in distinctive ways:• Gratitude replaces appeasement. Eucharist becomes an act of thanksgiving (eucharistia) rather than a transactional sacrifice.

• Equality replaces hierarchy. The presider speaks as one within the assembly, affirming the Spirit present in all, not as a mediator above the community.

• Life replaces death as the central symbol. Resurrection, inclusion, and healing are celebrated as the heart of salvation.

Matthew Fox captures this shift with his phrase “original blessing,” reminding us that humanity is not primarily defined by sin but by divine belovedness (Original Blessing, 1986).


3. Why Women Priests Choose Blessing over Atonement:

• Pastoral Healing: Women, long scapegoated as “daughters of Eve,” are affirmed as blessed bearers of God’s image. Feminist theologian Elizabeth Johnson stresses that women’s dignity must be rooted in God’s original and enduring blessing, not in narratives of guilt.

• Ecclesiological Integrity: A theology of blessing aligns with Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza’s vision of the Church as a “discipleship of equals” (In Memory of Her, 1983).

• Prophetic Witness: Joan Chittister insists that blessing is empowerment — a recognition of God’s Spirit alive in people, especially those marginalized by institutional structures.

• Spiritual Anthropology: Richard Rohr frames blessing as humanity’s foundational identity: “We are not born in sin; we are born in blessing. Sin is forgetting this truth” (Falling Upward, 2011).

• Living Testimony: Our liturgies are celebrations of God’s lavish love where all are welcome, all are blessed, and all share in the prayers of consecration. In this way, we embody a renewed priestly ministry rooted in the radical equality of baptism.” Bridget Meehan, Living Gospel Equality Now, 2010).

• Blessing as Resistance: I also emphasize that blessing is a form of prophetic resistance: “Every time we bless bread and wine in inclusive communities, we are defying unjust laws that discriminate against women. Our blessings proclaim God’s justice, healing, and equality in the heart of a patriarchal church.” (Bridget Meehan, Living Gospel Equality Now, 2010).

4. Liturgical Praxis of Blessing

Liturgies demonstrate this theology of blessing through:

• Eucharistic prayers centered on gratitude for creation and God’s Spirit within all.

• Inclusive language that replaces clerical dominance with communal participation (“we bless,” “we give thanks”).

• Mutual blessing rituals, such as shared laying on of hands, affirming the Spirit’s presence in every participant.

• Co-presiding practices that dismantle hierarchy and affirm the baptismal priesthood of all believers.


These liturgies embody a profound theological correction. Salvation is not a transaction to appease God’s wrath but the awakening to God’s unceasing blessing.

 In choosing a theology of blessing over atonement, women priests recover a vision of the Church as an egalitarian, Spirit-filled, resurrected community. Their liturgical practice stands as a prophetic witness that the Body of Christ is incomplete until the blessing of women’s voices and leadership is fully celebrated.



References:

•Brock, Rita Nakashima, and Rebecca Parker. Saving Paradise: How Christianity Traded Love of This World for Crucifixion and Empire. Beacon Press, 2008.

• Chittister, Joan. In Search of Belief. Crossroad, 1999.

• Fiorenza, Elisabeth Schüssler. In Memory of Her: A Feminist Theological Reconstruction of Christian Origins. Crossroad, 1983.

• Johnson, Elizabeth. She Who Is: The Mystery of God in Feminist Theological Discourse. Crossroad, 1992.

• Meehan, Bridget Mary. Living Gospel Equality Now: Loving in the Heart of God. Crossroad, 2010.

• Fox, Matthew ,Original Blessing. Franciscan Press, 1986.

• Rohr, Richard. Falling Upward: A Spirituality for the Two Halves of Life. Jossey-Bass, 2011.