Our journey to Santiago Compostela, Spain to ordain Christina Moreira was full of surprises and unexpected delays.
Mary Theresa and I were scheduled to fly together from Dulles but her plane was delayed in Albany, New York for hours. As a result, she missed the flight to Madrid. My dear brother Sean and sister-in-law Nancy offered hospitality in their home.
Then on the next day, Nancy dropped her at the airport. The plane took off and 3 hours later turned around to go back to Dulles because of technical problems. Later Mary Theresa found out that the plane had been hit by lightning! Then - finally- after midnight and more delays, the plane took off and landed in Madrid in mid- afternoon. However, it was too late to connect with my flight and thus, Mary Theresa missed her flight to Compostelo and had to get a hotel room to stay overnight. She finally arrived Sunday afternoon. We were delighted that she was with us. In spite of all delays and setbacks, she persisted and was on time for our review of the Altar Book in preparation for Christina’s episcopal Ordination.
Christina’s ordination was beautiful. Members of her local community and supporters from a wide variety of Associations attended. Bishop Christine Mayr-Lumetzberger RCWP traveled by car from Austria and Bishop Gisela Forster RCWP from Germany took 5 trains to participate in the Rite. It is customary to have 3 bishops at the ordination of a bishop in the Roman Catholic Church. I was the presiding bishop at the ceremony. Mary Theresa was the MC and bishop’s assistant.
Priests Jim Marsh ARCWP traveled from Albany, New York, and Belen Repiso ARCWP from Spain. Deacons Loan Rocher ARCWP from France and Maria Teresa RibeiroARCWP from Spain also participated in the Ordination Rite.
The news media covered her Ordination in Spain, Portugal and France. Newly ordained Bishop Christina received numerous calls from journalists and inquiries from women interested in the path to Ordination.
After the ordination Mary Theresa and I spent time vacationing in Spain. For the first several days, we traveled with our hosts and wonderful guides Victorino and Christina around the beautiful seaside and mountains of Galicia. The weather was perfect/ warm and sunny but not hot. Christina cooked a delicious dinner for us before we left for Madrid. We spent 6 days in Madrid and toured the ancient cities of Segovia, Ávila, and Toledo.
We met several people who helped us with directions and recommendations on our journey.
What a blessed time we had on our journey as we encountered the wonderful people of this beautiful land with its rich history and culture!
In 2002, three Catholic bishops ordained the first seven women priests; there are now more than 300.
They are excommunicated by the rules of the Catholic Church although they comply with the apostolic succession
SANTI RIESCO
Christina Moreira is a leading figure in the women's ordination movement within the Roman Catholic Church . Born in France but living in Galicia for over 30 years, she is an active member of the Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests (ARCWP), an organization that advocates for the ordination of women and aims to create inclusive Catholic communities . Moreira serves as a priest, celebrating liturgies and promoting the inclusion of women in all aspects of the Church's ministry.
Christina is also involved in other groups advocating for gender equality within the Church, such as Toutes Apôtres ("All Apostles" in France) and the Comité de la Jupe ("Skirt Committee", a feminist and Catholic association, also in France). Her work focuses on challenging the traditional exclusion of women from sacred roles and fostering a more egalitarian understanding of Catholicism. She is critical of clericalism, which she sees as a barrier to true equality, and calls for a rethinking of Church structures to be more inclusive and representative of all its members.
Christina and her companions were received by the Catholic Church's nuncio in France. FILE / EUROPA PRESS
Q: How is it possible for a woman to be ordained a priest within the Roman Catholic Church, given that, according to Canon Law, it is impossible?
A: There are ordinations within the Catholic Church because we are Catholics, therefore, we belong to this Church. We were baptized in this Church, in it we move and exist. And baptism does not expire; it is indelible and imprints character. Regarding the Canon Law in force today, it should be noted that it has only existed since the 19th century. Before that, there were traditions, customs, and unwritten rules.
“ Canon law only exists since the 19th century; before that, there was tradition, customs, and unwritten rules .”
This law states that only men can access sacred orders—diaconate, priesthood, and episcopate—in a manner lawful or authorized by law. But there were some inspired, intelligent, and courageous women who, in 2002, decided to gather together to ask some equally courageous and inspired bishops to ordain them. First as deaconesses and then as priests. The first ordination of seven women took place on the Danube in 2002. We now number more than 300, and we have communities all over the world.
"I am Catholic, Apostolic and Roman"
Q: This guarantees apostolic succession, because a Catholic bishop is the one who has presided over these ordinations.
A: Exactly. But it wasn't just one bishop, it was three. The thing is, we can't reveal their identities because we want to protect them. Apostolic succession is transmitted through the presence of duly consecrated Catholic bishops. We have our apostolic succession referenced and endorsed, because ordinations are always recorded before a notary and the apostolic lineage is established; otherwise, they wouldn't be valid. As I was saying, I am Catholic, apostolic, and Roman Catholic. And for me and my companions, this apostolic lineage is very important. If not, I would be in another tradition.
Christina Moreira considers herself a priest of the Roman Catholic Church. FRANCE PRESS
Q: And what does the official Church that has excommunicated them say?
“ We are automatically excommunicated along with child rapists and all kinds of abusers .”
A: Some of my colleagues received their official communication of excommunication, or whatever you want to call it. The following have fallen under different decrees promulgated by Benedict XVI. Now Pope Francis has reinforced this with an article in Book Six of the Code of Canon Law that states that we are automatically excommunicated along with child rapists and all kinds of abusers. They tend to lump us together. This is what the official Catholic Church says. Otherwise, in our communities, we serve the people, each of us works in our own area, and we live in peace with the local church.
Q: The 300 Roman Catholic priests are married, widowed, celibate… What is your case?
A: Well, I'm married. I have a daughter from a previous marriage that was annulled for obvious reasons. I remarried many years ago to a Catholic priest who decided to pursue this life project with me. We both take charge of the community, which is a small glimpse of what we would like the Church to be in our dream future. Our spiritual and religious commitments have nothing to do with whether or not we have a family of a certain shape or color. That has no bearing.
Q: I was going to ask you how your family is coping, but I understand you have their full support.
A: My husband is my most faithful ally, my partner in ministry, in life, and, frankly, I believe I am enjoying an absolutely privileged situation. It's a gift.
Christina Moreira presides over an outdoor liturgical celebration. CM PRIVATE ARCHIVE
Q: Where is your community located and when do you gather to celebrate the liturgy?
A: To celebrate life, the word, the Gospel, the breaking of bread in joys and sorrows, we gather as a community of Christians every Sunday at 12:00 in La Coruña, near Juan Flores, in the heart of the city.
Q: How many are there?
A: Yesterday there were eleven or twelve of us, I can't remember. Sometimes there are fifteen of us, and sometimes there have been more. It fluctuates. People are free. So when you can, when you need to. But yes, there are usually between ten and twenty of us.
Q: Well, Jesus started with twelve…
A: Yes, and some went wrong.
Clerical machismo
Q: What challenges have you faced as a priest in a traditionally male institution? Although early Christian communities don't seem to have been so sexist...
“ The role of women in the Church, from the first centuries, has been gradually erased and blurred .”
A: The first challenge is to confront that historical reality that hits all women hard when we become interested in this topic. It's to visit the catacombs of Rome and see that, from the first century on, women broke bread and prayed in public in a leadership role. It's there, in vivid color, on the walls of those ancient cemeteries that recorded life and death. It's to fully realize that the role of women in the Church, from the early centuries, has been gradually erased and blurred. The challenge today is to restore the visibility of women in the Church. Not just those of us who have more or less recognized ministries, but all of them: catechists, those who lead chants, those who manage the finances, those who keep baptismal registers, those who welcome people in churches, those who celebrate funerals... The variety is so enormous! The challenge is to make them visible and begin to create structures that are egalitarian, just, and, above all, loving and caring.
Pope Francis presides over the opening Mass of the 2021-2024 Synod. EFE FILE
Q: What would you say to people who think the Church is an institution with its own laws, and if they don't like them, they'll have to find another religion?
A: To begin with, the Church is not an institution. The Church is the family of the people of God, that is, of all baptized persons. The Church as an institution is merely a tool that allows us to manage and situate in time and space this great family of the people of God.
“ Let us remember that the Church supported slavery and it cost them a world to undo that rule .”
But the Church, above all, is a family of faith and heart. A family that adheres to the project of Jesus and his Kingdom. So, the institution, which is that tool, creates rules. But we must remember that those rules can change. They have changed in the past. Let's remember that the Church supported slavery and it took a world to undo that rule. In the past, the Church doubted whether women, Native Americans, or Black people had souls. The Church can change its rules, because that part of the "church" with a lowercase letter, which is the institution, can change because we, human beings, have created it. We have hope that God will somehow penetrate all those institutions and rules, that the Spirit will be there working and giving us the strength to change what needs to be changed because it is not fair. And it is not fair that half of all those people of God, who are the daughters of God, are kept away from preaching his Word, from announcing the Good News, from breaking bread, from reconciling communities, from bringing comfort... Because it is necessary. Because we are needed.
Christina Moreira with a protest sign in St. Peter's Square. CM PRIVATE ARCHIVE
Q: With this great 2021-2024 Synod, Pope Francis seems intent on renewing the Catholic Church. Has the issue of women's priesthood played a role? Because you attended the initial celebration and were detained by the police.
A: We know that women have spoken about ministries and equality. Now comes the second part of the Synod in October. At this point, it's known that the working document will not address the issue of women's ordination, and Pope Francis already announced, in an informal interview, that the diaconate for women, if it existed, would be without ordination. The whole issue now being raised is the privilege of sacredness.
“ The problem that is now being presented is that of the privilege of sacredness ”
The privilege of sacramental ordination, which, according to old dogma, transforms a person into an interstellar, super-holy, marvelous being, closer to God, God himself on earth. Which is absurd. This stumbling block against the sacredness of the priest is truly a privilege of men and must be reviewed because it is unjust. We are in the 21st century, and we must be able to debate it and unravel all that is impure and toxic in it for half of the baptized.
Q: Do you think the Catholic Church is afraid of women?
“ We would like to provide the DNA of Mary Magdalene, who had the courage to go to the tomb knowing that there were Roman soldiers there .”
A: The first bishop of the Church (Saint Peter)—on whom we founded this Catholic Church—had already betrayed his friend and Lord (Jesus Christ); he was overcome with fear. That fear is in the Church's DNA. And we would like to contribute another DNA. The DNA of Mary Magdalene, who had the courage to go to the tomb knowing that there were Roman soldiers there, deadly soldiers like those who had killed her Lord. That courage is what we want to instill in the Church. But yes, the feeling is that they are afraid of us. One cannot speak about the fear of others, but we can smell it. And that's what happened when I was arrested in Rome.
Christina Moreira wearing an alb and stole in St. Peter's Square. CM PRIVATE ARCHIVE
Q: What exactly happened?
A: We were actually shooting a film and doing a little experiment. I was dressed in the alb and stole to see how people would react. It was incredibly beautiful. All the reactions were positive. They asked me if I was really a priest, if I could celebrate Mass, and what it was like. Some people even asked me to bless them. Others took pictures with me. What you could see was that the voice of the people, which is the voice of God, was saying, 'Hey, it's happening now, it's happening now, it's about time.'
Q: It was in St. Peter's Square, right?
A: In St. Peter's Square, just after the opening Mass of the Synod. A police officer passed by and was bothered by it. A lot of them had passed by before. But this one was bothered by it and had a hard time accusing me of anything. He had to gather seven other police officers to find in the Italian Penal Code an old law that prohibits people from wearing anything other than clothes for walking around the streets. It's fear. They're afraid.
The Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests (ARCWP) behind a banner at the Vatican. ARCWP
Q: Would you like to send a message to Pope Francis regarding women's ordination?
A: I'm going to tell you something very clearly: listen to us. Those of us who are in this aren't here just for the fun of it, or for publicity, or because we like to be in the press. We're here because we've been called.
“ We would love to contribute in the most loving way to the growth of the Church and bring that courage in which we specialize .”
The women priests I know are living the fulfillment of an authentic, discerned vocation, and above all, one that has endured the crucible of suffering, waiting, patience, and faith. And we want to place these vocations at the service of our Church with love, affection, and respect. We just need you to listen to us and to be able to tell you what we are doing in our communities. We would love to contribute in the most loving way to the growth of the Church and bring that courage in which we specialize.
Q: Has Pope Francis never received you to listen to you?
A: No, never. He has received Episcopalian bishops and some Lutherans. He has also received Anglican bishops from Scotland, all of them members of other Christian families, but not us.
Q: It doesn't seem to fit well with this pope's efforts to unite the Christian churches.
A: Francis is having wonderful plans. From time to time we hear things, and other times we're surprised because we don't understand why he doesn't call us. We've told him this actively and passively. We send him messages through every channel. I've written to him several times and sent him a letter through the nuncio who received me in Paris. Not a wink, not a sign, not a reply, not a word. Nothing at all. What's wrong, is he afraid of us? Why does he receive so many people and listen to everyone except us?
Q: What would you say if you received them?
A: That we are here, that we would be a breath of fresh air to enter the Church now and that we can contribute our experience of these 22 years in our circular communities.
