Jesus shattered religious barriers by welcoming women as disciples, engaging them as theological conversation partners, and entrusting Mary of Magdala with the first proclamation of the Resurrection—therefore, the Church needs women priests to remain faithful to his example of radical inclusion.
From the beginning, Jesus modeled a discipleship of equals. He received the anointing of a woman and declared that her act would be remembered wherever the Gospel is preached. He taught Mary of Bethany at his feet—a posture reserved for male disciples. He revealed his identity as Messiah to the Samaritan woman and commissioned her, in effect, as the first evangelist to her people. In a culture that restricted women’s public religious authority, Jesus expanded it.
The question before the Church is simple: will we continue his inclusive practice?
As a bishop in the Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests, I have witnessed the Spirit alive in women who are called to priestly ministry. Our movement began in 2002 as a renewal within the Roman Catholic Church. We love our Church. We stand in apostolic succession. We celebrate Eucharist in inclusive communities where all are welcome at the table. Women’s ordination is not rebellion; it is fidelity to Jesus’ vision of a community rooted in equality and mutual service.
1. Faithfulness to Jesus’ Inclusive Discipleship
Jesus did not establish a caste of sacred males. He formed a community of disciples. The Gospels name women among his followers. They funded the mission. They remained at the cross when others fled. They were the first witnesses to the empty tomb.
If Jesus entrusted women with the Resurrection—the heart of our faith—how can we deny women the sacramental proclamation of that same mystery?
Priesthood is not about biological resemblance to Jesus. It is about embodying his compassion, his courage, and his prophetic love. Women can image Christ because Christ’s humanity is shared by all humanity.
2. The Church Needs the Full Image of God
When the symbol at the altar is exclusively male, the community’s image of God narrows. Symbols shape consciousness. If sacred authority looks only like men, then maleness becomes unconsciously equated with divinity.
Yet God is Mystery beyond gender. Scripture offers maternal and feminine images of the Divine alongside paternal ones. Expanding sacramental leadership to women expands the Church’s experience of God.
When women preside at Eucharist, preach the Word, and anoint the sick, the Body of Christ sees itself more fully reflected. The symbol system begins to heal.
3. The Church Needs Justice to Be Credible
The Church proclaims the dignity and equality of women in society. To exclude women from ordination while preaching equality creates a painful contradiction. Baptism is our foundational sacrament, and in baptism there is no hierarchy of worth.
Women already serve as theologians, pastors in practice, spiritual directors, chaplains, and leaders in nearly every dimension of ecclesial life—except sacramental leadership. The exclusion is not about ability; it is about structure.
For the Church to be credible in its call for justice in the world, it must embody justice within its own structures.
4. The Church Needs a Renewed Model of Priesthood
The crisis facing the institutional Church is not simply about a shortage of priests; it is about clericalism and power. Jesus washed feet. He did not claim privilege. He redefined greatness as service.
In our communities within ARCWP, we seek to live this servant model. Leadership is collaborative. Decision-making flows from communal discernment. The Eucharistic table is open. LGBTQ+ persons, divorced and remarried Catholics, and those long excluded find welcome.
Women’s ordination is not only about inclusion; it is about transformation—from hierarchy to partnership, from pyramid to circle, from domination to shared responsibility.
5. The Church Needs to Listen to the Spirit
Throughout history, the Spirit has led the Church beyond its comfort zones. What once seemed impossible becomes grace. The sensus fidelium—the lived faith of the people—has evolved. Many Catholics already recognize women’s calls to priesthood.
Our ordinations are acts of prophetic obedience. We stand in apostolic succession through a bishop in valid orders who courageously ordained the first women bishops in our movement. But even more deeply, we stand in continuity with Jesus’ practice of inclusion.
Rooted in Hope, Rising in Love
The Church needs women priests because fidelity to Jesus requires it.
When women stand at the altar, little girls see their own sacred worth reflected. When women preach, new metaphors for God emerge. When women serve as bishops, structures begin to shift toward shared responsibility. When women break bread in inclusive communities, Eucharist becomes what it was always meant to be—a sign of radical belonging.
This is not about replacing men. It is about partnership in the Gospel. It is about healing a wound in the Body of Christ.
Jesus began a movement of equals. The Spirit continues that movement today.
The Church needs women priests because the Church must mirror the inclusive heart of Jesus—and the Spirit is still speaking.
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