Vatican News: Petrocchi Commission Says No to Female Diaconate, Though Judgment Not Definitive

By Vatican News, Dec. 4, 2025

A report presenting the results of the Commission’s work has been released. It rules out admitting women to the diaconate understood as a degree of the sacrament of Holy Orders, but says that it is not currently possible “to formulate a definitive judgment, as in the case of priestly ordination.”

“The status quaestionis of historical research and theological investigation, as well as their mutual implications, rules out the possibility of moving in the direction of admitting women to the diaconate understood as a degree of the sacrament of Holy Orders. In light of Sacred Scripture, Tradition, and the Church’s Magisterium, this assessment is strongly maintained, although it does not at present allow for a definitive judgment to be formulated, as is the case with priestly ordination.”

The above is the conclusion reached by the second commission chaired by Cardinal Giuseppe Petrocchi, Archbishop emeritus of L’Aquila, Italy, which — at the request of Pope Francis — had examined the possibility of proceeding with the ordination of women as deacons and concluded its work in February. ….

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