Synod Organizer Says Vatican Doctrine Office is Studying Women Deacons, by Courtney Mares

By Courtney Mares, CNA, July 9, 2024

Courtney Mares is a Rome Correspondent for Catholic News Agency. A graduate of Harvard University, she has reported from news bureaus on three continents and was awarded the Gardner Fellowship for her work with North Korean refugees. …

Vatican City, Jul 9, 2024 / 15:05 pm – Synod organizers revealed Tuesday that Pope Francis has asked the Vatican’s doctrine office to study women’s participation and leadership in the Catholic Church, including the possibility of women deacons, with the view of publishing a document on the subject.

At a Vatican press conference on July 9, Cardinal Mario Grech said the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) is studying “the women’s diaconate” within the context of its in-depth study of ministries in coordination with the General Secretariat of the Synod.

While the female diaconate is off the table for discussion at the second Synod on Synodality assembly in October, according to the working document, or Instrumentum Laboris, published today, the topic will be included in the Vatican’s study on women’s leadership. …