Through the Lens of a Realist Metaphysics: Gender and the Catholic Church

Dear Colleagues,

Much has been made of the clearly counter-cultural and controversial position held by the Catholic Church concerning the Church’s commitment to an all-male priesthood. It seems astonishing—even offensive—to many in our contemporary context that women are barred from ordination to such a central role in the Church’s hierarchy. It is perhaps understandable that our secular culture views this practice as outrageous and woefully out of date. But it has also been the subject of heated dispute in the Christian community. How can any institution in our modern era rule out access to such an obvious leadership role so definitively? It seems to be an absolutely unjustified affront to the quest for equal rights for women. It is a question just begging for a response.

The purpose of this Special Issue is to provide a comprehensive rationale for the Church’s position on this practice and an answer to several critical questions: Why does the Catholic Church insist on an all-male priesthood? Why can women be ordained to the clergy in the Protestant Church but not in the Catholic? If ordained ministry is off-limits for women in the Catholic Church, what is their proper place in the Church? Or do they even have a place? How do we reconcile this with the fact that, within the context of magisterial teaching, the Church herself is referred to as "she"? It is said there are two principles that govern the Church—the Apostolic-Petrine principle and the Marian principle. What does that mean?

A full response to these questions will require contributions that address several distinct but related topics. The first question concerns the rationale for this practice. An adequate treatment of that element will include the historical and ecclesial context for the practice as well as the underlying anthropological framework that governs it. The second question concerns the place both women and men are called on to occupy in the Church. For not only are women not ordained ministers; the laity in general are understood to participate in the “priesthood of the faithful” within the hierarchy of the Church. But the prominent place that Mary, the Mother of God occupies in the Church’s ecclesiology lends particular weight to the role women are called to play. It can be said also that St. Joseph—or perhaps St. John the Baptist—serves as the icon for men. Thus, we will need to answer what those roles are, in what way they are distinct, and in what ways they are complementary. This will require a full treatment of the Church’s self-understanding as the Body of Christ, governed by two principles: the Apostolic-Petrine principle and the Marian principle.

We request that, prior to submitting a manuscript, interested authors initially submit a proposed title and an abstract of 200–300 words summarizing their intended contribution. Please send this to the Guest Editor Professor Deborah Savage ([email protected]) and Professor Paul Gondreau, or to the Assistant Editor of Religions Evelyn Zeng ([email protected]). Abstracts will be reviewed by the Guest Editors for the purpose of ensuring proper fit within the scope of the Special Issue. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer review.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Prof. Dr. Deborah Savage
Prof. Dr. Paul Gondreau
Guest Editors

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• metaphysics
• philosophical realism
• gender
• man and woman
• Catholic church
• human sexuality
• complementarity
• ordination