“Why can’t women become Catholic Priests?”
For those of old enough to remember Billy Joel — a boomer generation musician, and the only reason one of my drill sergeants in the Army would ever appear to be in a good mood (He was a die-hard fan) – had a big hit in the late 80’s called “We Didn’t Start the Fire”. In the song, Joel does a sort of quasi-rap to an up tempo, wood-chop style, pop beat, and with lyrics that cleverly recap many major events throughout the 20th century. And Joel’s point in exclaiming “We didn’t start the fire” is that life is a roller-coaster ride of social changes, from movie stars to Malcom X to MTV.
The lyrics also have references to some of of destructively ideological movements – Marxist, fascist, authoritarian regimes, to name a few – that still grab Western society’s attention to this today. Namely, we are now in a new era, now almost 60 years since the birth of the Civil Rights movement; and it just might be about time for Mr. Billy Joel to write “We Didn’t Start the Fire – The Sequel”, as Western society apparently needs a reminder why some movements framed as “human rights” are a wasteful game of group identity politics.
Any of these terms / phrases strike a chord? Woke. Cultural Marxism. Political Correctness. Trigger Warnings. Safe Spaces. Gender ideologies. Entitlement. “Whatever makes you happy”. Intersectional Feminism. The list goes on.
Now, let us focus on feminism, as this is linked to some of the challenges against the Catholic Church: specifically, the occasional noise and grassroots movements to open the priesthood to both men and women. The links below get to the core of why the Catholic Church cannot change what Christ instructed to the first apostles. Watch the videos — learn that this topic is not about being misogynistic or devaluing women.
Bishop Robert Barron drives the point home in an exceptionally important way — That is, as Catholics, our primary goal should be to mirror the Saints — or become a Saint, for that matter. Meanwhile, the main purpose of the priesthood is to serve the laity and help lead us to the Gospel, just as Christ did with the first apostles. After all, a great leader is also a great servant. Therefore, being a priest is NOT a position of power.
And that right there is a root problem with the feminist view that women should be priests as well: Feminists are misinterpreting the hierarchy in the Catholic Church as predicated on “human” power, along with largely fallacious ideas about “oppressive patriarchies”. But here is the bottom line — and as Bishop Barron says — If you want to establish yourself as a powerfully meaningful presence in our Catholic faith — become a Saint!
Links to explanations about women and the priesthood:
Trent Horn: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EB0x5S2NlE4&t=1692s
Bishop Barron: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CuT8yTakq54