Vaticanelle
The highlight of the presentations during the We Are Church Int’l meetings was Vaticanelle – a parody play of an all female hierarchy weighing the requests from men to be accepted into the priesthood. Lines used in this performance are the exact lines being used by the bishops for why women cannot be accepted into the priesthood.
Click here to see the play.
PRESS RELEASE
We Are Church International scripted and performed VATICANELLE in Rome on 12 October 2024.
| VATICANELLE is a parody with seven Women bishops and Pope Sister Martha in a Synod of Bishops discussing if men could be ordained. After a long discussion a clear decision is made: Ad Experimentum suitable men will be ordained as priests and deacons in those communities that wish to take this opportunity. The motion is approved by a vote 6 – 2. Here are some quotes from the discussion: In both the Old Testament and New Testament, the theme of the ‘exodus’ – the exodus from enslaving constraints – is a leitmotif: God hears the cries of the oppressed, while she topples the ‘mighty’ from their thrones and exalts the lowly (Luke 1:52) And for the climax of YAHWH’s work for her people, it says: ‘when the time was fulfilled, God sent her Son, born of a woman …’ (Gal 4:4). It was the divine plan to choose a woman to begin the divine act of redemption without the intervention of a man. St Joseph is recommended as a role model for all men – it is called the “Josephine principle”!! Can men be priests when they are more used to thinking in terms of laws and are not used to asking for mercy? Can men be priests if they so often make women invisible, even in subtle ways, in texts, in writings, in translations, even trivializing their concerns and not taking their wishes seriously? Can men be priests if they want to lead instead of serve? Can men be priests if their history is a chain of atrocities against women: rape, oppression? One would have to fear that they would take advantage of their position and sexually exploit women and children, especially nuns and altar servers? And they are much too emotional. You only need to watch them at sporting events! … but unfavorable external circumstances, damp southerly winds and the like, result in boys by chance, not planned, not intended. So a boy has no intrinsic value, but is rather a ‘failed woman’. For this reason, the man is ascribed a multiple inferiority. They said, men are mentally the weaker, physically the more active, therefore also morally the more vulnerable – and becomes a temptation for the woman. – I don’t think we can call this a Christian doctrine! It remains undisputed, however, that the typically female activities of caring, the ability to reconcile and to work together are still far more pronounced in women. Men have not been able or willing to sufficiently develop the feminine side of their humanity. Who normally looks after a baby? Who cares for the sick? Who keeps the peace in the family? Who cooks? Colm Holmes Chair We Are Church International Website: https://www.we-are-church.org |
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