The Invisible Women

“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female, but we are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3:28)

This is one of the most striking passages in the Bible, and it summarizes very clearly the message that Jesus taught from the very beginning of his ministry. All are equal in God’s sight, male and female alike. During the time of Jesus’s ministry, this was an extraordinary teaching, because women often went unnamed and unnoticed. However, as we shall see from further reading of the Scriptures, they were named and noticed by Jesus. Jesus recognized women for the gifts and talents that they bring to this world of hunger and need. The message is clear and it needs to be proclaimed and delivered. The message is this - God is the God of both men and women, rich and poor, slave and free, old and young, and, God is the God who saves.

Jesus acted against this patriarchal system. He treated everyone with equal dignity, no matter the gender or class. However, patriarchy has had an enormous effect not only in the choice of Scripture readings at Mass, but also in many church laws and regulations, which shall also be examined later in this book. There have been attempts by some church documents to rid the laws of discrimination, but it hangs there like a noose nevertheless. There have also been attempts to resolve the issue of sexual imbalance with regard to leadership in the church, and canon 208 of the present Code of Canon Law seeks to protect the rights of all the faithful when it states: “There exists among the Christian faithful a true equality regarding dignity and action by which all cooperate in building up the Body of Christ.” This is our duty and our call – to promote and practice true equality in building up the Body of Christ. We, male and female, are all one in Christ Jesus. We are all sacred in the sight of God. All are one in Christ Jesus.

This book will explore the images used in the Old Testament and the Gospels to describe God. Most church goers are very familiar with the male images of God, but are we just as familiar with the female images of God? Perhaps not. It’s time to become aware of the fact that when Jesus uses male images of God, he follows them with female images as well. However, these passages are rarely read to us at the Sunday liturgies. In fact, there is a disproportionate number of passages about the women in the Bible being used at the Sunday or weekday readings at Mass. Many women’s experiences and accomplishments have been largely overlooked in the assigned scripture readings. This book will explore some of the significant biblical passages about women which are omitted altogether, or are relegated to weekdays, where only small numbers of churchgoers will hear them, or are used to reinforce what some believe to be the weaknesses or proper roles of women.

The concluding chapters of this book will take a closer look at the evolution of the 1917 Code of Canon Law to the present 1983 Code of Canon law, as well as some quotes from the present Catholic Catechism. It will also recount some of the women missionaries and martyrs who are examples of true bravery and faithfulness. In the end, we are left with the following irony– women have not been invited, but, guess what? They showed up anyway …they fill our churches and schools, our universities and soup kitchens, work at homeless shelters and administrative church positions. They serve as lectors, extraordinary ministers of communion, parish council officers, teachers, parish administrators, and canon lawyers. The list is endless. But, somehow they didn’t get invited into full church positions. Many women in church history have been ignored and forgotten. They discovered that there were many times when wanting to serve or speak freely they were told NO. Yet, if one studies the Scriptures and reads the words of Jesus, we find that the answer that He gave was YES. They were brave, steadfast, spoke truthfully and fearlessly. Many never gave in or gave up. They are role models for us and can give us the courage on days when we feel we have no courage left. But, it’s time to invite them to full participation, the wait is over.

This book will trace the pattern of being unnamed and unnoticed and will attempt to name and proclaim those left out and forgotten. It will recount the bravery and the call, to all of us, to be proclaimers of those forgotten and ignored, and to be the proclaimers of the true message of Jesus.

This book will explore the journey on the path to YES. YES, society, as well as the culture of today, recognizes more and more the gifts and contributions that women make to the world, and to the church. Women have been marginalized for years and now are becoming more and more conscious of their human worth, and what they have to offer. On the journey to saying YES, they first have to say NO to being treated like second-class citizens. By continuing to say NO to a misguided understanding of women’s roles, women then can fully and courageously say YES.