A Canadian activist who travelled to the Vatican this week to campaign for the inclusion of women in the Catholic priesthood says she is feeling hopeful about the church’s new leader, Pope Francis.
Therese Koturbash runs an organization called “Women Priests for the Catholic Church.” She travelled form Dauphin, Man., to join women from all over the world to watch the selection of the new pope.
On Tuesday and Wednesday, the group burned pink incense in protest of the exclusion of women within the conclave and to call for reform from within the church and canon law.
Koturbash admits that before Wednesday, she had never heard of Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio, a former archbishop from Buenos Aires who is now the head of her church. But she has since found reason to be optimistic about his papacy.
“What I’ve heard about him is that while he comes from an authoritative, patriarchal office in the church, he’s a man who questions his privilege and encourages other clerics to question their privilege,” she told CTV’s Canada AM Thursday from Vatican Square.
Koturbash is also heartened that another cardinal from Argentina has promoted the role of women in the church.
“His brother, Cardinal Sandri, is one of the cardinals who has been speaking out about the need to help women achieve their proper place in the church. So it’s encouraging that that kind of message has already been coming out of the Argentinian church,” she said.
Koturbash and her group have been working to promote discussion about women's ordination, arguing that including women in the church’s ministry is part of the mission Jesus intended.
They note that it wasn`t that long ago when women weren’t allowed to serve behind the altar or even to sing in the choir. They say it`s now time to consider what other Christian churches who now ordain women priests have decided.
Koturbash believe there is reason for optimism is Bergoglio’s choice to take the name Pope Francis.
“St. Francis is one of the most beloved saints of our church. He was a friend of the environment, friend of animals, and a great reformer of his time,” Koturbash said.
St. Francis was also a friend of St. Clare, a woman who founded, a monastic religious order for women in the Franciscan tradition, and was the first woman to write a monastic rule.
“So choosing the name Francis, if he had all that in mind and takes seriously his patron, St. Francis, then there are good things possibly in store for that,” Koturbash said.
