• La Civiltà Cattolica
  • Newsletters
  • Podcast
  • Contact us
  • Login
  • Register
SUBSCRIBE
LA CIVILTÀ CATTOLICA
Advertisement
  • Home
  • Church Life
    • Faith
    • Mission
    • People
    • Pope Francis
    • Spirituality
  • Church Thought
    • Doctrine
    • Scripture
    • Theology
  • Culture
  • Politics
  • Editions
  • Authors
  • Donate

No products in the cart.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Church Life
    • Faith
    • Mission
    • People
    • Pope Francis
    • Spirituality
  • Church Thought
    • Doctrine
    • Scripture
    • Theology
  • Culture
  • Politics
  • Editions
  • Authors
  • Donate

No products in the cart.

No Result
View All Result
LA CIVILTÀ CATTOLICA
No Result
View All Result
     
Home 2104

The Ministry of Women in the Liturgy: ‘Sound Tradition’ and ‘Legitimate Progress’

Cesare Giraudo, SJbyCesare Giraudo, SJ
April 7, 2021
in 2104, Bible Studies, Church Thought, Doctrine, Edition, Full Text Article, Subscriber Only Articles, THE SPIRITUAL AFTERMATH OF COVID-19, Theology
0
The Ministry of Women in the Liturgy: ‘Sound Tradition’ and ‘Legitimate Progress’
1
SHARES
88
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

On the occasion of the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, Pope Francis promulgated a document by which he recognized the possibility for women to exercise the instituted ministries of lector and acolyte. It is well known that earlier legislation, established by Paul VI with a similar measure, reserved these ministries to male laity. In order to grasp the importance of these two documents, on which we will dwell later, let us first take a look at the prehistory and evolution of a service that the Church has always provided for the Word of God and the table of the Lord.

The Jewish ancestry of the reader and the acolyte

Anyone interested in ecclesial ministries can hardly think that they were invented by the apostles to meet the needs of the nascent Church. Regardless of the specific terms by which we designate them today, we must rather recognize that the Church inherited the service to the altar and the service at the ambo, respectively, from the temple and the synagogue.

In spite of the scant knowledge we have of the temple liturgy, it is possible to establish a connection, at least an ideal one, between the figure of the acolyte and the Levitic cult. We know, in fact, that in the temple of Jerusalem, together with the priests, chosen from among the descendants of the Levite Aaron, other Levites worked in subsidiary functions. They were taken from among other members of the tribe of Levi and employed as porters, singers or helpers in the various tasks required by the sacrificial cult.[1]

While we cannot say more about the Jewish precedent for the acolyte than this, we do know more about the Jewish precedent for the reader, which can be seen in the accounts of two liturgical celebrations recorded by the Scriptures.

The first story (Neh 7:72-8:12)[2] concerns the liturgy celebrated on a square that, in an emergency situation, was transformed into a sacred space. It is there that Ezra, priest and scribe, assisted by 13 Levites in charge of translating into Aramaic, proclaims in Hebrew the writings of the Law of Moses to the survivors of the exile who no longer knew the sacred language. The other story (Luke 4:16-22)[3] describes the liturgy in the synagogue of Nazareth, in which Jesus proclaims a text from Isaiah that concerns him personally (“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to evangelize the poor…” [Isa 61:1-2]). In spite of its essential significance,[4] the evangelist’s account makes us understand that the reading, by the very fact of being a cultic proclamation of the word of God, already actualizes it. In fact, by lending his mouth to God the Father, the reader – who in this case is Jesus himself – actualizes the Word, in the sense that it puts him in a position to speak to the assembled community.

This article is reserved for paid subscribers. Please subscribe to continue reading this article
Subscribe

Welcome to
La Civiltà Cattolica !
This article is reserved for paid subscribers
Please login or subscribe to continue reading this article
LOGIN
SUBSCRIBE
What is La Civiltà Cattolica?

Previous Post

Interpreting Reality

Next Post

‘Soul,’ The imaginative ‘big before’ of our lives

Cesare Giraudo, SJ

Cesare Giraudo, SJ

Professor Emeritus of Liturgy and Theology in the Eastern Institute of Rome and ordinary member of the Pontifical Academy of Theology.

Related Posts

‘A Divine Plot’
Biography

‘A Divine Plot’

byPope Francisand2 others
February 2, 2023
For a Theology of the Discernment of Spirits
Church Life

For a Theology of the Discernment of Spirits

byMiguel Ángel Fiorito, SJand1 others
February 1, 2023
Is a Climate Catastrophe Inevitable?
Church Thought

Is a Climate Catastrophe Inevitable?

byFernando de la Iglesia Viguiristi SJ
January 29, 2023
Jeremiah lamenting the destruction of Jerusalem. Rembrandt, 1630
Bible Studies

‘The Book of Revolutions’: The battles of priests, prophets and kings that birthed the Torah

byDavid Neuhaus, SJ
January 25, 2023
Religious Nationalism and Pope Francis’ ‘Culture of Encounter’
Church Life

Religious Nationalism and Pope Francis’ ‘Culture of Encounter’

byDavid Hollenbach, SJ
January 23, 2023
Next Post
Joe Gardner, lead character in Soul, voice by Jamie Foxx

‘Soul,’ The imaginative ‘big before’ of our lives

Premium Content

American Democracy

The Crisis of American Democracy

December 29, 2020
The Italian Parliamentary Debate on ‘Assisted Suicide’

The Italian Parliamentary Debate on ‘Assisted Suicide’

February 3, 2022
A Poet Martyr – Robert Southwell (1561-1595)

A Poet Martyr – Robert Southwell (1561-1595)

September 26, 2022

Browse by Category

Subscription Offers

BEATUS POPULUS CUIUS DOMINUS DEUS EIUS

The most respected digital Catholic journal from Rome. A must-read on all the present issues alive in the Church. Discover top Church scholars interpreting the history, politics, culture, science and art in the light of the Christian faith.

Categories

  Editions
  Church Thought
  Authors
  Church 
 
  Culture
  Perspective Series
  Politics & Socitey

 

About Us

   Contact Us
   La Civiltà Cattolica  
   China Forum
   Feedback
   Terms & Conditions
   Privacy Policy
    Email : [email protected]
My IP Address : 54.36.148.248
Facebook Twitter Instagram

© Union of Catholic Asian News 2022 | All Rights Reserved.
Except for any fair dealing permitted under the Hong Kong Copyright Ordinance, no part of this publication may be reproduced by any means without prior permission.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Church Life
    • Faith
    • Mission
    • People
    • Pope Francis
    • Spirituality
  • Church Thought
    • Doctrine
    • Scripture
    • Theology
  • Culture
  • Politics
  • Editions
  • Authors
  • Donate
SUBSCRIBE

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?
Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms bellow to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
  • Login
  • Sign Up
Forgot Password?
Lost your password? Please enter your username or email address. You will receive a link to create a new password via email.

laciviltacattolica.com uses cookies and similar technologies to optimize the user experience,  analyze site traffic and communicate with subscribers. To read more about how we use cookies and how you can control them click on settings, or click Accept to start browsing our site.

Are you sure want to unlock this post?
Unlock left : 0
Are you sure want to cancel subscription?
LA CIVILTÀ CATTOLICA
Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.