It is now almost fifteen years since I was forbidden to exercise priestly ministry, and I am on the verge of my eightieth birthday. The issues around which I was forbidden to minister were my writings on such matters as priesthood, women’s equality, and aspects of Catholic sexual teaching.
As a Redemptorist, I had spent all my years of ministry mainly in preaching. That year, in which I was in conflict with the Vatican and my Redemptorist authorities, was not easy, but was life changing.
Letter of Kieran O’Mahony to the Tablet
Has the Holy Father made a mistake in not permitting the ordination of women, even initially only to the diaconate? The exclusion of women from ministry can be traced not only to tradition but also to an erroneous reading of the evolution of “church” and its ministries. In common with many other biblical scholars, I would affirm the following. Firstly, the historical Jesus encountered very few non-Jews.
For the past week the media have been full of the altercation between the judge and the Christian Brothers. I have been saddened by the whole affair. Sad, of course, for the many people whose lives were damaged by various forms of abuse at the hands of certain brothers.
But also sad for the brothers themselves, the majority of whom did not abuse anybody, but gave great service in their schools, and opened up possibilities for generations of young men, especially in the second half of the last century.
