The Leadership Conference of Women Religious Are Not Alone....

This letter has gone out by email to friends of mine who are Roman Catholic sisters.  Here in DC this past week, there was a gathering in support of the LCWR in front of the RC Bishops' office building at C.U.  In preparation, the Bishops shrouded the sign at the front of their property and sent a workman out to make sure nobody propped any protest signs against it. They are nothing if not consistent.

An Open Letter to Catholic Religious Women

 May 1, 2012

 Dear Sisters,

 We write to you as sisters in faith who may not express our vocation in
the same particular community of faith, but who share much in common—as
believers, as advocates, and as peacemakers. We write in a spirit of
solidarity and as witnesses to the authenticity of your ministries,
particularly the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, in a time
when the integrity of your witness has been questioned by Catholic
leadership.

 While we are not all from the same particular Christian community, we,
as women, share a common story. The struggle over women's authority is
an age old question for Christians. Christian churches have long been
ambivalent about us. Women's roles have been embraced in private, not
public forums. Women leaders are affirmed as long as they are seen, but
not heard (at least not too much). For centuries, women have been seen
as prophets, dreamed new realities, but have been dismissed too often
and affirmed only when their visions didn't contradict the beliefs held
by those in positions of power. We are aware that even when churches
will ordain us to serve in positions of leadership, we are often not
trusted to identify the most urgent needs our congregations should
address or to design the shape of our own ministries.

 The plight of the powerless is familiar to the women of the church. We,
however, do not believe that authorities in any church should take away
women’s power to determine for ourselves a vision for our ministries and
vocations. Many, many women have raised similar questions as those
raised by the Leadership Conference of Women Religious. Is it God’s
design for there to be an exclusively male priesthood? Are not economic
justice and access to health care not only issues in greatest need of
being addressed in our society today, but also concerns at the core of
Catholic faith as well as the good news of the gospel message? What we
see in this struggle is not a lack of our sisters’ integrity and
authentic witness to Christian faith, but a struggle that has been too
familiar for all women of faith—a struggle over authority and who should
have the power to define true faith.

 Women in the churches have dedicated their lives to serving the needs
of people in the world for centuries. Today, our Catholic sisters live
in community and serve the church thoughtfully and creatively through
countless acts of love, hospitality, and social advocacy. Our Catholic
sisters are often strong advocates for people living in poverty, people
who are in prison, people who lack access to affordable health care,
people who are unable to access clean water, people who are sick, and
people who have been victimized by the violence of others. Their service
and advocacy is similar to that of so many of us who because of own
experiences as women find it critical to place the needs of people who
are impoverished, cast asi
de, and powerless at the focal point of our
own ministries.
 We have all been challenged by the wisdom of learned Catholic sisters
who are scholars teaching in college, university, seminary, and church
classrooms. Our sisters have taught us to engage our imaginations about
the Christian tradition which we share. We are particularly thankful for
the wisdom of Sister Elizabeth Johnson and Sister Joan Chittister. Our
sisters have often carried the stories of many, many women and the
wounds of the disenfranchised in their prayers and into their writing.

 Religious women have long recognized the need to care for the whole
human person. There are many faithful sisters who help us to remember
the humanity of people who are shut away in prison or deemed
untouchable. There are many faithful sisters who refuse to accept the
legitimacy of an economic system that allows the few to become
fabulously wealthy while the many remain submerged in perpetual want and
poverty. Some of the names of our sisters who have become known for
their advocacy are easily recognized—Sister Helen Prejean, Sister
Jeannine Gramick, and Mother Teresa come to mind. We are also well aware
that the names of many of our sisters in faith and members of Catholic
communities of religious women are not etched in our memories. And, yet
our sisters live authentic lives of faith and witness to our common
belief that God is still creating a vision for a new heaven and a new
earth.

 Where would any of our churches be without women leaders? Where would
the Catholic Church be without women's religious communities? How will
the social witness of the larger church on issues of poverty and
economic justice be hindered by not honoring the authority of these
women of faith?

 We join hands with you, our sisters. We are grateful for your
willingness to take risks to engage in advocacy and peacemaking. We
stand with you in solidarity and will continue to walk with you as
witnesses to our common struggles and our common faith on this journey.

 In the peace and steadfast love of Christ,

 Advocacy Committee for Women’s Concerns of the Presbyterian Church USA
(ACWC)
The Ad Hoc Group on Racism, Sexism, and Classism (RSAC)
Anglican Women’s Empowerment
Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests
Auburn Theological Seminary, New York, New York
Baptist Women in Ministry
Blessed John XXIII Faith Community, Barrington, Illinois
Catherine of Siena Virtual College
Church Women United
The Feminist Sexual Ethics Project, Brandeis University
Jeff Street Baptist Community at Liberty, Louisville, Kentucky
Lutheran Women in Theological and Religious Studies
Metropolitan Community Church, San Francisco, California
The Namaste Community of East Bay of San Francisco
New Visions Faith Community, Mt. Prospect, Illinois
Pacific, Asian, and North American Asian Women in Theology and Ministry
Presbyterian Women in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A), Inc.
Southeastern Pennsylvania Women's Ordination Conference
Sophia Inclusive Catholic Community in Sussex County New Jersey
Sophia in Trinity: A Roman Catholic Community of Celebrants, San
Francisco, California
Starr King School for the Ministry, Berkeley, California
Woman Spirit Ireland
Women’s Center at Louisville Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky
Women of the Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy, PC(USA)
Women Faculty of Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, Austin, Texas
Women of Chicago Theological Seminary, Chicago, Illinois
Women Faculty of the Department of Religion, Dominican University of
California
Women Faculty of Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary,
Louisville, Kentucky
Women Faculty of Meadville Lombard Theological School (Unitarian
Universalist) Chicago, Illinois.
Women Faculty at Union Presbyterian Seminary, Richmond, Virginia
Women Faculty at Vanderbilt Divinity School, Nashville, Tennessee
Women of the Social Ethics Network of the PCUSA
Women's Alliance for Theology, Ethics, and Ritual (WATER)
Women Theologians (Protestant and Roman Catholic) from the "Workgroup
for Constructive Theology"

 Many endorse this letter. The endorsements of the communities, groups, and
organizations were gathered through women’s networks and by women’s
groups and organizations over a period of about five days.