ARTICLES
June 2003 ARTICLES
Contents © 2003
by Jim Holman.
All rights reserved.
Just Who Is Outdated?
Excommunicated Priestess Speaks in Claremont
By Maria Kennedy
A woman whom many consider an ordained priest spoke to a gathering at Claremont School of Theology on April 9. Dr. Ida Raming of Germany addressed the Claremont gathering as part of an American speaking tour.
In women's ordination circles, Ida Raming is a heroine. The German theologian, who in the early '60s issued a paper to the Vatican Council challenging the male-only priesthood, is one of seven women who were "ordained" in the summer of 2002. According to Rea Howarth of the Maryland-based Catholics Speak Out, the ordinations took place on the Danube River in Germany "under tight security." The "bishop" who ordained the women was the Argentine Romulo Braschi. Braschi was a Marianist priest who was ordained in Buenos Aires in 1966. Braschi left the Catholic Church to join the Charismatic Apostolic Church of Jesus Christ. Braschi was consecrated bishop by another priest, Roberto Padin, who also had left the Catholic Church. Padin claims to be a bishop "whose apostolic roots go back to the 15 century." Another "bishop" present at the ordinations was Rafael Regelsberger of Austria. Regelsberger claims apostolic succession but is not under the authority of Rome.
The ordinations are not considered valid by the Roman Catholic Church and Braschi admits that he did not ordain the women for the Roman Catholic Church but for the "universal church." The Holy See excommunicated the seven women last year.
Raming's talk, which was held in the School of Theology's Haddon Conference Room, was packed with middle-aged and elderly women. A few men were in attendance, and a couple of college-aged young women. Raming thanked her audience. "I'm glad that so many take the time to come [to this talk]," she said. Raming was accompanied by another of the ordained women, Iris Müller of Germany. Müller told the audience that canon law prohibited women from being ordained and that "all women are challenged by this. Especially in modern democratic states." Müller continued that "no one must be discriminated against because of their gender. It's only in the Catholic Church that women cannot be ordained." Muller noted that the push for women' s ordination began in the '60's. "In 1962, a petition was sent to the Second Vatican Council, declaring that the Vatican's position on women was outdated. In 1963, the petition was published in a book, Women Speak Out, We Won't Keep Silent Anymore. Since this, many books and articles have been written."
In her comments, Raming noted the resistance from the Vatican over women's ordination. "The Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith banned women's ordination," said Raming. "Pope John Paul II has resisted the most; he has said that the Church has no authority to ordain women." The audience gasped in horror. "In 1998, the pope issued a list of punishments for those who disobeyed," said Raming.
Raming pointed out that traditionalists in the Church "hold on to the notion of the superiority of men. Liberals see the stabilization of the Church with women's ordination." Raming said that everyone is called to different offices: "some are prophets, some are evangelizers, and others are priests." It was noted that in Romans 16, she said, that there were "women deaconesses, a couple of missionaries, and it names other women who are important. Later on, women were expelled from the offices they held in the early Church."
Raming referred to the Church's sexual abuse scandal by saying that "the lack of women in the priesthood has led to a putrification" [sic] -- at which she received a loud round of applause. "The future of the Roman Catholic Church depends on women's ordination."
According to a press release issued by the Women's Ordination Conference, Raming was the "chief architect of the strategy adopted by the women who were ordained." Raming argues that the fact that canon law only allows baptized males to be priests causes two types of baptisms: one for men and one for women and thus is a heresy."
Raming concluded that the lack of women in the Roman Catholic priesthood was causing numerous problems in the Church and was contrary to God's will. "God does not limit himself/herself. Do they, the Vatican, intend to dictate to God that he can only call from men to the priesthood?"