Father Brendan Hoban of Ireland, writes on the Association of Catholic Priest Website, that the Anglican Church has done a great service for the Roman Catholic Church, by ordaining women as priests and bishops.

I believe that the "monkey see, monkey do" principle, probably does not apply in this situation. We have had in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, many female Anglican bishops and priests, and it doesn’t appear to have had any particular positive affect on the local Catholic Church, especially, as it pertains, to the local Catholic hierarchy considering Catholic women for like ecclesial roles.

I have no hesitation in saying that the Catholic Church, local and universal, has sorely missed out on having some of the most spectacular ministers, and that would be women, as priests, and then as bishops. We live in a time of "sadly missed ministerial opportunity" in the RC Church, for believing that Christ would not call women, and therefore, denying women such a vocation, a vocation, which probably does in fact exist with many a woman. It is not only a "missed ministerial opportunity", but, it is also a "missed evangelical moment".

The Church cannot afford to miss evangelical moments, as that is what our mission is all about. We as a Church, then, become that waistcloth that is of no use. I wrote about the story of the waistcloth from Jeremiah, chapter 13 in last weeks’ blog. Just to recap, Jeremiah is asked by Yahweh, to take a waistcloth and hide it at the Euphrates River. When Yahweh sends Jeremiah to recover it, it is in ruins from being washed by the river. Yahweh tells Jeremiah that just like the waistcloth which is no longer of any use, so are the people of Israel to the Lord, of no use.

I suggest that the continued prevention of women from ordained ministry and being able to preach, in particular, will lend the Roman Catholic Church of no use to the Lord. The Church’s evangelical mission will be lost. No doubt, it might already be lost.

At least five Starrs men have been priests, 2 Starrs men have been archbishops and one Starrs man was a cardinal and those are just the ones I know of …..So, it is in my GENES, but, since, it is not in my JEANS, I too, suffer with the missed evangelical and ministerial RC moment.

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