Theologian wants the Church to go deeper

Theologian Eckholt sees encouragement in Report on Women's Diaconate

"Open to Further Exploration"

Theologian Margit Eckholt sees the final report of the Vatican's theological commission on the possibility of women's ordination as not a clear rejection of the diaconate for women. For her, it is a "first step" in this direction.

Margit Eckholt said this in an interview with the portal katholisch.de on Tuesday. "In my view, the text itself is not a stop sign, but rather an encouragement to think further and continue working." The text is remarkable because it shows which topics were discussed in a nuanced way and presents concrete voting results within the commission. The text's tendency shows "that we are still dealing with an open theological question that requires further work."

Renewed consultations?

Eckholt herself has worked on this topic and co-authored a paper on it for the German reform process, the Synodal Path. She confirms that the topic has already been discussed extensively. However, she emphasizes: "The document reflects the current state of debate insofar as it essentially presents two different perspectives: the diaconate as one of the three orders of ordination or as a sacramental office 'for service,' detached from the three-tiered ordination. Here, the document raises open theological questions regarding ministry—without providing answers itself."

Eckholt said she hopes that Rome will initiate more in-depth theological work. It is important to reflect on "what constitutes the sacramental quality of the diaconate and what this has to do with gender-anthropological questions. Only in this way can we permanently move beyond the gendered fixation and exclusion regarding ordination, which is no longer appropriate in our time."

Decision at the Magisterium Level

The theologian also stated that she hopes Pope Leo XIV will ensure that further theological reflections are conducted synodally and openly, and that women from all over the world are included, especially those who are "already active in diaconal work and do so out of a diaconal vocation."

The final report of the theological commission on the possibility of ordaining women in the Catholic Church, published on Thursday by the Vatican Press Office, states that the question of women's diaconate ordination remains "open for further theological and pastoral exploration." The decision must be made at the Magisterium level. At the same time, the commission emphasized that, as things stand, women could not be admitted to ordination as deacons. The ten-member Diaconate Commission had been appointed by Pope Francis.

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