Joshua Bennett
The topic of women in the Catholic Church has been a controversial one for many years, with discussions around the role of women in the Church often causing heated debate. In 2021, Pope Francis modified Canon Law to explicitly state that all baptised women of the Catholic Church are allowed to be lectors and acolytes, effectively removing the previous option for individual bishops to restrict these ministries to men only. This change in Canon Law was the first official recognition that women could serve in roles near the altar during liturgical celebrations. However, the Catholic Church has permitted female altar servers since 1994, when Pope John Paul II changed the Law to allow women and girls to serve, leaving it to the discretion of the priest of each church to decide who they wished to appoint.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Women allowed on the altar | Yes, since 2021 |
| Women allowed to be lectors | Yes, since 2021 |
| Women allowed to be altar servers | Yes, since 1994 |
| Women allowed to be ordained as priests | No |
| Women allowed to be ordained as deacons | No |
| Women allowed to be clerics | No |
| Women allowed to wear the sacred dress of a cleric | No |
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What You'll Learn
- Pope Francis changed Catholic Church law to allow women as altar servers
- The Catholic Church has historically excluded women from the altar
- The Catholic Church's stance on women altar servers is controversial
- Diocesan bishops cannot oblige priests to implement policies allowing female altar servers
- Women are restricted from the altar in Eastern Churches
Pope Francis changed Catholic Church law to allow women as altar servers
Women serving as altar servers in the Catholic Church has been a contentious issue for centuries. In 1254, Pope Innocent IV wrote that "women should not dare to serve at the altar; they should be altogether refused this ministry". This sentiment was repeated by Pope Benedict XIV in 1775.
In 1992, the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts made an "authentic interpretation" of Canon 230 §2 of The Code of Canon Law, as it pertained to the use of female altar servers. The 1992 interpretation ruled in favor of allowing girl altar servers, but stated that further instruction was necessary. In 1994, the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments confirmed that bishops could permit women to be altar servers. However, in 2001, the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments ruled that diocesan bishops could not oblige priests to implement a diocesan policy allowing for female altar servers.
In 2021, Pope Francis changed Catholic Church law to explicitly allow women to serve as altar servers and lectors. The decree, titled "Spiritus Domini" ("Spirit of the Lord"), changed the wording of Canon 230 §1 from "lay men" to "lay persons", thereby making it clear that all baptized persons, male and female, of the Catholic Church were allowed to be altar servers and lectors. This change was made to recognize a "'doctrinal development' that has occurred in recent years and to better include women in the Catholic Church's leadership structure and ministries.
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The Catholic Church has historically excluded women from the altar
The Catholic Church has a long history of excluding women from the altar, with the church's leaders voting on whether to allow women to serve Mass as early as 1963. The Church has historically argued that women should be excluded from serving at the altar because they cannot be ordained to the holy order of acolytes or be clerics, and therefore bear less proximity to the clerical state.
In 1972, Pope Paul VI instituted a law restricting women from reading, serving, and administering communion at the altar, as these duties were considered preparatory to taking holy orders. This was based on the historical stance that women should not be allowed to serve at the altar at all, as stated by Pope Innocent IV in 1254 and reaffirmed by Pope Benedict XIV in 1775.
However, in the 1990s, there were moves to reinterpret the Canon Law to allow women to serve at the altar. In 1992, the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts issued an interpretation of Canon 230 §2, ruling in favor of allowing girl altar servers. Then, in 1994, Pope John Paul II changed the Canon Law, allowing women and girls to serve as altar servers, leaving it to the discretion of each priest to decide who may serve. Despite this change, some dioceses and individual churches continued to prohibit female altar servers, and the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments ruled in 2001 that bishops could not oblige priests to implement policies allowing female altar servers.
In 2021, Pope Francis modified the Canon Law to explicitly state that all baptized persons, male and female, are allowed to lector and acolyte, effectively removing the option for bishops to restrict these ministries to men only. This change was seen as the first official recognition that women could serve near the altar during liturgical celebrations. While some welcomed this change, it was controversial, with some arguing that it was a sign of the feminization of the Church.
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The Catholic Church's stance on women altar servers is controversial
The Catholic Church's stance on women altar servers has been a topic of controversy for decades. The Church has permitted female altar servers since March 1994, when Pope John Paul II changed the Canon Law, allowing women and girls to serve as altar servers. However, the decision on whether to allow female altar servers was left to the bishops of each diocese, and not all bishops chose to permit women to serve in this capacity.
In 2021, Pope Francis modified Canon Law to explicitly state that all baptised persons, male and female, of the Catholic Church were allowed to lector and acolyte. This change removed the option for individual bishops to restrict these ministries to men only. This was a significant shift, as previously, some dioceses, such as the Diocese of Phoenix, specifically prohibited women from serving at the altar.
Despite these changes, the topic of women in the Catholic Church, and specifically as altar servers, remains controversial. Some, like Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke, have criticised the introduction of female altar servers as part of "radical feminism" and an unwelcome sign of the "feminisation" of the Church, arguing that it drives young men away. Others argue that women serving in these roles is in line with the Church's law and promotes the full participation of lay and female members of the Church.
The controversy surrounding women altar servers is part of a broader discussion about the role of women in the Catholic Church and their inclusion in leadership positions and ministries. While Pope Francis has made efforts to better include women, he has also reaffirmed the ban on women's ordination to the priesthood. The creation of commissions to study women deacons is a step towards recognising women's roles in the Church, but the pace of change has disappointed some.
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Diocesan bishops cannot oblige priests to implement policies allowing female altar servers
Since March 1994, the Catholic Church has allowed female altar servers. The Holy See gave bishops the discretion to establish policies on whether to allow female servers in their respective dioceses. However, the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments (CDWDS) ruled in July 2001 that diocesan bishops could not oblige priests to implement policies allowing female altar servers. This ruling reaffirmed the rights of priests over liturgical decisions in their parishes.
The 2001 ruling by the CDWDS was in response to a dubium (question) regarding the interpretation of Canon 230 §2 of The Code of Canon Law, which pertains to the use of female altar servers. The Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts had issued an "authentic interpretation" of this canon in 1992, ruling in favour of allowing girl altar servers but stating that further instruction was necessary. This interpretation was clarified by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments in a letter sent to bishops worldwide in March 1994. The letter affirmed that both men and women may serve at the altar but that each bishop has the discretion to determine who may serve.
The 2001 ruling by the CDWDS was also a response to an unnamed bishop who had written to the Vatican, seeking to mandate female altar servers for all priests in his diocese. The ruling stated that a priest may not be obliged to have women or girls as altar servers, nor may the diocesan bishop oblige him to do so. This ruling was published in Notitiae, the Church's official publication regarding liturgical issues, and quoted a circular letter sent to the presidents of episcopal conferences in March 1994, which stated: "It will always be very appropriate to follow the noble tradition of having boys serve at the altar."
While the Catholic Church has allowed female altar servers since 1994, the decision to include them has been a matter of debate and controversy. Some bishops have attempted to forbid female altar servers, while others have set precedents for their inclusion. Pope Francis has struggled during his papacy to better include women in the Church's leadership and ministries, and in 2021, he modified Canon Law to state that all baptized persons, male and female, are allowed to lector and acolyte. This change removed the previous option for individual bishops to restrict those ministries only to men.
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Women are restricted from the altar in Eastern Churches
Women have historically been restricted from serving at the altar in the Catholic Church. In 1994, Pope John Paul II changed the Canon Law, allowing women and girls to serve as altar servers. However, the decision on whether to allow female altar servers was left to the discretion of individual bishops and priests in their respective dioceses. This meant that women were still excluded from serving at the altar in some Catholic churches.
In 2021, Pope Francis modified the Canon Law, explicitly stating that all baptised persons, male and female, of the Catholic Church are allowed to serve as lectors and acolytes (also known as altar servers). This change removed the previous option for individual bishops to restrict these ministries to men only. Pope Francis's decision was made to recognise a "doctrinal development" and to increase the recognition of the contributions of lay people, including women, to the life and mission of the Church.
Despite these changes, some traditions within the Catholic Church continue to restrict women from the altar. In Eastern Churches, women are not permitted to enter the altar area at all and are prohibited from entering the church building during their monthly periods. This restriction is based on the belief that women should not serve at the altar, as stated by Pope Innocent IV in the 13th century: "Women should not dare to serve at the altar; they should be altogether refused this ministry."
The exclusion of women from serving at the altar in Eastern Churches is further supported by the Service Book of the Orthodox Church, which states that "no woman may enter the Sanctuary at any time". This restriction also aligns with the former rule in the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, which stated that "women may not enter [the sanctuary] at all". While women were allowed to enter the altar area for cleaning, especially in convents of nuns, they were generally forbidden from serving near the altar during the liturgy.
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Frequently asked questions
In 2021, Pope Francis modified Canon Law to state that all baptised persons, male and female, of the Catholic Church were allowed to lector and acolyte. This effectively removed the previous option for individual bishops to restrict those ministries to men. However, the decision on whether to allow female altar servers is still left to the bishops of each diocese.
In 1992, the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts made an interpretation of Canon 230 §2 of The Code of Canon Law, ruling in favour of allowing girl altar servers. In 1994, Pope John Paul II changed the Canon Law, allowing women and girls to serve as altar servers. However, the decision on whether to allow female altar servers was left to the bishops of each diocese.
The change in Canon Law has been described as the "first official recognition" that women could serve in a role near the altar during liturgical celebrations. It has been met with different levels of enthusiasm globally, with some parishes already having women reading and serving, and others seeing it as a big deal. The change has opened new opportunities for congregations to hear readings by women and see women on the altar next to the ordained priest.
