Jacqueline Straub, the Woman Who Would Be Priest Read more: Jacqueline Straub, the Woman Who Would Be Priest

Last September, Jacqueline Straub wrote a letter to the pope. (First off: People still write letters?) But Straub wasn’t fishing for a papal pen pal. While some might argue she was using pen and paper to beat her head against a wall, Straub, a 24-year-old theology student, would likely counter that she was taking a step toward career change. Using quotes from St. Augustine as backup, she urged Pope Francis to “recognize the signs of the time.” Sassy! And quite possibly delusional. Straub, you see, wants to shatter one of the Catholic church’s most fundamental traditions and become a priest.

You’re probably saying, “Dream on, Fraulein Straub.” That is, if you’re not LOL-ing outright. But this isn’t a passing whim, and Straub — whose pretty and stylish looks are more like a young model’s than an aspiring priest’s — is determined. The charismatic German has been doing round after round of appearances on local and national television, radio and print for the last few years, developing the type of media-friendly message necessary to grab attention. When she’s not watching Desperate Housewives or Bones, Straub also tours the stage, giving speeches to religious groups at home and abroad — soon, she’ll give a high-profile talk at the second Women’s Ordination Conference in Philadelphia. She’s almost finished with a master’s and Ph.D. in theology and canon law, figuring that “we have to change the law if we want to change the church.” The skills don’t stop there: She’s also a boxer — and while she’s in this one for the long haul, neither is she pulling her punches. “If I get beat in boxing, I don’t stop. I stand up and go on,” she says. “I need this endurance in the church too.”

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