Catholics Launch “Feminism & Faith in Union” Initiative to Celebrate Feminism, Activism and Faith.
January 9, 2018
Contact: Deborah Rose-Milavec, Executive Director of FutureChurch debrose@futurechurch.org
Lizzie Berne DeGear, The Women Who Stayed, a Ministry of The Church of St. Francis Xavier thewomenwhostayed@gmail.com
Kate McElwee, Executive Director of the Women’s Ordination Conference kmcelwee@womensordination.org
Zach Johnson, Executive Director of Call To Action zach@cta-usa.org
New York, NY and global locations: Inspired by the global women’s marches one year ago, and aware that the Roman Catholic Church and religious institutions around the world are in dire need of an infusion of feminist energy and truth, FutureChurch, The Women Who Stayed, Women’s Ordination Conference, and Call To Action announce the launch of Feminism & Faith in Union.
Feminism & Faith in Union is an invitation to Catholic women and men and interfaith allies in the United States and around the globe to gather on Sunday, January 21, 2018 in prayer, song, and marches bringing feminism to their faith and faith to their feminism.
Interfaith feminists and allies of all genders and ages will gather throughout the globe in solidarity and hope, celebrating the power of activism and faith in our religious traditions. In public and religious spaces, groups will pray and bless, creating a space to celebrate the God given gifts of women in our parishes, our communities, and in the world.
Catholics and interfaith feminists around the world are invited to join Feminism & Faith in Union by hosting their own marches, prayers services, inclusive liturgies, and interfaith gatherings.
In New York City, Feminism & Faith in Union will host an event beginning in the North Plaza of Union Square Park shortly before 10am with an interfaith blessing. Marchers are invited to proceed along 16th Street to the Church of St. Francis Xavier for the celebration of a Mass that is inclusive of all at 11:30am (16th St between 5th and 6th Ave). Marchers and Mass-goers are encouraged to carry hand held signs proclaiming their support of feminism in our Church.
More details and a downloadable resource with sign templates can be found at www.feminism-faith.org.
Catholic communities are encouraged to plan inclusive Masses that bear witness to the inequalities experienced by those marginalized in our faith tradition and society. Together we will celebrate the sacred union of faith and feminism!
To learn more, visit:
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About The Women Who Stayed: A ministry of the Church of St. Francis Xavier, a Jesuit parish in the heart of Chelsea in New York City, The Women Who Stayed proclaim a bold vision of service: “As Midwives to the spiritual life of our parish, we honor the mutuality of feminine and masculine in God and in humanity. We nurture emotional, intellectual and spiritual growth. We empower the voices, vocations and visibility of all Catholic women. We call forth the courage and creativity of our brothers and sisters in faith. We celebrate all service and leadership arising from the fertile soil of Xavier, our beloved community.”
About FutureChurch: Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, FutureChurch seeks changes that will provide all Roman Catholics the opportunity to participate fully in Church life and leadership. It is a national coalition of parish centered Catholics striving to educate fellow Catholics about the seriousness of the priest shortage, the centrality of the Eucharist (the Mass), and the systemic inequality of women in the Catholic Church. FutureChurch is a nonprofit organization that makes presentations throughout the country, distributes education, advocacy and prayer resources and recruits activists who work on behalf of its mission.
About Call to Action: Call To Action draws its mission from the US Bishops’ 1976 Call To Action conference, and the “Call for Reform in the Catholic Church” proclaimed by more than 20,000 signers articulates its goals for our Church. It began as a response to the challenge of the Second Vatican Council, held between 1962 and 1965, for all members to “scrutinize the signs of the times” and respond in the light of the gospel. The council provided a wake-up call for lay Catholics who had tended to defer initiatives entirely to the clergy. Call To Action educates, inspires and activates Catholics to act for justice and build inclusive communities through a lens of anti-racism and anti-oppression principles.
About Women’s Ordination Conference: Founded in 1975, the Women’s Ordination Conference (WOC) is the oldest and largest organization working to ordain women as priests, deacons, and bishops into an inclusive and accountable Roman Catholic Church. A feminist voice for women in the Roman Catholic Church, WOC is a grassroots-driven movement that promotes activism, dialogue, and prayerful witness to call for women’s full equality in the Church.
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