(Washington Post) Vatican debate over women as deacons hits a big obstacle: Pope Francis

VATICAN CITY — In the final days of the most significant Catholic gathering since the 1960s, one issue more than any other is driving dissent and disappointment: the shunting aside of calls to ordain women in the world’s largest Christian faith.

Advocates argue that expanding the role of women is a matter of not only equity but necessity. From the Amazon region to parishes in the heart of Europe, the Roman Catholic Church is experiencing a chronic shortage of clerics. The idea of women serving as Catholic priests has not been seriously discussed. But women ordained as deacons could fill the gap, performing baptisms, witnessing marriages, presiding at funerals and preaching the homily at Mass.

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