Carrots and Sticks

On vacation in northern Michigan (and I do promise this is the end of my musings on how-I-spent-my-summer-vacation!), I visited Mackinac Island. No way could there be anything there relevant to women’s ministry and leadership in the Catholic Church there, I thought. Oh, how wrong. The relevance is truly everywhere we go.

Here is a brief excerpt from Mackinac Island’s history:  In 1780, desperate to populate the  island, located in a strategic area of upper Lake Huron, those in charge had a brilliant idea: Move the Catholic Church from the mainland and the devout French-Canadian residents will surely follow. And so, log by log they dismantled the church, made many trips hauling the pieces across the winter ice, and reassembled them, piece by piece, on the island.

Did it work?

You bet. The faithful people faithfully followed their church.  

Would we do the same? 

If there were no hammer of patriarchial authority demanding faithfulness, compliance, retribution as there was then? 

If there were only the sweet promise of diversity, inclusion, new life as there is now?

Would that be enough?  Or is it too late?