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Article: Women have received Holy Orders.
- Article from:
- National Catholic Reporter
- Article date:
- September 3, 1999
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1999 National Catholic Reporter. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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St. John Chrysostom, archbishop of Constantinople, enjoyed the ministry of 40 women deacons in his cathedral parish alone. One of them, Olympias, pleaded his case at court during his exile. Another, called Salvina, corresponded with St. Jerome. Also, St. Basil the Great's sister, Macrina, was a deaconess. The burning question about these women is not whether they were saintly and powerful personalities -- which no one doubts -- but whether they were real deacons. Had they been validly ordained?
The continuing impasse in the church regarding the ordination of women to the priesthood has entered a new phase. Ancient rituals preserved on precious parchment disclose ...