The Authority of Women in the Catholic Church

by Monica Migliorino Miller, Scott Hahn (Foreword)

The Authority of Women in the Catholic Church elucidates the essential role women play in the covenant of salvation. With the support of Scripture, the writings of the Fathers of the Church, and contemporary theological insights, Monica Migliorino Miller explains how Christian women exemplify the reality of the Church in relation to Christ and the ministerial priesthood. While providing a fascinating response to contemporary feminist theology, The Authority of Women in the Catholic Church clarifies the meaning of authentic feminine authority so needed in the Church today.

Genres: Catholic, Religion, Faith, Theology

203 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 27, 2015

Reviews

[Rachel Wong · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very thorough book that engages feminist theology to explore the true meaning of the authority of women in the Catholic Church. Many books I’ve read on this topic barely touch the discourse around female ordination and the importance of male/female roles in the Church as intensely as Miller does in this book. I really appreciated her analysis and breaking open the complementary nature of male vs female and the respective roles played in the Church and salvation history.

[Madeleine Lesieutre · Rating 2 out of 5]

Man, oh man. I learned that the real question I should be asking is “what ‘power’ do women have in the Catholic Church?” Because the author twists the definition of ‘authority’ to the point where I’m not even entirely sure what she meant by it by the end of the book, but I know that with the help of a little Latin, she managed to make it into something that resembles nothing of what we understand the word to mean today.

We spend most of the time on the question of why women can never be ordained. Her main premises were 1) Your gender is essential to who you are 2) Symbolism holds significance in our positions and lives. Quoting Augustine, she says that God is father and the church is mother. Priests physically represent the fatherly role of God, so of course they can’t be women. Miller assures us though that the symbolic representation of the church as mother is just as important and that the worship of the congregation has an inherently feminine quality. This feminine symbolism is obviously not as important though, because men participate in the worship of the congregation. The symbolism completely falls apart on one side, so I don’t see why it’s such a big deal for the symbolism to “fall apart” on the other side as well.

The author also audaciously claims that the only reason people would want to abolish an all male clergy is because they want to abolish the clergy all together.


I give this more than one star though, because of the engaging reflections on female saints and pro-woman church father quotes.

[Bernadette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very thought provoking. Clearly accomplished it’s mission by making me rethink many assumptions and beliefs that I was so confident about. Authority does not equal power. Authority is really influence. You don’t need to have a title to be an influencer.

[Valerie Barnes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very meaty- a book to be read slowly and thoughtfully. Excellent!

[Pat · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for Catholic women

[Stuart · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Authority of Women in the Catholic Church is a 200 page treatise written by Dr. Monica Migliorino Miller. The book begins with a foreword by Dr. Scott Hahn, who explains that gender is the topic of our generation. He then lends support to Dr. Miller and explains that this book will contain nothing novel, but instead, be rooted in the tradition of St. Paul and the Early Church Fathers. Dr. Miller then begins her first chapter with a personal story of how she was arrested protesting a National Organization for Women (NOW) rally in 1987. While she was briefly in prison, she met many women who were victims of domestic violence, and found it ironic that the NOW women were nowhere to be found to help these battered women. This leads to the beginning of her discussion on the role of women in the Catholic Church, the meaning of authority, and how authority can properly be understood within the context of the Trinity.

The book continues with a chapter devoted to how radical feminism is in direct conflict with Jesus and the Catholic Church. In fact, in this radical feminist worldview, there is no place for Jesus or the priesthood of Christ. Dr. Miller then transitions into male authority in the Catholic Church. The prime example is of course Jesus. However, Jesus' authority is not the type of authority we see from a superior, but as one who sacrificed His life for us. She then uses the scriptural passage of Ephesians, about husbands and wives, to further crystallize her point. This leads to the authority of male priests in the Catholic Church and how Christ's sacrifice is the ultimate example of a nuptial mystery. This is shown in the Church every time a priest says Mass and consecrates the bread and wine into the Body and Blood. The remaining chapters discuss the authority of Mary, how the Church Fathers viewed the authority of women, the authority of women in the Church, and examples (both Biblical and saints) of mothers of the Church.

Overall, this was book was exactly what I thought it was going to be. If you are looking for a book that is going to re-write history or bang the drum for women priests, then look elsewhere. If instead you are looking for an intelligent explanation of women's authority in the Church, with Scripture; the Church Fathers; and two millennia of Tradition as your guide, then this is the book for you. This book is not an attack on feminists, but an invitation to see what role women already have in the Church. It is also an excellent source when it comes to the discussion of gender. Dr. Miller doesn't seek to equate man and woman, but she instead shows that the two are different and complementary. Sadly, this book probably won't convince the staunchest of feminists, but hopefully, it will be eye-opening for the genuine seeker of what the Church teaches on women and their role in the Church.

[Argum · Rating 4 out of 5]

I finished this book after the vigil Mass for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception which was quite fitting. This book sets out to dispel the idea that women are subjugated to a lesser role in the Church which generally centers on the lack of authority that comes from an all male priesthood. The feminists she argues against I would swear were straw men except that she footnotes the things she is arguing against. This book does call to mind the old Fulton Sheen quote about few people hating the Church and millions who hate what they think she is. This book mixes theological arguments about the gendered nature of both Christ and His Church and the role of Mary as Co Redemptrix that I am not sure a non Catholic would accept as proof. However, on its most basic level I would think that most Catholics will recognize the language about gender - Holy Mother Church, Hail Marys, and even the Eucharistic prayers all drive home that the Church loves and reveres women to anyone the slightest bit paying attention. Miller's arguments then take that a step further and develops the argument with a strong grounding in the Church Fathers. I do think that the author might be a little on the far right with a dig at female altar servers and focus on prolife causes, but this actually amplifies the point that she is trying to make - namely authority != power. Interesting perspective, but a bit of a hodge podge in terms of argument. Personally I feel there are some missed opportunities in glossing over the role of women in parish life as catechists and parish secretaries and Eucharistic Ministers and so forth and in the chapter on marriage that deacons cannot be ordained without the permission of their wives as an example of the supposedly patriarchal authority explicitly granting women the power she is stating exists. Enjoyed, but not sure who the audience is - non Catholics won't be convinced and I am not sure that Catholics unconvinced will be picking this up.