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Our Mission
As People of God, we invite all to join us as we explore and promote full inclusivity within our Church. Our focus is on, but not restricted to, women’s participation in all aspects of ministry and leadership. 

Our Manifesto
The Roman Catholic Church has denied women full membership for most of its history.  Women are refused full sacramental privileges.  There are no female presiders in our liturgies.  Formal Church governance is exclusively male.  No women's voices influence decisions in Synods, including those focusing on marriage and family issues. Meanwhile, non-ordained males are allowed a vote.  A prime source of the Catholic Church's growing disconnect with younger members is its flagrant disregard for the dignity, rights, experience, and wisdom of  women.  Members of St. John XXIII Parish have joined together to advocate for recognizing the need for full membership for women in the Roman Catholic Church.  We realize that there may be different perspectives on what this might entail, but we are united in calling for an acknowledgment of the injustice women have faced.  We respectfully call for a full discussion of remedies and restoration. The EWC Manifesto is a statement of our vision for attaining this goal.

In Tutti Fratelli, Paragraph 23, Pope Francis said,  "Similarly, the organization of society is still far from reflecting clearly that women possess the same dignity and identical rights as men."

EWC Subcommittees
  • Steering Committee: Meets monthly as the leadership group, providing strategic direction. Curates monthly/bimonthly programming while also hosting regular discussion groups regarding gender equity and areas of reform within the Catholic church.
  • Inclusive Language: Focuses on promoting inclusive language in all aspects of our liturgical celebrations and parish communications.  In addition to being attentive to gender-inclusive language, our widening scope includes inclusive language regarding race, ability, age, ethnicity, and sexual preference
  • Women’s Voices: Gathers small groups of women to share their stories with each other as a way to widen the circle of community among women.
  • Program Planning Committee:  Engages notable theologians to further the understanding and discussion of the place of Women in the church. Discussion opportunities for continued education and faith formation have been provided at Come to the Table.  EWC programming is intended to build awareness about the inequities in the church and inspire our community to take action toward reforming exclusionary church policies.  

Ways to Get Involved
We invite all parishioners who have an interest in the topics below to join our efforts! We’re looking for those with the ability to work collaboratively with others and engage in civil discourse, event planning, and community outreach.
  • Gender equity 
  • Inclusion 
  • Elevating the role of the laity/lay leadership in the church
  • Institutional/Systemic change within the church 
  • Ecumenical outreach and collaboration
  • Intersectionality:  how race, class, and gender are interconnected regarding discrimination and exclusion within the church.  
  • Women's Ordination( to the diaconate and the priesthood

For More Information
Please contact us at catholicwomensequality@gmail.com or reach out to one of our Steering Committee members: Mary Signatur, Barb Koop, Mary Erickson, Sally Ryan, or Mary C. Miro.

Additional Resources