Women Priests in Ancient Times?

[Lex]

'But the Vatican has dismissed them as pure "fable, a legend." ' The Vatican would say that, wouldn't it.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-25021623

[Margaret]

'But the Vatican has dismissed them as pure "fable, a legend." ' The Vatican would say that, wouldn't it.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-25021623




I'm afraid the Vatican is right to dismiss the pure fable that the early church had female priests. This was never so.
The fresco doesn't prove anything, in fact who knows if it is a male or female?
The Catholic church who the BBC like to single out and put in a bad light because they have an agenda against it, know full well that they are not the only religious organization that don't have women priests or bishops.


There were woman deacons in the early Church which was a position of officially appointed helper and nothing more; it was a position made for propriety when women were being Baptized by emersion, (think wet "t"shirt effect).

There were never any women priest, it was not sanctioned in Jewish Tradition and it wouldn't have been in the early Church, and Jesus being the most cultural revolutionary person of his time still appointed only men as his Apostles.

[Margaret]

The Catholic church doesn't bar women from taking part in the church activities. They can be readers, or on the church Council (decision making), lead prayer, lead RCIA classes, they can be altar servers, and much more.
The Catholic church is more enlightened in this day and age that people like to think.


I will mention though, that there are the very ultra traditional Catholics , they call themselves 'The Resistance' which includes priests, because they resist all the modernity and changes in the church since the second Vatican Council in 1962, which caused a split from Rome because they don't agree with the changes and think women should not have a role at all and should stay at home and do the cooking and look after the kids, should always wear modest clothing, and never be seen in trousers, don't go to university or go to work, that sort of old fashioned idea. There's lots more to the long and complicated history of Traditionalists versus Modernist Rome.