Letters

Women's report: a reply (letter)

Dr Marie McDonald

Contents - May 2000 - Buy a copy now Editorial: Australian Catholic Bishops' Conference - Michael Gilchrist Australian Catholic University student survey - Michael Gilchrist News: The Church Around the World How do we know whether a sacrament is valid or not? - Fr Peter Joseph The priesthood: John Paul II's Holy Thursday Letter sets guidelines - Pope John Paul II What are the foundations of a good Catholic education? - Dr. John J. Haldane Understanding the Incarnation - Msgr Peter J. Elliott Books: Francis Thompson: author of 'The Hound of Heaven' - Michael Daniel How the future John Paul II saved a Jewish girl's life - Zenit News Service Letters: Women's report: a reply (letter) - Dr Marie McDonald Letters: Nothing to do? (letter) - Frank Mobbs Letters: More on Adelaide (letter) - Margret E. Mills Letters: Women in the Church (letter) - Marie Kennedy Letters: 'Day of Pardon' (letter) - Paul MacLeod Letters: Reply to Fr Frank Brennan (letter) - Richard Egan Letters: God's love (letter) - Justin Ford Letters: EWTN visit (letter) - Mike Keating Letters: Mixed marriages (letter) - John Schmidt Letters: Archbishop Pell defended (letter) - Fr Kevin Ryan Letters: Year of the Lord (letter) - Fr Chrysostom Alexander Books: 'Three Inns of Everlasting Happiness' by Fr Fabian Duggan - Catherine Sheehan (reviewer) Books: 'The Wisdom of Adrian Fortescue' ed. Michael Davies - Michael Daniel (reviewer) Books: 'The Legacy of Pope John Paul II' ed. Geoffrey Gneuhs - Anthony Cappello (reviewer) Books: 'The Ever-Illuminating Wisdom of St Thomas Aquinas' by Peter Kreeft et al - Tracey Rowland (reviewer) Reflection: Mary's divine motherhood: central to God's plan of salvation - Sr Mary Augustine Lane OP

A letter by Mrs S. Stapelton (March AD2000) states that the report Woman and Man: One in Christ Jesus is not "a true reflection of the majority of Catholic women's viewpoints, but is indeed the manipulated concoction of the groans and grievances of a minority wishing to hold positions of power in the Queensland/Australian Church." To illustrate this point, she describes her experience at the gathering of women held in Brisbane in 1998.

I wish to correct the misunderstanding that this meeting in Brisbane was connected with the research project related to the participation of women in the Catholic Church in Australia, commissioned by the Australian Catholic Bishops' Conference.

On 21 August 1996, Cardinal Clancy launched the national study, which involved a variety of research methods, including public hearings. The public hearings, which took place in 23 centres around Australia, were conducted between 13 May and 24 July 1997; the hearings in Brisbane were held on 5, 6 and 7 June 1997. The hearings consisted of oral presentations by individuals and groups; there were no group discussions as described in Mrs Stapelton's letter. It would appear that Mrs Stapelton is referring to an activity undertaken by the Archdiocese of Brisbane's Women's Taskgroup.

At the conclusion of each day of hearings, a synthesis of the hearing was prepared by the panel members, including the Bishop. Written presentations from people who did not have the opportunity to present at hearings were included in a national synthesis. All points recorded in the synthesis of each hearing were incorporated into the findings of the public hearings.

Expert external evaluators, commissioned by the Bishops, have praised the dedication and professionalism of those involved in the preparation of the Report. For example, the conclusion of one of the evaluations sums up the quality of the Report in the following manner: "The Readers and the Bishops' Committee for Justice, Development and Peace can rest assured that the data presented is a valid and sound reflection of the current attitudes of practising Catholics. The researchers are to be congratulated with some degree of awe at the extent of the comprehensibility of their study. It is bound to be unique of its kind."

MARIE MacDONALD (DR)
Project Co-ordinator
"Participation of Women in the Catholic Church in Australia"
North Sydney, NSW

Reprinted from AD2000 Vol 13 No 4 (May 2000), p. 14