Father Roy Donovan, parish priest of Caheronlish, Limerick, has objected to the decision by his Archbishop Kieran O’Reilly of Cashel & Emly to introduce the permanent diaconate in his archdiocese. Donovan called on the archbishop to wait until the completion of a report by the papal commission on women deacons.
He further believes that “a woman could celebrate the Eucharist even better than a man being more familiar with the shedding of blood. A woman saying ‘this is my body, this is my blood’ can give more meaning to the Eucharist than any male celibate.”
The leadership of the radical Association of Catholic Priests fully supported Donovan, “We believe that proceeding with the introduction of male deacons at this time, and thereby adding another male clerical layer to ministry, is insensitive, disrespectful of women.”
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