Anne Tropeano has chosen to be ordained as a Roman Catholic priest, thus breaking the Catholic Church's ban on the ordination of women and crossing the threshold of formal excommunication. "God is asking me to do this," she says.
Co-responsiblity is a common theme of events across the nation. Last week, the University of Notre Dame hosted a three-day conference "exploring co-responsibility for the mission of the church."
In 1974, they became the first women ordained to the Episcopal priesthood in the U.S. This November, five of them gathered again to celebrate the life of one of their own, Alison Cheek, who died Sept. 1.
Distinctly Catholic: Pope Francis' Aug. 4 letter to priests breathes faith, hope and charity. It will go down as one of the paradigmatic documents of this pontificate.
Your thoughts: Recently, James Carroll wrote an article for The Atlantic calling for the priesthood to be abolished. NCR published three different responses to Carroll's call.
Commentary: The Atlantic recently published James Carroll's "Abolish the Priesthood," a critique of clericalism. Beyond the article's headline, Carroll proposed ways that Catholics could reimagine tradition; he offered hope. Sadly, the piece brought together condemnations from both the Catholic right and left.
