ROME — In a historic first, Pope Francis announced his intention to include two women on the commission that will advise him on choosing bishops, in an interview published Wednesday. In the interview with Reuters, conducted on July 2 at his residence, Francis said that “he is open to giving [women] an opportunity”, including the laity, to take more top positions in the administration, as a recent reform of the Vatican Curia has allowed. “Two women will be appointed for the first time to the commission to elect bishops in the Church for Bishops,” he said, stopping short of naming names or offering a time frame for the nomination. “That way, things open up a little bit.” Is Pope Francis nearing the end of his term? Giovanni Maria Vian, former editor of the Vatican newspaper and historian of early Christianity, called it “an unprecedented message, and indeed a welcome one, desired by the vast majority of believers, not just the public. opinion.” “There may have been exceptions for 19 centuries, but as a rule the choice of the ruling class of the Roman church was always strictly internal,” he told the Washington Post. In the interview, Francis noted how, for the first time, he chose a woman, Sister Raffaella Petrini, to fill the No. 2 position of governor of the city-state. Francis, who has hired other nuns and laywomen to lead Vatican departments, also told Reuters of the possibility of hiring women to head the Department of Catholic Education and Culture, as well as the Apostolic Library — both of which he currently run by men. Some Vatican watchers, however, said they were not convinced that Francis’ move — if it actually happens — would have much of an impact. “When more women are involved, I’m just happy, but we’re very late to this party,” said theologian Cettina Militello, the president of Woman and Christianity at the Marianum, a Pontifical Institute in Rome. “It should have been obvious, as the [whole] God’s people must be included, just like in the ancient church,” he said, noting that change can be limited by the thinking of the particular women chosen. “Women who guarantee continuity, possibly conservative, are still mostly preferred.” Lucetta Scaraffia, founder of an all-women Vatican monthly, was equally uncertain. “I’m always very skeptical of these appeals from above, of women chosen by the hierarchy, who are very obedient and will only do what the priests want,” he said. The naming of bishops is not only up to the advisory council, Scarafia said, but also involves assessments conducted locally, where written statements are required from many people, including bishops, priests and male officials. “But women’s opinions are rarely taken away. Even if they are Senior Generals, nuns who would know the candidate well and would also be more free to speak as they are not their competitors,” he said. No matter what happens on the board, Scarafia said, if women are not equally heard during these local evaluations, the appointment of bishops will never change.
