“Let’s take advantage of this Lent to question the place of women”

You call Catholic women to go on strike during Lent. That’s to say ?

Sylvaine Landrivon: We first want to say the importance of the 40 days of Lent, a favorable moment to question the place of women in the assemblies. In the Bible, 40 is a symbolic number evoking a time favorable to maturation, to question: Noah spends 40 days in the ark to escape the deluge, the people out of Egypt spends 40 years in the desert; Jesus withdrew 40 days in the desert …

Without women, many services would not work in parishes: catechesis, animation and preparation of celebrations, funeral, maintenance of churches, for example. And the last synod in Rome did not advance their status by one millimeter.

Concretely, what does this strike consist of?

We invite Catholic women to refuse during Lent the various services they usually render to mass: speech readers, animators of songs, participating in choirs, or in the altar service. Their absence will show the place they hold.

They can also put a word in the quest baskets “I am a woman, on strike” instead of their offering, or carry a badge, to cause exchanges. Or simply pray to support a renewed church that recognizes the co -responsibility and equal dignity of women.

The word “” strike »evokes social struggles between bosses and employees. You apply it to parish communities. The provocation register exposes you to misunderstanding …

It is an arrest, not a provocation. The word also refers to Lysistrata, an Aristophane comedy (4th before J.-C.) in which women refuse to their husbands as long as they persist in going to war. It is an existential struggle. We mean: take advantage of this Lent to look at our Church differently.

The movement “Catholic Women’s strike” was initiated by the conference for the ordination of women (Women Conference Organization), an American association. Do you get your militancy for the ordination of women deacons, priests, and bishops?

At the skirt committee, we have two currents. The main current militates for the ordination of women, the other, which I support, is not favorable. I think Christ has requested complete horizontality. Each baptized is “priest, prophet and king”.

The ministries should for this reason be entrusted in communities to people elected according to their charisma, for a determined time, in order to avoid clericalism, abuses of power and breach of trust.

Ministries on the model of Protestantism?

No ! I do not question the sacraments, or rather, only the sacrament of order, because it does not in accordance with what I read in the Gospel.

The share of women. Reread the Bible to rethink the churchfrom Sylvaine Landrivon, ed. De l’Atelier, 2024, 20 €

International Catholic Women’s strike – Skirt Committee