No Girls Allowed

This is starting to remind me of those old Leave It To Beaver/Little Rascals type shows where the boys had a clubhouse with signs prohibiting "girls" posted on every open space. Theoretically, at least, a woman could be elected President of the United States and, hence, leader of the free world. Imagine Condoleeza Rice or Hillary Clinton being relegated to "social and spiritual support" roles (okay, I'm sure there are many who'd like to see both of them taken down a peg or two). Though I won't get into why I am not a practicing Catholic again, things like this make it impossible for me to imagine returning to the Church as an active participant.

Though the first day of deliberations ended with black smoke coming from the Sistine Chapel's chimney, it seems to be all but guaranteed that views on the role of women will not change with the election of a new Pope.

"As conservative as the late pope was, this actually represents a step backward for the cardinals he appointed. In 1995, John Paul II wrote a letter to the women of the world. In it, he reiterated his opposition to women priests and clearly recast women in their traditional roles as social and spiritual support personnel. But he also explicitly apologized for the church's historical role in promoting sexism and affirmed that social injustices arising from gender inequality are contrary to both the spirit and the letter of Catholic theology. Something changed in the ensuing 10 years.

Swiss theologian Hans Kung, a progressive on whom John Paul II placed what amounted to a gag order in 1979 when he had the temerity to publicly dispute papal infallibility, recently told Reuters that he believes the papal conclave is being manipulated by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger. As head of the College of Cardinals, and by some lights a serious papal contender himself, Ratzinger is arguably the most influential prelate in the Vatican.

In 2004, Ratzinger wrote a letter to the bishops of the world reaffirming the historical subordination of women and attacking feminism as a destructive force within Catholicism. Whether or not Ratzinger becomes pope or bends the conclave to his will in other ways (such as putting John Paul II on a fast track to sainthood), it is a sure bet that his colleagues and he will be in agreement when it comes to women's continuing limited role in the church."