Minnesota women head to Rome in an effort to open the Catholic Church to female deacons

"I have a deacon in me," Jane Cavanaugh told St. Joan of Arc parishioners in Minneapolis at a recent Mass.

She's hoping that Pope Francis might agree and open this important role, currently limited to men, to Catholic women.

This week, Cavanaugh and several other Twin Cities women are taking that hope with them to Rome, traveling as part of Discerning Deacons, an international group working to foster conversations about women becoming deacons.

"I have a gift to translate theological concepts clearly, so that people understand that word. It is something I'm wired to do, and I do it naturally. The Holy Spirit poured its gift on me," said Cavanaugh, a retreat director who lives in Edina. "My gifts would match the deacon [position] very well."

Cardinals, archbishops, bishops and — for the first time — lay Catholics from around the world are discussing the possibility of women becoming deacons along with other sensitive topics such as priestly celibacy and the blessing of gay couples as part of Francis' global Synod on Synodality meeting taking place this month in Rome.

From Minnesota, Bishop Robert Barron of the Diocese of Winona-Rochester is among the 365 voting delegates, as is Cynthia Bailey Manns, director of adult learning at St. Joan of Arc Catholic Community in Minneapolis, a member of Archbishop Bernard Hebda's lay advisory board and part of the local leadership team for Discerning Deacons.

Bailey Manns is one of only 10 lay Catholics from North America selected by the pope as a delegate, and one of 54 women from around the world.

Delegates avoid talking to the press during the synod, and Bailey Manns did not respond to a request for comment. She has, however, been sharing updates on the meeting, which runs until Oct. 29, through her church's website.

"How did I get here?, is the question I asked myself as I walked in the Synod Opening Mass processional in St. Peter's Square. I reminded myself to 'be here now!' I am aware of the Holy Spirit moving throughout the crowd," she wrote on Oct. 4, the first day of the meeting.

Following St. Phoebe

No final decisions will be made during this synod, but delegates will vote on which topics — collected during last year's worldwide listening process — to take forward for another year of "discerning," or thinking deeply and prayerfully deciding.

The issue is top of mind, however, for Discerning Deacons deputy director of engagement, Lisa Amman, who lives in St. Paul.

"In our church teachings, it says that women and men are equal in their baptismal dignity in God. But it doesn't feel that way if only men are always speaking," said Amman.

As ordained Catholic ministers, deacons help priests by preaching the homily, proclaiming the Gospel, assisting at the altar and connecting with those in need.

Without the ability to become a deacon, Catholic women's roles are more limited, Amman said. They are allowed to give some readings, including psalms, but can't tell stories about Jesus during Mass. They can hold staff positions such as director of social justice, but without the recognition or authority of a formal role, she said. They also can't be military chaplains or chaplains in most prisons or immigrant detention centers.

"There are a lot of women who do those ministries inside of churches, doing ministry of justice and service and connecting the community, but like with one of your hands tied behind your back," she said.

In Rome, Amman, Cavanaugh and other members of the group will be hosting workshops for college students, meeting with synod delegates and promoting women deacons with people from around the world.

Amman and other Discerning Deacons members were able to meet Pope Francis in 2021. They gave him an artwork of St. Phoebe the deaconess, a reminder that women were deacons in the early Catholic Church.

For hundreds of years, the role of deacon was a step to becoming a priest. More recently, men have been allowed to become permanent deacons.

If the role of deacon does open to women, Amman said she and her husband would begin the process to become deacons. Five other women in her parish, St. Thomas More Catholic Church in St. Paul, told her they would consider it, too.

"I thought I was the only person who would like to try this out. And so I didn't tell anybody for like 20 years," she said. "But when I started speaking about it, I realized there's a lot of people who, if this were to be open, they would love to see if this is the right fit for themselves."