Catholic Belgian university ‘deplores’ comments by Pope Francis moments after speech | Pope Francis
Pope Francis has been harshly criticized by one of Belgium's Catholic universities for its stance on the role of women in society in a strongly worded press release issued shortly after the Pope's address there.
Professors and students at the University of Leuven, where the 87-year-old pontiff spoke on Saturday afternoon, said they wanted to express their “incomprehension and disapproval” of his views.
“UC Louvain deplores the conservative position expressed by Pope Francis regarding the role of women in society,” the university said in a statement about the Pope, unusual language for a Catholic university.
Francisco visited the university on Saturday as part of a weekend trip to Belgium to celebrate its upcoming 600th anniversary. His speech primarily called for global action on climate change, but he also responded to letters from students and professors who questioned the Catholic Church's teachings on women.
In letters read to him, students questioned him about the Church's historical role in the entrenchment of women's subordination, the unjust division of labor, and even the disproportionate poverty of women.
“Throughout the history of the church, women have been invisible,” the letter said. “So what is the place of women in the church?”
Francis responded that the church is a woman, pointing out that the Italian word for church, “chiesa,” is a feminine noun.
“Women in God's people are daughters, sisters, and mothers,” she said, “and womanhood speaks to us of fruitful welcome, nurturing, and life-giving devotion.” he added.
He did not go into detail about potential reform plans.
A statement from the university called the Pope's position on the role of women in society “deterministic and reductive.”
“We're really shocked,” said 22-year-old student Valentine Hendricks. “He reduces us to child-bearers, mothers, wives, all the roles we want to liberate ourselves from.”
Jean-Pascal van Ypersele, a climatologist at the University of California, Leuven, said Francisco “was unable to face the situation.”
“Answering that the church is about women really misses the point of the question, which is about the church's respect for women and the role of women in institutions and society,” he said.
Earlier, the pope visited the tomb of King Baudouin of Belgium, who famously refused to sign a law eliminating penalties for abortion in 1990, citing personal beliefs.
Francis described the bill (passed after the king temporarily relinquished his duties to avoid approval) as a “murder law.”
Francisco has faced criticism for incidents during his visit to Belgium. The country's king and prime minister call on the pope to take more concrete action to support victims of abuse by Catholic clergy, and the president of another Catholic university calls for reconsidering the Catholic Church's ban on ordaining women as priests. asked the Pope to do so.
UC Leuven is a French-speaking university located in Belgium. 38,000 students study in 20 faculties.
All clergy in the Catholic Church are men. Francis has set up two commissions to consider whether women can serve as deacons, who are ordained like priests but cannot celebrate Mass, but no progress has been made on the issue. do not have.
But during his 11 years as pope, Francis changed the Vatican's main governing documents to allow women to head departments and for the first time to allow women to vote in the world's major bishops' conferences, known as synods. .
The church's dark legacy of child sexual abuse dominated much of the pope's three-day visit to Belgium, where he met with 17 victims on Friday.
The Vatican said the group shared their stories and expressed their hopes to the pope, who “heeded” their request.
Belgium has been rocked by abuse scandals and cover-ups for decades, with a scathing documentary last year bringing the issue back to the front pages and prompting new victims to come forward.
In an open letter this month, some people called on the Pope to address pedophilia and establish a process for financial reparations.
Francis was pressed on the issue for the second day in a row Saturday morning at a meeting with clergy and pastoral staff at the vast Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Brussels.
In response to a question from a representative of an organization that supports abuse victims, the pope acknowledged the “terrible suffering and hurt” the church had caused.
“It takes a lot of compassion to make the victims feel close to us, so that we don't harden our hearts in the face of their suffering,” Francisco said.
Reuters and Agence France-Presse contributed to this report.
Catholic Belgian university ‘deplores’ comments by Pope Francis moments after speech | Pope Francis
Pope Francis has been harshly criticized by one of Belgium's Catholic universities for its stance on the role of women in society in a strongly worded press release issued shortly after the Pope's address there.
Professors and students at the University of Leuven, where the 87-year-old pontiff spoke on Saturday afternoon, said they wanted to express their “incomprehension and disapproval” of his views.
“UC Louvain deplores the conservative position expressed by Pope Francis regarding the role of women in society,” the university said in a statement about the Pope, unusual language for a Catholic university.
Francisco visited the university on Saturday as part of a weekend trip to Belgium to celebrate its upcoming 600th anniversary. His speech primarily called for global action on climate change, but he also responded to letters from students and professors who questioned the Catholic Church's teachings on women.
In letters read to him, students questioned him about the Church's historical role in the entrenchment of women's subordination, the unjust division of labor, and even the disproportionate poverty of women.
“Throughout the history of the church, women have been invisible,” the letter said. “So what is the place of women in the church?”
Francis responded that the church is a woman, pointing out that the Italian word for church, “chiesa,” is a feminine noun.
“Women in God's people are daughters, sisters, and mothers,” she said, “and womanhood speaks to us of fruitful welcome, nurturing, and life-giving devotion.” he added.
He did not go into detail about potential reform plans.
A statement from the university called the Pope's position on the role of women in society “deterministic and reductive.”
“We're really shocked,” said 22-year-old student Valentine Hendricks. “He reduces us to child-bearers, mothers, wives, all the roles we want to liberate ourselves from.”
Jean-Pascal van Ypersele, a climatologist at the University of California, Leuven, said Francisco “was unable to face the situation.”
“Answering that the church is about women really misses the point of the question, which is about the church's respect for women and the role of women in institutions and society,” he said.
Earlier, the pope visited the tomb of King Baudouin of Belgium, who famously refused to sign a law eliminating penalties for abortion in 1990, citing personal beliefs.
Francis described the bill (passed after the king temporarily relinquished his duties to avoid approval) as a “murder law.”
Francisco has faced criticism for incidents during his visit to Belgium. The country's king and prime minister call on the pope to take more concrete action to support victims of abuse by Catholic clergy, and the president of another Catholic university calls for reconsidering the Catholic Church's ban on ordaining women as priests. asked the Pope to do so.
UC Leuven is a French-speaking university located in Belgium. 38,000 students study in 20 faculties.
All clergy in the Catholic Church are men. Francis has set up two commissions to consider whether women can serve as deacons, who are ordained like priests but cannot celebrate Mass, but no progress has been made on the issue. do not have.
But during his 11 years as pope, Francis changed the Vatican's main governing documents to allow women to head departments and for the first time to allow women to vote in the world's major bishops' conferences, known as synods. .
The church's dark legacy of child sexual abuse dominated much of the pope's three-day visit to Belgium, where he met with 17 victims on Friday.
The Vatican said the group shared their stories and expressed their hopes to the pope, who “heeded” their request.
Belgium has been rocked by abuse scandals and cover-ups for decades, with a scathing documentary last year bringing the issue back to the front pages and prompting new victims to come forward.
In an open letter this month, some people called on the Pope to address pedophilia and establish a process for financial reparations.
Francis was pressed on the issue for the second day in a row Saturday morning at a meeting with clergy and pastoral staff at the vast Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Brussels.
In response to a question from a representative of an organization that supports abuse victims, the pope acknowledged the “terrible suffering and hurt” the church had caused.
“It takes a lot of compassion to make the victims feel close to us, so that we don't harden our hearts in the face of their suffering,” Francisco said.
Reuters and Agence France-Presse contributed to this report.
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