On May 29, Monica Kilburn Smith of Calgary will be welcomed into the small worldwide community of female Roman Catholic priests.Her ordination ceremony will take place in a United Church in Victoria and, of course, will not be recognized by the global Roman Catholic Church.
However, Kilburn Smith and local supporters of major reform within the world's largest Christian church say it will be one more small step in a campaign to bring up questions, start discussion, open eyes and, eventually, win hearts.
"Many Catholics, both women and men, have been working for change within the church for centuries," says Kilburn Smith, a chaplain with the Calgary Health Region.
"But the Roman Catholic Womenpriests movement is doing something tangible about it. It seems prophetic and courageous, something I feel called to be a part of."
The first ordinations of Catholic women as priests were held in 2002 in Europe. More than 50 women, including two other Canadians, have taken the bold step since then.
Kilburn Smith says she's eager to play a pastoral role for what she believes is a growing community of people who feel disconnected from the current church, but who remain Catholic at heart.
Local members of a group called Friends of Vatican II, who are working for reform within the Catholic church, say they don't hide their opinions when talking to other Catholics, but they don't actively try to proselytize.
"It comes up in conversations after church and in other settings," says Shelagh Mikulak.
"I think there are a lot of Catholics who wouldn't have a problem with female priests, but they don't feel comfortable to come out in the open with their support."
Those actively seeking reform have been holding silent vigils across the street from St. Mary's, the Calgary Catholic diocese cathedral, for the past few years during holy week.
Some women who have been ordained as priests have been excommunicated from the Catholic fold. Reform supporters say they're not looking to pick a fight with the Vatican, but they steadfastly maintain their position is an elemental matter of conscience and justice deeply rooted in their faith.
"It's not about being contentious, but we believe there's a need for reform within the church to welcome both women and married male priests," says Fred Williams.
"Clearly the law is unjust. These people want to follow their conscience and their spiritual calling and to deny that is wrong."
Kilburn Smith says she and other Roman Catholic women priests value the sacramental tradition of their church, but are practising a non-clerical, non-hierarchical form of ordained ministry.
"It's leadership modelled on Jesus' example of inclusivity and non-judgmental love," she says.
Kilburn Smith says her concept of a priest's role is, among other things, one who is "the holder of the sacred space" and who, like many, feels moved to use his or her God-given gifts in compassionate ministry.
"Jesus says the Kingdom of God is within you, and that statement doesn't just apply to men. We are each called to minister in our own way. I believe being a priest is my way."
Kilburn Smith says the historic Catholic rejection of a female priesthood is akin to "gender apartheid" and amounts to a tragic waste of human potential at a time when many Catholic parishes worldwide are without priests.Supporter Angelina Waldon draws a comparison to the American civil rights movement and its early pioneers who faced entrenched attitudes with courage.
"It's like Rosa Parks; someone, somewhere has to be the first to stand up for what is right," says Waldon.
Kilburn Smith says she and other Catholic women who aspire to the priesthood are often asked why they don't simply move to another Christian denomination, such as Anglican, United or Presbyterian, where female clergy are welcomed.
"I'm Catholic in my bones," she says. "If you want to bring about change, you have to stay within, not walk away and give up. If we didn't care about the church and its future, we wouldn't be doing this."
Supporter Catherine Williams adds, "We the people are the church, not the buildings or the hierarchy."
Will supporters of a female Catholic priesthood see their vision embraced by the church in their lifetime?
"I have to believe it will happen," says Mikulak. "Gender equality is now established in so many other segments of society. But it took courageous women, and courageous men who supported them, to make it happen."
As the spring sun warms the earth and thoughts turn to the leafy renewal of spring, Kilburn Smith is convinced a more inclusive Catholic Church will bloom in the years ahead.
"This is a transition time in the Catholic world. We've been a long time in that moist soil," Kilburn Smith says of those advocating for renewal.
"But now we are starting to sprout up. There is nothing that lives that does not change."
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