LCWR announces decision to continue to dialogue on Vatican assessment

August 11, 2012: Members of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious announced Aug. 10 at the close of their four-day assembly in St. Louis that they will continue to dialogue with church officials about the Vatican's doctrinal assessment of their organization. LCWR's outgoing president, Franciscan Sister Pat Farrell, said the group's leaders would begin dialogue with Seattle Archbishop J. Peter Sartain, who is charged with overseeing the group's reform and was expected to attend the organization's board meeting Aug. 11.
In issuing the assessment in April, the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith said a reform of LCWR was needed to ensure its fidelity to Catholic teaching in areas including abortion, euthanasia, women's ordination and homosexuality. Sister Farrell said the LCWR members hoped its leaders would have "open and honest dialogue" that would lead to greater understanding and to greater opportunities for women to have a voice in the church.
She said the officers would "proceed with these discussions as long as possible but would reconsider if LCWR is forced to compromise the integrity of its mission." When asked during an afternoon news conference how the group would be able to dialogue on issues of doctrine, Sister Farrell said that "dialogue on doctrine will not be our starting point." She also said the LCWR officials cannot speculate how the dialogue will proceed but will see "how it unfolds."