Women Who Stay

The Women Who Stay ministry at St. Ignatius Catholic Community explores and advocates for the full participation of all of the faithful in the life of the Church and the inclusion of women in her governance and sacramental ministry.

• We study Scripture, scholarly commentary, theology and history.
• We stay abreast of news, advancements and challenges in the Church.
• We develop responses to events relevant to our mission.
• We collaborate with other ministries within and beyond St. Ignatius and with other organizations whose mission and work coincide with ours.

We sponsor an annual symposium with an expert on a timely topic, which attracts attendees from other churches.

Through all of these activities, we seek to discern our own roles and to pave the way for future generations of girls and young women coming of age as leaders in the Church.

We recognize today that the church is in need of reform and needs to include women. Currently, the Church is a patriarchy and that is not acceptable to women.

We call our ministry The Women Who Stay because we love the church that Jesus has given us yet. We are unhappy to be dismissed as invaluable and not equal members. Together we must voice our need to take a crucial part in reforming the church that exists today.

Exploring the history and contributions of the women of the church from the earliest days of existence beginning with Mary Magdalene to the present day will allow us to define what is the culture of the church that we want to exist.

Join us so that together we are not just staying because it’s been the church we knew, but we are staying because it is a church that we love and can be equal members.