Photo of the Week

Women receive Minor Orders in Ecuador

A June 22, 2021 newsletter from the Pan-Amazonian Network (Rede Pan-Amazonica – REPAM) informs the public that five Kichwas Indians – two women and three men – received the minor orders of Lector and Acolyte this month. In his 1973 Apostolic Letter Ministeria quaedam, Paul VI renamed these orders as ministries. The orders were conferred by Bishop Rafael Cob of Puyo in the Ecuadorian Amazonia, above.

According to a new reform of these ministries made by Pope Francis in January 2021, a Lector is not only allowed to read a text in the Church but also to preach from the pulpit, and an Acolyte is not only an assistant to the Priest at the Mass but can also distribute Holy Eucharist.

Therefore, what this ceremony did was to sacramentally establish women preachers and women ministers of the Eucharist.

Although these functions have already been exercised in practice by many women around the world, until now their status was provisional and considered extraordinary. From this point on, we see that women can also acquire an officially defined sacramental status.

This ceremony is an important step on the road to the ordination of women Deacons and women Priests.

Photos from REPAM

Posted June 27, 2021

___________________________