Labor strikes frequently end by the parties meeting at the negotiating table to dialogue toward an agreement of terms.
For the past 40 days, the women of the Catholic church worldwide have withheld their time, their labor, and their financial resources as part of a global movement called Catholic Women Strike.
We did not arrive at a strike lightly; rather this response comes from generations of exclusion, frustration, advocating, and waiting for church leaders to correct the injustice of failing to honor women’s baptismal equality.
Most recently, the Synod on Synodality offered a glimpse of hope that women’s voices and vocations might finally be embraced, yet once again we were told the time is “not ripe” for women in ordained ministries. These were just a few headlines from the conclusion of the 2024 synodal assembly:
“Not ripe”...“No room for positive decision”...“Niche issue”...“Rushing is not the way to promote women today”...“More study is needed” ...“More maturation is needed”...“A step by step approach”...“When the time is right.”
Ordained men decide the parameters and pace of synodality, and when the time is “ripe” for women’s ministries. And they do so at an incalculable cost. The church has lost generations of women who endured the pain and humiliation of having to prove the validity of their calling.
Our strike is a declaration that we will no longer wait until ordained men decide the time is right. It is not our first step; but rather, a last resort when countless other attempts to persuade the church to follow the movement of the Holy Spirit have been met with resistance. But we remain hopeful that ultimately, the Spirit cannot be thwarted, and the church still can, and must, change.
Labor strikes frequently end by the parties meeting at the negotiating table to dialogue toward an agreement of terms.
As we enter Holy Week, we find ourselves reflecting on the table of the Last Supper, a table of justice, sacrificial love, and servant leadership. It is at this table that women gather as disciples to proclaim our truth: a Gospel, and a Catholic Church, without women has never existed and never will.
Many women will continue their strike until this truth is realized and celebrated, until the church removes all barriers to ministry and governance—including Holy Orders—for women and people of all genders. Some may return, renewed in their resolve to witness to the Easter promise of new life.
But all who participated in Catholic Women Strike have been touched by this collective and global witness for women’s equality.
We will continue to hold fast to our “terms,” and highlight that they share deep commonality with the conclusions outlined in the final document of the Synod on Synodality:
“Inequality between men and women is not part of God’s design.” (52)
We are baptized in the same Spirit, and experience the same fullness of Christ through our baptism. “There is nothing higher than this baptismal dignity, equally bestowed upon each person.” (21) God does not discriminate in calling God’s people to serve the Gospel. Women experience a tremendous and painful inequality in the church through the rejection of their vocations to ordained ministry, preaching, and leadership.
“There is no reason or impediment that should prevent women from carrying out leadership roles in the Church: what comes from the Holy Spirit cannot be stopped.” (60)
The Holy Spirit calls women, and people of all genders, to priesthood. This sincerely discerned call is too often dismissed, rejected, “in need of further study,” or even mocked by men with authority in the church. The only impediment to women exercising leadership and ordained ministry is the calcified system of patriarchy that cannot imagine them doing so. This barrier must, and will, fall.
“Women make up the majority of churchgoers and are often the first witnesses to the faith in families. They are active in the life of small Christian communities and parishes. They run schools, hospitals and shelters. They lead initiatives for reconciliation and promoting human dignity and social justice.” (60)
Without the labor, resources, and vocations of women, the church and social justice mission of the church would be diminished beyond recognition. Yet, women will persevere in oppressive systems in order to serve their communities—only to a point. Women today are walking away from a church that refuses to recognize their equality, and bringing their families with them. The presence of women in the pews is no longer a guarantee, and certainly will not be guaranteed in the generations to come if we maintain the patriarchal status quo.
There is a need for priests and bishops to “rediscover co-responsibility in the exercise of ministry, which includes collaboration with other members of the People of God.” (74)
Women have the gifts necessary to meet the needs of the people of God and should be allowed to use them in the way they are most called, whether that is ordained ministry, preaching, catechizing, service to people who are poor, or other ministries.
“We can live the communion that saves by walking in a synodal way, in the intertwining of our vocations, charisms and ministries, by going forth to meet everyone in order to bring the joy of the Gospel: communion with God, with the entire humanity and all of creation.” (154)
We must not hinder the “intertwining of our vocations” by dismissing outright the discerned calls from God to ordained ministry given to women. Women serving the people of God as ordained ministers would bring us closer to the fullness of the joy of the Gospel. It is a right, a calling, and a necessity.
In conclusion, please know: Women are organizing, networking, and uniting to work for equality in their church. Women are finding each other along the path toward justice and, at least for now, are willing to fight for the institutional church to catch up with their faith in the Gospel. This is an offering that cannot be squandered. And so today we share the gifts of the Catholic Women Strike, the energy, deep prayer, and struggling hope for the church, so ready for Resurrection. The time is now.
There comes a time to say, 'Enough!'
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There comes a time to say, 'Enough!' 〰️
Women, make your presence in the Church known by your absence.
This global witness for equality during Lent is an invitation to withdraw from systems of oppression and prepare the way for renewal and transformation.
We have been deeply inspired by the thoughtful conversations, courageous leadership, and creative spirit that has helped us arrive at this moment. The Catholic Women Strike has truly created a spark, and women around the world are coming together to issue their "no more" to a church that denies their equal place. The time is now!
So as we enter this sacred season, we remember:
Striking from sexism is a spiritual act. When we refuse to uphold unjust systems, we make space for something new. Let us break the chains that bind!
Resistance to patriarchy is obedience to God. Prophetic obedience is deep within our tradition. Obedience means listening. If we’re listening, if we’re paying attention, we’re called to resist.
Solidarity is our strength. The Catholic church has worked hard to disempower and divide women. Now is the time to come together and claim our power.
The Holy Spirit guides our creative resistance. Disruption of the status quo will look different for different people and different communities. Each witness has value and "counts" towards the greater movement.
We hold to the words of Pope Francis as we continue to pray for his health: "To stay close to God, we need to know how to set out; we must not be afraid to set out.” And so, our siblings in striking - onward!
So strike with humor, strike with joy. Pray with others and re-direct your giving. Refuse to cross even invisible picket lines. Then rejoice in the knowledge that “where two or three are gathered” there can be inclusive churches if we create them.
*
So strike with humor, strike with joy. Pray with others and re-direct your giving. Refuse to cross even invisible picket lines. Then rejoice in the knowledge that “where two or three are gathered” there can be inclusive churches if we create them. *
— Mary E. Hunt, P.hD, Co-Founder of Women’s Alliance for Theology Ethics and Ritual (WATER)
OUR MISSION
A project of the Women’s Ordination Conference, Catholic Women Strike seeks to remove all barriers to ministry and governance—including Holy Orders—for women and people of all genders, through withholding women’s time, labor, and resources from the Catholic Church for the duration of Lent 2025.
“If women do not feel comfortable in the church, we have failed.”
— Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich
Why support the Catholic Women Strike?
See where we’re striking:
In the news
Radio Krakow: „Nie jesteśmy ozdobą Kościoła, jesteśmy jego połową”. Katoliczki protestowały w Krakowie
Kobiety spotkały się na placu św. Marii Magdaleny w Krakowie, miały ze sobą transparenty z wymownymi hasłami – „Gdyby nie kobiety, Ewangelia nie wyszłaby z grobu”, „Nie jesteśmy ozdobą Kościoła, jesteśmy jego połową”, „Apostołka Junia pyta, gdzie jej następczynie”.
The women met on the square of St. Mary Magdalene in Krakow, they had banners with eloquent slogans - "If it were not for women, the Gospel would not have come out of the grave", "We are not an ornament of the Church, we are its half", "Apostle Junia asks where her successor is".
Katholisch: Catholic women's groups call for global strike in the church
"The Catholic Women's Strike transforms frustration into creative resistance," said CWC European Chairwoman Regina Franken. During last year's Synod on Synodality in the Vatican, women learnt how enriching the solidarity of women is and that they have a right to equality. The synod had raised hopes that the church could finally move towards the equal inclusion of women in the life of the church. However, the consultations ended without any clear reform steps for women in church ministry.
Religion News Service: Catholic women go on Lenten strike to highlight their work in the church
(RNS) — As Lent began on Ash Wednesday (March 5), Catholic women frustrated over being disenfranchised by the church despite promises of greater recognition are going on strike, withholding numerous services and ministries to their Catholic parishes, schools and universities.
Organized by the Women’s Ordination Conference, a 50-year-old group based in Rome that advocates for women to be made priests, bishops and deacons, the Catholic Women Strike is planned to go through Easter, April 20. It also includes a day of action on March 9, where women are invited to protest and advocate for greater inclusion and influence in the church.
“We’re calling the women of the Catholic Church to join together in striking from sexism by withholding labor, time and financial resources from the church during Lent,” said Kate McElwee, executive director of the Women’s Ordination Conference.
National Catholic Reporter: Catholic women urged to 'strike' over inequality in the church
What would the Catholic Church do without women? If some activists have their way, we're about to find out.
A new project is urging women to strike by withholding time, labor and financial resources from the church during Lent, which begins March 5. The planned action is in response to the Vatican's synod on synodality, which concluded in October without action on women's leadership, including the opening of ordination to the diaconate or priesthood.
"The strike is for Catholics who are looking for a way to express their disappointment, frustration or anger at an institution that refuses to recognize the equal dignity of half of its members," said Kate McElwee, executive director of the Women's Ordination Conference, which is organizing the strike.
VG: Katolske kvinner oppfordres til streik
Katolske kvinner verden over oppfordres nå til å gå til streik mot kirken i protest mot manglende fremgang i spørsmålet om kvinnelige prester, skriver The Guardian.
Kampanjen «Catholic Women Strike: Global Witness for Equality» ble lansert tidligere denne måneden.
Den oppfordrer kvinner som går regelmessig i katolske kirker, jobber frivillig eller har betalte stillinger i katolske organisasjoner, til å holde tilbake sin arbeidskraft gjennom hele fasten neste år, fra 5. mars til 20. april.
Guardian/Observer: Catholic women urged to strike over ‘betrayal’ on ordination
Catholic Women Strike: Global Witness for Equality was launched this month and is calling on women who are regular churchgoers, who work for the church on a voluntary basis or who have paid jobs with Catholic organisations to withhold their labour through Lent next year (5 March to 20 April). “We believe the time is ripe to demand what is right … Instead of waiting for a papal ‘yes’, we issue forth our ‘no’ to the systems of misogyny, sexism and patriarchy,” says the campaign’s website.