Women and Church focus of commission

The gifts of women in the Church may sometimes be overlooked, but the Albany Diocese will highlight them at a Mass March 2 at St. John the Baptist Church in Schenectady.

The regular 5 p.m. Vigil Mass will get a boost from the diocesan Women's Commission, a group of about a dozen women appointed by Bishop Howard J. Hubbard to foster women's participation in Church leadership.

In addition to a homily by Rev. Michael Hogan, pastor, women's commission member Margaret Leatham will offer a reflection at the end of the liturgy on "Women Saying Yes to God."

Purposes

The commission also promotes collaboration between men and women in Church ministries, noted commission leader Meg Bergh, director of the diocesan Family Life Office.

She said the commission's primary focus is to educate women about the U.S. bishops' 1998 document titled, "From Words to Deeds: Continuing Reflections on the Role of Women in the Church."

In that document, the bishops state that "there are many dimensions of the Church's life in which women exercise their gifts on behalf of the Gospel....This committee sees the work of the many women who serve in Church ministry positions as a movement inspired and sustained by the Holy Spirit."

Gifts used

The bishops' document echoed Ms. Bergh's feeling that some women have "strong emotions" about the way their gifts are used in the Church. However, Ms. Bergh was quick to note that "the women's commission looks toward celebrating the gifts of women throughout the Church, not in any specific ministry, but in all ministries."

Aside from the upcoming liturgy, the commission has held a retreat for its members and plans to add a page on its mission to the diocesan website, www.rcda.org, to help women in the Diocese connect with one another.

Ms. Bergh said that the commission is also debating holding regional meetings to hear what women in the Diocese have to say about their role in the Church. Next year, she said, the commission will sponsor a prayer service for young women throughout the Diocese "to show them that the Church celebrates their gifts and all they have to offer."

Commission's work

Kathleen Greiner of St. Peter's parish in Saratoga Springs is serving a three-year term on the commission -- and also volunteered for it during the 1980s. It's a position she juggles along with a 33-year marriage, raising four children and working out of her home. She called her work with the commission exciting.

"We went around the Diocese [in the '80s] and basically listened," she recalled. "I found it extremely impressive. The women in the rural areas, because of the distance, have had to network more. There's lessons to be learned there."

Mrs. Greiner -- a lector, Eucharistic minister, Dominican Associate and organizer of lectors at her parish -- was most hopeful that the commission will reach younger women in the Diocese who may not see all the options for ministry that are open to them.

"We're women who have all said `yes' to God, who are all involved with the Church in many dimensions," she said of the commission's members. "There's a real excitement about who we are and what the Church can be."

(For more information on the women's commission or on the March 2 liturgy, "Women Saying Yes to God," 5 p.m. at St. John the Baptist Church, Schenectady, call 453-6677.)

(02-21-02)