“Irish bishop to make ‘policy’ from parish poll approving women’s ordination, homosexuality”

Bishop John Fleming of Killala put his official support behind a process intended to effect the ordination of women as priests, following a vote by 69% of the members of his diocese.

According to Bishop Fleming, whose diocese is in the far west of the Republic of Ireland, a vote was held as a part of a “listening process" he instigated. The process was sparked by an analysis that estimates that there will be but three to six priests serving the 22 parishes of the rural diocese by 2037.

In the balloting, 80% of the assembly voted in favor of a female diaconate, while 69% voted for female priests. The vote found that 85% want married priests. The vote also found that 86% want the Catholic Church to change its teaching regarding homosexual relations and to include persons regardless of marital status, family status, or sexual orientation.

According to the Irish Examiner, Fr. Brendan Hoban of Ireland’s Association of Catholic Priests claimed that Bishop Fleming wants to incorporate the assembly’s findings into diocesan policy. Those suggestions that are not within the diocese’s capacity will be passed on to the Catholic bishops’ conference and the apostolic nuncio. The newspaper quoted Fr. Hoban, who said,

“There was no point us deciding that we were going to ordain women or married men as we don't have the ability to do it, but we could control organizing lay ministers in a different way.”

Bishop Fleming had earlier stated, “These proposals, when accepted, will then become diocesan policy and form the basis of our Pastoral Plan for the Diocese.”