The Passion of The Lord Matthew 26:14-27:66

Christians … are called to bear fruit by sharing the gifts they have been given and to be witnesses to the Gospel. In the Christian community, all the baptised are enriched with gifts to share, each according to his or her vocation and way or condition of life.' (For a Synodal Church 57).

A glance down any of our churches on a Sunday morning reveals a striking inventory. There are prophets and teachers, athletes and healers, labourers and miracle workers, poets and florists, linguists and singers, listeners and sharers, leaders and dreamers, pioneers and settlers. No one gift is more important than another. If one refuses to function or is impeded, then the whole body seizes up. Instead of boldly proclaiming the Kingdom, it limps blindly along, wracked by cancerous divisions. There is a variety of gifts but always the same Spirit. Within the diversity there is unity.

By virtue of baptism, women and men have equal dignity as members of the People of God. However, ‘women encounter obstacles in obtaining a fuller recognition of their charisms, vocation, and place in the various areas of the Church's life. This is to the detriment of the Church's mission' (For a Synodal Church 60).