Results

Justice in Education:

Education for Clergy on the Fundamental Equality of Women

Question 1: Does your diocesan seminary or the seminary your diocese uses include education about the scriptural and theological foundations for the equality of women, and the history of the roles of women in the church-including the U.S. Church?

Findings: A total of 15 surveys contained responses to this question. Volunteers from only four dioceses answered that their seminary, or the seminary their diocese uses, includes education about the scriptural and theological foundations for the equality of women, and the history of the roles of women in the church. Eleven do not.

Grade: F (27%)

Question 2: How many women are teaching at the seminary where your diocese's future priests are being educated? How many men?

Table 1
# Women on Faculty	# Seminaries
1	2
3	2
4	3
5	4
6	2
7	1
8	1
11	1

Findings: Sixteen answer that women teach at the seminary/ies used by their diocese. Seven surveys have no answer. There were a total of 83 out of 282 faculty members teaching in the seminaries in the sixteen dioceses for which we have reports. Women make up 29% of the total faculty reported at these institutions. A few seminaries have only one female faculty member; one reports eleven.

Grade: F (29%)

Question 3: What subjects are women teaching at the seminary?

Table 2
Core Subjects Taught by Women
Women Teaching	Yes	No	Percent by Seminary
Systematic Theology	9	14	39
Hebrew Scriptures	4	17	19
Christian Scriptures	4	17	19
Church History	1	20	5
Moral Theology	2	19	10
Pastoral Theology	10	14	42
Homiletics	3	18	14
Liturgy	3	18	14
Overall %			20

Findings: We asked the surveyors to list the subjects that women teach. The numbers reported in response to a list of the most important courses suggest that women teach across the curriculum-but the data above suggests that they do so in very small numbers. More dioceses-ten-report women teaching pastoral theology or counseling than any other subject; systematic theology is a close second with nine dioceses. Hebrew and Christian scriptures each are taught by women in four dioceses, and liturgy and homiletics in three. Only one diocese reports a woman teaching church history.

Grade: F (20%)

Justice in Lay Education:

Question 4: Do diocesan religious education guidelines include education about the history of women in the church and in the U.S. church for elementary through high school students, and for adult faith formation classes?

Findings: Respondents from only five of the 19 dioceses that answered this question said that their diocesan religious education guidelines for elementary through high school students as well as adult faith formation include education about the history of women in the church. We asked them to review and rate these guidelines, using a scale of 1-5, with 5 = to excellent coverage of women's history, and 1 = to little or none.ⁱ

 

Table 3
Number of Dioceses Rating Each Educational Level
Ratings	1	2	3	4	5
Elementary	7	2	2	1	0
Middle School	8	2	4	4	0
High School	8	1	3	1	0
Adult Education	7	3	2	0	1

Those who reviewed the guidelines or other materials that do exist gave the best ratings to middle school programs, with almost half of the respondents reporting that the programs included both mention of women in scripture as well as gender issues in social justice teaching. There was one excellent rating for an adult education program.

Grade: F (26%)

Question 5: Does your diocese subsidize tuition for lay ministry education?

Findings: Seventeen out of 18 reporters who answered this question found there is some subsidy of tuition for lay ministry education; most common is a split between the diocese, the parish, the individual, and dedicated funding for lay ministry students.

Grade: A (94%)

Justice in the Liturgy:

Question 6 a: Do girls participate as altar servers at the Cathedral?

Findings: A total of 21 dioceses provided responses to this question. Girls participate as altar servers at the cathedrals in eighteen dioceses; only three reported that they do not.

Grade: B (86%)

Question 6b: When the bishop presides?

Findings: Of the 21 that answered 6a, 19 answered 6b. Fifteen of 19 dioceses report that this is true even when the bishop presides.

Grade: C (79%)

Question 7: Does the diocese permit the inclusion of women in the ritual foot-washing ceremony on Holy Thursday?

Findings: Eighteen of 21 responding dioceses permit the inclusion of women in the ritual foot washing ceremony at the cathedral on Holy Thursday; only three do not.

Grade: B (86%)

Question 8: Are women and men included in the mass as Eucharistic ministers and lectors at Cathedral liturgies?

Findings: All of the 22 dioceses that answered this question said that women are included in the Mass as Eucharistic ministers and lectors. Most respondents estimated that women constitute about 50% of the lectors and Eucharistic ministers at the Cathedral.

Grade: A (100%)

Justice in Representation:

Question 9a): How many women are on the Diocesan Pastoral Council? How many men? b) How are they selected?

Findings: Only 16 of 23 respondents, or 70 percent of reporting dioceses, stated that they have pastoral councils, which serve as advisory bodies for diocesan bishops and archbishops. In three dioceses, pastoral council members were elected and in 10, they were appointed. One did not indicate how members were chosen. Total: 378 lay members: 218 men, 160 women. Women are 42% of the total and, of those who answered, men outnumbered women in all but 3 dioceses. In two there were equal numbers of women and men and in one, there were 3 more women than men.

9a) Grade: B (42%)

9b) Grade: F (23%)

Question 9c): How many women are on the Catholic Charities Board? How many men? Question 9d) How are they selected?

Findings: 100% of the 19 dioceses that answered this question had Catholic Charities offices with boards. Of those, 36% of the board members are women, with total members: 662: 424 men and 238 women. Men outnumber women in all but two cases. Only one out of 18 Catholic Charities boards has elected members.

9c) Grade: C (36%)

9d) Grade: F (6%)

Question 9e) How many women are on the Diocesan Finance Council? How many men? Question 9f) How are they selected?

Findings: Only 18 of 23 respondent dioceses reported they had a finance council. Of those, there were 187 finance council members, of which 62 are women. Men outnumber women in every case; for every woman serving on finance councils, there are two men serving. Fourteen bishops appoint members and one chooses members through elections.

9e) Grade: D (33%­)

9f) Grade: F (7%)

Question 10: Does your diocese have offices on women's concerns?

Findings: Reporters note offices on women's concerns in only five of the 20 reports that answered this question. None reported having an office on men's concerns. One state has "Commissions on Women" in all reporting dioceses. Another committee on women gives annual awards to outstanding women.

Grade: F (25%)

Question 11a: Does your diocese have offices for the following minorities?

Findings:

Table 4
Diocesan Offices	Percent (%)	Grade	% Directed by a Woman	Grade
African-American	73	C	63	A
American Indian	30	F	57	A
Asian-American	35	F	50	A
Latino-Hispanic	78	C	56	A
Lesbian/Gay	30	F	43	B
Overall Grade	49	F	48	A

The difference in grades for nearly identical percentages in this section reflects two ideal outcomes. We expect all of the dioceses to have offices for minorities substantially represented among their members. We expect 50 percent of all diocesan positions to be filled by women. We did not measure whether substantial populations of these minorities exist in the reporting dioceses, but recent population and immigration trends would support larger percentages of dioceses with Asian and Latino-Hispanic populations, in particular. Similarly, there are lesbian and gay populations in every diocese.

Only about a third of dioceses had offices for Asian or Native American populations, whereas about three quarters had offices for African American and Latino/Hispanic Catholics. Women direct at least 50% of these various ethnic offices. Gay and Lesbian Catholics are much underserved, with only 7 out of the 23 dioceses reporting they have offices to provide ministry to gay and lesbian Catholics. Of those that exist, 3 are directed by a woman.

Justice in Employment & Conflict Resolution Practices:

 

Question 12: Does your diocese have an office of conciliation and arbitration, with grievance procedures and/or processes for negotiating solutions to conflict in parishes or other groups?

Findings: There were 19 responses to this question, with 7 reporting some process for resolving parish or lay disputes within the churches, but most do not have one. One diocese reported they have a process, but it is not followed.

Grade: F (37 %)

Question 13: Does the diocese have a grievance procedure for its own employees?

Findings: Of 18 responses, 15 said they have grievance procedures for diocesan employees. Three said they do not. One respondent said the diocese has a process but it is not followed.

Grade: B (83%)

Question 14: How many women are Level 1ⁱⁱ employees of the diocese?

Findings: Sixteen of 23 reports said they have women serving as Level 1 employees, a position that reports directly to the bishop. There were a total of 181 Level 1 employees, of which 62 (34%) were women. Men outnumbered women in every diocese with one exception.

Grade: D (34%)

i The rating scale is: 1=diocesan guidelines do not contain any education about women's historic roles in the church, no section on gender equality, and coverage of social justice teachings does not include women. A rating of "2 would mean that the guidelines do mention gender issues in the coverage of social justice issues, but there is no focus in the guidelines specifically on the history of women's contributions to the church in the first century or thereafter, and no mention of women's contributions to the U.S. Catholic church. A rating of "3" would mean that there is some discussion of the role of women around Jesus, and coverage of women in the Hebrew Scriptures, but no further mention of women in the early church. There is a section on gender issues in social justice teachings. A rating of "4" would mean that all the above issues are covered, and in addition, the role of women in the early church is discussed, including what Paul's letters indicate about women, both positive and negative. Interpretation of the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament Scriptures are placed into historic and cultural context. A rating of "5" would mean that all of the above are incorporated in the curricula, and in addition, a section on women's contributions in tradition, for example, their contributions as mystics or leaders (e.g., Joan of Arc), founders of movements or orders, and their historic contributions to the U.S. Catholic Church are specifically incorporated in the curricula guidelines.

 

ii Level 1 employees, as defined by the National Association of Church Personnel Administrators, "typically report directly to the Arch/Bishop and oversee a major segment of the Arch/diocesan central offices including several major offices or departments." Examples of these positions include: Chief of Operations, Chief Financial/Administrative Services, Chief Personnel, Chief Education, Superintendent of Schools, and Director of the Tribunal. Some dioceses refer to these people as "secretaries."