Synod releases study-group report on women’s participation in the Church

March 11, 2026

The General Secretariat of the Synod, led by Cardinal Mario Grech, released the third of 15 final reports of the study groups established by Pope Francis during the synod on synodality.

“Women’s Participation in the Life and Leadership of the Church” (executive summary, full text) briefly discusses three “fundamental issues”: the relational nature of the human person, potestas (power), and ministries. It includes six lengthier appendices, including “Women in the Old and New Testaments,” “The Marian Principle and the Petrine Principle: A Critical Look,” and “Ecclesiastical Authority.”

The report does not call for the ordination of women, but instead calls for an exploration of the authority that women can assume in the Church. The report states:

The recent appointments of women to positions of responsibility in some Dicasteries constitute a prophetic sign of both symbolic and practical significance. They represent a first step toward opening new spaces for participation, acknowledging that the capacity for governance and discernment is not the prerogative of the male gender alone ...

In numerous cases, superiors have understood that women’s participation is not a concession or an adaptation to passing cultural trends, but responds to a profound evangelical need—a genuine sign of the times. Indeed, this awareness may be the most significant change, as it is a prerequisite for lasting structural transformation. Related to this point, there are frequent calls for a revision of canonical norms that restrict certain decision-making processes to ordained ministers, thereby limiting the service of women engaged in such tasks.

The report also calls for the “flourishing” of charisms, such as “leadership, guidance, coordination, and the management of processes”:

The development of healthy forms of synodality will facilitate the flourishing and exercise of lay or baptismal charisms (that is, charisms rooted in the Sacrament of Baptism) among the multitude of women who constitute the majority in our communities. These include charisms of leadership, guidance, coordination, and the management of processes, as well as others more closely related to communal prayer, spiritual accompaniment, and closeness to those most in need. The Spirit sows charisms in many women, but these do not always flourish.

The report states that “certainly, none of these possibilities for women’s participation in the life and leadership of the Church should ever lead to diminishing the immense value that the Church’s tradition has recognized in the vocation of the wife and mother within marriage and the family.” The report adds:

In the Church, there is neither contradiction nor competition between the vocation of wife and mother and the vocation to public engagement, though this unfortunately often occurs in civil society. However, this requires that family responsibilities be adequately shared between spouses so that women may have the possibility—just as men do—to develop their charisms in the world and in the Church. It is a matter of envisioning “freely chosen mutual belonging marked by fidelity, respect, and care” (Apost. Exhort. Amoris Laetitia, par. 156), through which men and women possess the same rights and obligations and—though distinct and differentiated—the same possibilities for fruitful development.

Pope Francis established the 15 study groups in February 2024, between the first (October 2023) and second (October 2024) sessions of the synod on synodality, to examine topics raised in the first session. The General Secretariat stated on March 3:

The Final Reports are the fruit of a structured process: the listening to diverse competencies and professional expertise, the analysis of numerous contributions, academic research, dialogue with various ecclesial bodies—from Episcopal Conferences to Catholic universities—and, above all, discernment and prayer. They are to be understood as working documents.

 

---

For all current news, visit our News home page.

---

 
Further information:

• Women’s Participation in the Life and Leadership of the Church (General Secretariat of the Synod, 3/10/26)
• Synod releases study-group reports on online engagement, revisions to priestly formation (CWN, 3/4/26)