Italian RCC bishop backs women’s role in Mass

Archbishop Erio Castellucci. Photo: Shutterstock

Archbishop Erio Castellucci of Modena has proposed introducing the practice of “liturgical co-presidency” into Catholic worship, granting women the right to lead the first part of the Mass and deliver homilies, LifeSiteNews reports.

Speaking at a conference in the city of Carpi, the bishop said women could take charge of the Liturgy of the Word, following the example of Mary Magdalene’s witness to the Resurrection of the Savior. Under the proposed model, male priests would retain only the right to celebrate the Eucharist, while the reading of the Gospel and instruction of the community would pass to women.

According to Castellucci, the initiative would make it possible to bypass the “deadlock” created by the Vatican’s official refusal to introduce a female diaconate. He stressed that reform advocates are now choosing alternative liturgical proposals in order to avoid theological questions about the male symbolism of Christ in the sacrament. Castellucci’s project also provides for the creation of teams of laypeople whose decisions on parish governance would become binding.

The archbishop’s initiative echoes an Italian synodal document calling for a “profound renewal” of the liturgy and the creation of experimental forms of worship. Bishop Castellucci has previously found himself at the center of scandals over his support for a blasphemous art exhibition in 2024 and his active promotion of LGBT events in June 2026.

As the UOJ reported, a Roman Catholic archbishop in Milan celebrated Mass for the LGBT community.

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