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Pope Francis washes the foot of an inmate at the juvenile detention centre of Casal del Marmo, Rome PA

Pope changes rule to allow women have their feet washed on Holy Thursday

Shortly after he was elected, Francis raised conservative eyebrows by performing the rite on men and women, Catholics and Muslims.

POPE FRANCIS HAS changed church regulations to explicitly allow women and girls to participate in the Easter Week foot-washing ritual.

Proponents of women’s ordination hailed Francis’ decree, while traditionalist Catholics warned that it would weaken the church and lead to questions about the inviolability of the all-male priesthood.

Vatican rules for the Holy Thursday rite had long called for only men to participate. Previous popes and many priests traditionally performed the ritual on 12 Catholic men, recalling Jesus’ 12 apostles and further cementing the doctrine of an all-male priesthood.

Shortly after he was elected, Francis raised conservative eyebrows by performing the rite on men and women, Catholics as well as Muslims, at a juvenile detention facility in Rome.

He has continued to include men and women, young and old, sick and healthy and people of different faiths, traveling each year to encounter them to show his willingness to serve. It was a tradition he began as archbishop in Buenos Aires.

Yesterday the Vatican published a decree from the its liturgy office introducing an “innovation” to the church’s rules that better corresponds to Francis’ way of doing things.

The decree said the rite can now be performed on anyone “chosen from among the people of God”. It specifies that the group can include “men and women, and ideally young and old, healthy and sick, clerical, consecrated and lay”.

Non-Catholics 

Priests must make sure that those participating are instructed beforehand as to the significance of the gesture, the decree said. While the phrase “people of God” generally refers to baptised Christians, the decree also said that pastors should instruct “both the chosen faithful and others so that they may participate in the rite consciously actively and fruitfully”. That could suggest that the rite could be open to non-Catholics as well.

In an accompanying letter, dated 20 December 2014, but released yesterday, Francis wrote to the head of the liturgy office saying he wanted to change the current rules “to fully express the significance of Jesus’ gesture … his giving of himself to the end for the salvation of the world and his unending charity”.

The Women’s Ordination Conference, a group that has long advocated for female priests, celebrated the decree as a sign that “change is possible”. But it noted that Francis’ wishes clearly met resistance within the Vatican, given his letter requesting the change was dated more than a year ago.

Cardinal Robert Sarah, head of the liturgy office, is a staunch conservative.

“Our prayer during this Year of Mercy is that the inclusion of women in the church not stop at our feet, but will be one of many signs to include women fully in the institutional church,” the group said in a statement.

The traditionalist blog Rorate Caeli, meanwhile, warned that the accommodation could lead to questions about the inviolability of the all-male priesthood and bring the Catholic Church the way of the Anglican Communion, which has been badly divided over allowing female priests and bishops and blessing same-sex unions.

“What is most tragic is to see the very same impulses that imploded Anglicanism imposed on Latin Church decades later,” Rorate Caeli said.

Read: At least 19 dead after bomb blast in Somalian seaside resort

Read: US student arrested in North Korea over ‘hostile act’

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78 Comments
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    Mute Jim Buckley Barrett
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    Mar 5th 2021, 4:54 PM

    We have an Irish citizen in China and very little reported considering he’s been there for two years, yet we’ve have numerous articles on this lady, strange!

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    Mute Jakie McLean
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    Mar 5th 2021, 7:01 PM

    @Jim Buckley Barrett: there are negotiations going on behind the scenes that may mean reporting is not possible as it may cause difficulties. I believe that was reported a few weeks ago.

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    Mute Seán Ó Briain
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    Mar 5th 2021, 8:32 PM

    @Jim Buckley Barrett: The Journal have done 6 articles on his plight in the past 6 weeks, one no little than 2 days ago. He’s getting reporting, but as Jakie said – there’s probably a lot of work going on in the background to get him home quietly.

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    Mute RogersRabbit
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    Mar 5th 2021, 9:06 PM

    @Jakie McLean: Ah yes, act like everything is okay when it’s not. Some common ground we have with China

    19
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    Mute john s
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    Mar 5th 2021, 11:14 PM

    @Jakie McLean: behind the scenes for 2 years ? Irish and eu government should be ashamed.

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    Mute D.B
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    Mar 6th 2021, 12:08 AM

    @Jim Buckley Barrett: yes, poor chap. we need to stick in to the chinese to get him out and do it f’ing now…..

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    Mute Jim Buckley Barrett
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    Mar 6th 2021, 9:24 AM

    @Seán Ó Briain: 6 articles in 6 weeks, he’s been there for TWO YEARS

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    Mute Sana Diwan
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    Mar 6th 2021, 10:54 AM

    @Jim Buckley Barrett: military intervened in international waters. They broke international law. Latifa’s case is should be talked about more as well!

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    Mute Kevin O'Brien
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    Mar 5th 2021, 7:27 PM

    Strange the Horse racing board in the UK stopped Elliott from bringing horses over, but haven’t stopped the Sheikhs horses running though. Why? Because he brings millions into the racing there. Not much morals now do they.

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    Mute Earth Traveller
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    Mar 5th 2021, 9:56 PM

    @Kevin O’Brien: Don’t you think Ireland does the same?

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    Mute Kevin O'Brien
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    Mar 5th 2021, 11:08 PM

    @Earth Traveller: No not really, when compared to him. He has massive operations in the UK (and around the world) with his Godolphin outfit that he owns. He spends millions on yearlings every year at Tattersalls sales, alone. Never mind the over 130 horses he has in training in the UK.

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    Mute Rory J Leonard
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    Mar 5th 2021, 11:30 PM

    @Kevin O’Brien:

    Latest unpleasant news of the continuing harsh treatment of Sheikha Latifa, one of his thirty (30) children, should be the straw that broke the camel’s back, in terms of long overdue sanctions against a repeat offending father for a form of child cruelty by everyday Western values.

    Whilst the man is a large scale Owner, not a Trainer, he insists on major input/interference into his horses training programs, which caused an irreparable rift with the great Sir Henry Cecil when he trained his string during the 90’s.

    Nothing will ever get in the way of high volumes of lucre flowing freely into Blighty, as recent political developments there have confirmed.

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    Mute Kevin O'Brien
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    Mar 6th 2021, 12:07 AM

    @Rory J Leonard: Apologies, I didn’t mean he was training himself. Horses he has in yards over there, being trained for him. How he’s getting away with this beggar’s belief. They have absolutely laid into Gordon over there, but not a word about Sheikh Mohammed?

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    Mute William Bryan
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    Mar 5th 2021, 3:42 PM

    Yes an we have Mary Robinson being played like a fiddel by her bestie Saudi Princess

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    Mute Seán O'Loughlin
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    Mar 5th 2021, 4:17 PM

    Had. She knows she was played now.

    108
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    Mute Thinkingaboutmatters
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    Mar 5th 2021, 4:59 PM

    @William Bryan: she likely was happy to play along, with more money for boring speeches in the UAE. She couldn’t sell some rotten house and some papers to May CoCo for millions.

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    Mute John
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    Mar 5th 2021, 6:26 PM

    @Thinkingaboutmatters: Considering the father is allegedly trying to fabricate a story that Latifa has bipolar disorder in order to cover up the kidnapping, what do you suppose Mary should have done at that meeting? Assuming she had any idea about this story or the forces at work?

    Mary: “So tell me, Latifa, do you really have bipolar disorder, or are these guards around us holding you prisoner?

    Having a high profile person visit like this is clearly a cleverly fabricated cover, as far as I’m concerned. I suggest you watch Latifa’s videos

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    Mute Thinkingaboutmatters
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    Mar 5th 2021, 10:22 PM

    @John: Mary Robinson knows enough of the world to know when something was off. Either she was foolish (unlikely) or she saw a new direction for her grift by speechifying in the Middle East to a grateful potentate. Money is her thing.

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    Mute SmallbutMighty
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    Mar 6th 2021, 3:08 AM

    @Thinkingaboutmatters: really!!! if you had an awkward lunch with someone you were told was recovering from a bipolar episode but in the momet seemed content you would jump straight to she must have been kidnapped and is being held against her will?

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    Mute Brian Burns
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    Mar 5th 2021, 6:06 PM

    Mary Robinson was just over with her said she told her “she’s grand”

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    Mute D.B
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    Mar 6th 2021, 12:39 AM

    @Brian Burns: Mary should have dazzled them with her hairdo and got the princess out…..

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    Mute D.B
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    Mar 5th 2021, 4:19 PM

    & if she is isnt? what are they going to do about it…….

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    Mute Ally Mc Culladgh
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    Mar 5th 2021, 4:22 PM

    @D.B: Well I would imagine they will first come out to condemn the unlawful killing, talk more, talk about sanctions, have countless UN meetings, more condemnation, more meetings to discuss the sanctions and then….??

    Look at Myanmar no sign of the UN getting involved

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    Mute D.B
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    Mar 5th 2021, 4:58 PM

    @Ally Mc Culladgh: Good points…..the usual rhetoric will flow & nothing will be done….

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    Mute Ally Mc Culladgh
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    Mar 5th 2021, 5:28 PM

    @D.B: Look at this madness, they can’t even agree to issue a statement on what is happening in Myanmar

    https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-55913947

    The United Nations Security Council met on Tuesday but failed to agree on a joint statement after China did not support it. China has the power of veto as one of five permanent members of the council.

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    Mute Joan Grennan
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    Mar 5th 2021, 5:47 PM

    What hope is there for ordinary females in that damn place when a princess can be held prisoner as she is .It wont stop Western powers hobnobbin with her Dad though .When it comes to a contest between human rights and staying in the good bks with autocrats ,dictators and so on we knows what wins through .

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    Mute Atlas' burden
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    Mar 5th 2021, 9:49 PM

    @Joan Grennan: we can only hope she’s only held prisoner. At least there’s some hope of freedom. I sincerely hope she is still alive. There hasn’t been any proof of life.

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    Mute Michael Mcloughlin
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    Mar 5th 2021, 4:32 PM

    Wheres the BHA now

    37
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    Mute Special_Ed
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    Mar 5th 2021, 4:57 PM

    Uh oh….. the UAE must not be playing along with the World Economic Forum / UN’s Reset

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    Mute JongaFe
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    Mar 5th 2021, 9:28 PM

    Mary sent her a WhatsApp msg, says she’s grand!

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    Mute andrew
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    Mar 5th 2021, 9:58 PM

    Hope she is not being mistreated.

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    Mute D.B
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    Mar 6th 2021, 12:09 AM

    all these phone princess of makeyuppy royalty land that was once full of nomads but is now awash with oil rich cash…..nauseating watching the brits trip over themselves for a slice of the pie…..

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    Mute Maria Quinn
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    Mar 6th 2021, 8:10 AM

    Who cares. UN Human Rights Office has done nothing about the invasion of Sahara by Morocco since the Spanish Province got their independence from Spain at the end of the facists dictatorship. Oh! True, also UN Human Rights Office did nothing to free Spain from 40 years of facists dictatorship, to free Spaniards from the oppression of a Hilter and na.zism allied

    UN has turned into a kind of socialite group

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