Danube Seven
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The Danube Seven are a group of seven women from
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
,
Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
and the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
who were
ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...
as
priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...
s on a ship cruising the
Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...
river on 29 June 2002 by
Rómulo Antonio Braschi Rómulo Antonio Braschi (born December 25, 1941) is an Argentine independent Catholic bishop, not in communion with the Catholic Church. Braschi was labeled as being an ''episcopus vagans'' in the early 2000s. Biography Born in Buenos Aires, and ...
, Ferdinand Regelsberger, and a third unknown bishop. The seven women are: Christine Mayr-Lumetzberger, Adelinde Theresia Roitinger, Gisela Forster, Iris Muller, Ida Raming, Pia Brunner and Angela White (the last a
pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...
for
Dagmar Braun Celeste Dagmar Ingrid Braun Celeste (''née'' Braun; born November 23, 1941) is an American counselor, and author. The former first lady of Ohio, she was married to former Ohio governor (1983–1991) and U.S. ambassador Richard F. Celeste, whom she met ...
, the Austrian born former first lady of Ohio in the United States). Braschi, an
Independent Catholic Independent Catholicism is an independent sacramental movement of clergy and laity who Independent Catholicism#Appeal of Independent Catholicism to Catholic and Christian tradition, self-identify as Catholic (most often as Old Catholic or as Ind ...
bishop whose own ordination is in the line of
apostolic succession Apostolic succession is the method whereby the Christian ministry, ministry of the Christian Church is considered by some Christian denominations to be derived from the Twelve Apostles, apostles by a continuous succession, which has usually been ...
and thus considered valid by the
Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
, was excommunicated by the latter. The women's ordinations were not, however, recognized as valid by the Roman Catholic Church, although the women (and their successors) consider their own ordinations to be valid and even studied in a three year program, designed by Christine Mayr-Lumetzberger, prior to their ordinations.


Legal consequences and responses

On 10 July 2002, the
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) is a department of the Roman Curia in charge of the religious discipline of the Catholic Church. The Dicastery is the oldest among the departments of the Roman Curia. Its seat is the Palace of t ...
issued a '' monitum'' against the women, warning that they would be
excommunicated Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to deprive, suspend, or limit membership in a religious community or to restrict certain rights within it, in particular those of being in communion with other members of the con ...
if they did not admit the invalidity of the ordinations and repent. As a consequence of this violation of
canon law Canon law (from , , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical jurisdiction, ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its membe ...
, specifically canons 1008-1009 and 1024-1025, and their refusal to
repent Repentance is reviewing one's actions and feeling contrition or regret for past or present wrongdoings, which is accompanied by commitment to and actual actions that show and prove a change for the better. In modern times, it is generally seen ...
, the Vatican excommunicated the women. The women asked the Vatican to revoke the excommunication, but this request was denied in Decree on the Attempted Ordination of Some Catholic Women.Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Decree on the attempted ordination of some Catholic women
In the course of these meetings the members arrived at the collegial decision to confirm the decree of excommunication. In the case under consideration, in fact, hierarchical recourse is not possible as it concerns a decree of excommunication issued by a Dicastery of the Holy See acting in the name of the Supreme Pontiff (cf. Canon 360).


See also

* Ordination of women in the Catholic Church *
Catholic Apostolic Charismatic Church of Jesus the King The Catholic Apostolic Charismatic Church of "Jesus the King" () is an independent international religious association of Catholic origin and character, with headquarters and legal recognition in Munich, Germany. It is known for its bishop, Rómulo ...


References

{{reflist


Further reading


BBC story
5 August 2002
Women Priests?, EWTN
at ''Vatican.va'' People excommunicated by the Catholic Church Ordination of women and the Catholic Church Independent Catholicism Women's ordination activists