Bay Area woman ordained as Roman Catholic Priest

Bay City News Service

July 31, 2006

Undaunted by the threat of excommunication, eight women, including one Emeryville resident, were ordained as priests and deacons of the Roman Catholic Church today.

On a chartered boat in Pittsburgh, Emeryville resident Kathleen Strack Kunster, a member of the Roman Catholic Womenpriests, which is dedicated to equal treatment of women in the Roman Catholic Church, was slated to be ordained as a priest this afternoon.

"This ordination, as the first of its kind in the U.S., is a momentous event in the struggle for women's justice and equality in the Catholic Church," Aisha Taylor, executive director of the Women's Ordination Conference, said in a statement. "We pray that it sparks continued dialogue, growth and change in our church."

According to Catholic Diocese of Santa Rosa spokeswoman Deirdre Frontczak, Kunster and the other women will not be considered priests and deacons in the eyes of the church following today's ordinations.

"The ordination would not be considered a valid ordination," Frontczak said. "The church won't recognize their ordination."

Frontczak said the women could face excommunication from the church, meaning they cannot receive sacrament.

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