the Privilege of Being a Woman

recently the subject has arisen vicariously of the role of women in the Church. a dear family member was becoming incensed with my brother because he disagrees that women should be priests. this position has a dual-part premise, both aspects of which are troubling, to say the least.
the first is this notion that has plagued the Church in recent decades, that the only way (or at least the main way) to "get involved" is to be in the Sanctuary. as a result, missions, sodalities, special devotions, "social justice" & outreach programs, and so forth, have largely disappeared. everyone is trying to participate in one aspect of the Priesthood of Believers: the priest "proper". even the choir often tries to get as close to the altar as possible.
specific to women, this notion assumes one very troubling and insulting thing: that the role of woman qua woman is insufficient, inferior, and even worthless. that to be a woman in the Church, with the unique gifts and roles of wife, mother, daughter, sister--physical or spiritual--is not good enough. i cannot really think of anything more insulting: what i have to offer isn't wanted, so i need to be . . . a man. since when is fatherhood superior to motherhood, physical or spiritual?
the priest exists to empower (to hijack a feminist phrase) the laity. he is there to serve the Church, so that the Church might serve the world. in recent history, however, the Church has been so busy fighting over who will serve itself that it has been neglecting the world.
women are vital to the Church. it is no coincidence that the enemies of the Church--from Luther to Cromwell to the French Revolutionaries to the Communists and so forth--have outlawed convents. their first attack is against the praying women, because these women are the life and soul and heart of the Catholic--the Universal--Church. satan has never been so successful in these attacks, however, as when he convinced the praying women themselves that their role was negligible. and as opposed to the outer attacks, which gave hope, strength, and glory to the Church through martyrdom, the whole Church has suffered--and still does--from this interior rebellion.
Alice von Hildebrand, my "hero", has written a short little book called The Privilege of Being a Woman, where she discusses the devaluing of femininity underlying feminism. Donna Steichand addresses the deliberate feminist attack on the Church in Ungodly Rage, which i highly recommend. most of all, however, we need prayer: that these wounded women, convinced that they've been shoved to the sidelines, find healing in the mysteries of the Church, in the mysteries of their own womanhood. and that we strive to fulfill our womanhood in a way that gives the lie to the feminist attacks.
Our Lady, Seat of Wisdom, Tower of Ivory, Mystical Rose, pray for us!