In his first address entirely focused on the topic of women, Pope Francis on Oct. 13 said ‘women are called to service, not servitude.’ His remarks came before approximately 150 people gathered at a two-day Vatican event organized by the women’s section of the Pontifical Council for the Laity. It marked the 25th anniversary of the apostolic letter ‘Mulieris Dignitatem,’ written by Pope John Paul II. ‘I suffer — speaking truthfully! — when I see in the church or in some ecclesial organizations that the role of service that we all have, and that we must have — but that the role of service of the woman slips into a role of servitude,’ Francis said.” By Thomas Fox, National Catholic Reporter

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