Originally published at National Catholic Register
At the 2019 Synod on the Amazon, the Brazilian cardinal also emerged as a staunch defender of the ordination of married men.
Cardinal Leonardo Steiner, the archbishop of Manaus in Brazil who is participating in the Synod on Synodality, said during a daily press briefing at the synod on Tuesday that “many of our women are true ‘deaconesses’” and pointed out that Pope Francis “has not closed the question” of the ordination of married men.
The cardinal is known for being a defender of the poor, Indigenous people and is also considered “pro-LGBTQ.” In the past he has stated that “there will be a way” to end mandatory priestly celibacy.
At the 2019 Synod on the Amazon, the Brazilian cardinal also emerged as a staunch defender of the ordination of married men, an issue on which Pope Francis has not given a definitive word, according to what the prelate said Oct. 15.
During the briefing held at the Holy See Press Office, the 74-year-old cardinal said that during that day’s session, corresponding to the third module of the Instrumentum Laboris (working document), the participants of the synod reflected on “the places of the Church.”
The cardinal also commented that
