U.S. nuns consider response to Vatican rebuke

ST. LOUIS -- An American nuns group rebuked by the Vatican said Friday that it would hold talks with the bishops appointed to overhaul the organization but would not "compromise its mission."

Sister Pat Farrell, president of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, called a Vatican assessment charging the sisters with dissent by promoting "radical feminist themes" about the priesthood, artificial contraception and homosexuality a "misrepresentation."

"One of our concerns is that questioning is seen as defiance. It's not healthy as a church," she said.

But Farrell said the more than 900 women who attended the group's national assembly this week decided they would for now remain open to discussion with three bishops the Vatican appointed to oversee them.

The sisters face limited options for how they can respond because the Vatican created the organization.

The organization represents about 80 percent of the 57,000 Roman Catholic nuns in the United States.

The St. Louis meeting was the group's first national gathering since a Vatican report issued in April concluded the sisters had "serious doctrinal problems" and promoted "certain radical feminist themes" that undermine Catholic teaching on all-male priesthood, birth control and homosexuality. The nuns also were accused of remaining nearly silent in the fight against abortion.

The Vatican began its assessment in 2008, following years of complaints from theological conservatives that the nuns' group had become secular and political while abandoning traditional faith.

The critique prompted a nationwide outpouring of support for the sisters, including parish vigils, protests outside the Vatican embassy in Washington and a congressional resolution commending the sisters for their service to the country.