Italian archbishop proposes women ‘co-preside’ at Mass
Archbishop Erio Castellucci invoked St. Mary Magdalene's witness to Jesus’ resurrection to justify letting women proclaim the Gospel and preach during Mass.
Archbishop Erio CastellucciTEDx Talks/YouTube
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Tue Jul 7, 2026 - 8:54 am EDT
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MODENA, Italy (LifeSiteNews) — An Italian archbishop proposed exploring a form of liturgical “co-presidency” in which women would lead the Liturgy of the Word while priests would preside over the Eucharistic consecration during Mass.
On May 24, Notizie, the bulletin of the Diocese of Modena‑Nonantola, published a lengthy speech by Archbishop Erio Castellucci concerning women’s participation in the liturgy, held during a conference organized by the feminist Centro Italiano Femminile group in Carpi. The news was then picked up by the Italian blog Messainlatino on June 30.
“We would need to identify a role for women that could take the form of a co‑presidency of the assembly,” Castellucci said. “Women could take particular care of the first part, the Liturgy of the Word, proclaiming the Lord’s Pasch, as Mary Magdalene did to the apostles. And men could assume the presidency of the second part, which involves the consecration.”
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The proposal appears in a section of the text, “The Prophecy of Co-Presidency.” There, Castellucci argued that women could take responsibility for the Liturgy of the Word (including the readings and even the homily), invoking St. Mary Magdalene’s proclamation of the Resurrection to the apostles as a point of reference. He states that ordained men would preside over the Liturgy of the Eucharist.
Castellucci added that such an arrangement would avoid what he describes as “the theological questions regarding the male representation of Christ in the act of the bread and the wine.” In other words, since the Church has reiterated its “no” to the female diaconate, its proponents are now choosing to bypass the “deadlock” through alternative liturgical proposals.
Castellucci points to a strategy for introducing the liturgical changes in a section of his document entitled “Beyond the Deadlock.” Among the measures mentioned are making the opinions of consultative councils “binding” after what he describes as a process of “maturation of consensus” and establishing teams of lay faithful that would share responsibility for leadership and decision-making.
Within the controversial Italian synodal document “Lievito di Pace e di Speranza” released at the end of October 2025, one of the various heterodox proposals was an appeal for new directives aimed at yet another liturgical reform. According to the text, today the liturgy “risks appearing distant and not very engaging for many of the faithful,” and restoring its “living, meaningful, and accessible” character would require a fresh and far‑reaching process of renewal.
The synodal document argued that restoring the liturgy to its “living, meaningful, and accessible” character requires yet another deep process of renewal. Liturgical celebrations, it says, should be rethought so as to welcome the “physical, psychological, cultural, and social fragilities” of the faithful. It outlines four directions for reform: establishing local liturgical teams with diverse skills and charisms; creating “liturgical‑spiritual workshops” to train the faithful and “experiment” with more comprehensible and participatory forms of celebration; “revisiting liturgical texts,” with particular attention to the language of the Missal and the Liturgy of the Hours; and finally, promoting “liturgical education for younger generations” through tools of ritual literacy and even a new edition of the Lectionary and the Missal for children’s Masses.
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The publication of the remarks follows earlier controversy involving Castellucci and the Diocese of Carpi. In March 2024, the diocesan museum church hosted the exhibition “Gratia Plena” by artist Andrea Saltini. Several of the works depicted Jesus Christ, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and St. Mary Magdalene engaging in acts described as highly “blasphemous” and prompting protests from groups of Catholic faithful, who organized email campaigns directed at diocesan authorities and filed criminal complaints alleging contempt of religion. Castellucci declined to close the exhibition and publicly defended its continuation.
In 2025, a judge for preliminary investigations in Modena dismissed the criminal case. According to the court’s decision, the proceedings were closed because the elements required to establish criminal intent were not found. Castellucci was also among the most active Italian bishops in supporting and promoting LGBT‑related initiatives during so-called “Pride Month” in June 2026.
Increasingly, voices within ecclesial circles suggest that Castellucci may soon be appointed archbishop of Milan after the resignation of Archbishop Mario Delpini in a move that would further consolidate his prominence within the bishops’ conference and Church at large.
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- Catholic
- Church
- Diocese of Modena‑Nonantola
- Erio Castellucci
- Italy
- Lgbt
- Liturgy
- Mass
- messainlatino
- Modena
- St. Mary Magdalene
- Women's Ordination
