Liturgical Ministries of Men and Women: Lectorate and Acolytate Then and Now

The article reflects on a recent change in the Catholic Church that women have been admitted to the liturgical ministry of lectors and acolytes by Pope Francis’ Motu proprio ‘Spiritus Domini’. The main research question of the article is: to what extent is this a complete innovation, a return to tradition, or an organic development of the liturgy? The research method rests on two pillars: first, the detailed study of the historical roots of these ministries in Christian antiquity; second, the study of the gradual adaptation of the lectorate and the acolyte in the second half of the 20th century. The conclusion of the article states that this is a logical consequence of the change that occurred in 1972 with Pope Paul VI’s Motu proprio ‘Ministeria quaedam’ and that we cannot speak of a historical breakthrough, given that women exercised these services before. In the appendix, the article offers a brief discussion of the female diaconate in relation to other liturgical ministries.