Title: Can a Woman Be a Priest in the Catholic Church?
Headings: Can a Woman Be a Priest in the Catholic Church?
Can a Woman Be a Priest in the Catholic Church?
Reasons for the All-Male Priesthood
In the Person of Christ the Head
Christ Was a Man
The Tradition Established by Christ Himself
Priesthood Not a Function But an Indelible Spiritual Character
The Impossibility of Women's Ordination

Content: "Only a baptized man ( vir) validly receives sacred ordination." The Lord Jesus chose men ( viri) to form the college of the twelve apostles, and the apostles did the same when they chose collaborators to succeed them in their ministry. The college of bishops, with whom the priests are united in the priesthood, makes the college of the twelve an ever-present and ever-active reality until Christ's return. The Church recognizes herself to be bound by this choice made by the Lord himself. For this reason the ordination of women is not possible. Priesthood Not a Function But an Indelible Spiritual Character
Still, the argument continues, some traditions are made to be broken. But again, that misunderstands the nature of the priesthood. Ordination does not simply give a man permission to perform the functions of a priest; it imparts to him an indelible (permanent) spiritual character that makes him a priest, and since Christ and His Apostles chose only men to be priests, only men can validly become priests. The Impossibility of Women's Ordination
In other words, it's not simply that the Catholic Church does not allow women to be ordained.