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= Sister Enrica Rosanna =

Introduction
Sister Enrica Rosanna, born July 3, 1938 is a Salesian Sister who served as the undersecretary to Pope John Paul II. Sr. Enrica attended three Synods of Bishops under Pope John Paul II. Sr. Enrica was the undersecretary to the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. As the first unordained woman to hold a position of power within the Church, Sr. Enrica faced criticism and questioning when she assumed the position.

Early Life
Sister Enrica Rosanna was born on July 3, 1938 in Busto Arsizio, Italy. Her Catholic formation began at a young age, and attended Catholic services at the Church of Turin, located at a trade city in Italy.1 She attended high school in Brussels, Belgium.2

Education
After high school, Sister Enrica Rosanna earned a political science degree from La Sapienza University in Rome.2 Sr. Enrica continued her education by going on to receive a degree in religious studies from Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.2 She then became a Salesian Sister and a Daughter of Mary Help of Christians.3 In 1966, she received a Diploma in Religious Sciences at the International Institute of Pedagogy and Religious Sciences.4 Later, she became a sociologist at the University of Trent, making her one of the first women to graduate from school.1 Sr. Enrica Rosanna was the chairperson of sociology at the Gregorian university for nine years.3

Appointment to the Vatican
In 1994, Pope John Paul II named Sister Enrica Rosanna as the auditor at three Synods of Bishops, first on Europe in 1999 and then on episcopacy in 2001.5 These appointed positions by the Pope which were awarded to Sr. Enrica were groundbreaking for a woman. On April 24, 2004 she was appointed to the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life as the undersecretary.5 She received this position title after accompanying Pope John Paul II to the Italian Bishops Conference.

Role as Undersecretary
The position entails living a life of faith, chastity, and poverty.1 Serving as undersecretary, Sister Enrica Rosanna was required to oversee Holy Orders around the world.1 Sr. Enrica collaborated with offices inside the Vatican and worked to communicate between organizations and the actual secretary.1 The undersecretary serves under the direction of the secretary. Her position was the first in which a non-ordained person yielded power over those who had been ordained.1 She vowed to live a life of service to the Church and to congregations of churches around the world.1 She would not only hold a leadership position within the Church, as appointed by Pope John Paul II, but would also have a leadership position for women around the world to view and look to especially with the church. She was met with resistance from the Curia, the administrative unit that aids in the governing of the Catholic Church.6 She worked heavily with congregations and the Congregation for Institute.3 The main role of the undersecretary continues to be communicating with different offices. Former undersecretaries include Fr. Juan Jose, and Msgr. Joseph Anthony, and prior to Sr. Enrica, Fr. Josef Clemens.3 Every predecessor to Sr. Enrica was an ordained man.

Positions
1999: Auditor at three Synods of Bishops on Europe

2001: Auditor on the episcopacy

2004-2011: Undersecretary of the Congregation for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life

Women in the Vatican
The Vatican City is the only country in the world where women cannot vote.7 Since its existence, The Holy See has lacked representation of women.8 Hermine Speier was one of the first women to have any position at the Vatican in the 1940s and began as the head of the Photographic Archive of the Vatican Museums.8

In 2017 the Vatican established a new advisory group entitled the “Women’s Consultation Group” to give women a larger voice.2 Considering women cannot serve as cardinals or priests, the group’s purpose was to give a female perspective on various issues.2 A pivotal moment for women in the church was Vatican II. During Vatican II, several bishops wrote that it is important for women to have  a voice within the church.9 This was the first time that women had been a major part of the discussion.9 However, because positions of high power within the Church stem from positions requiring ordination, women are consistently left without the option to hold a position of such high power.9 During Vatican II, two bishops suggested the option of ordaining women, however the Church argued that they did not have that authority to make that decision.9 Over the last 20 years, representation of women in the Vatican has started to grow.10 Among the Vatican workforce, almost 20 percent of workers are women, however there are few in significant leadership positions.10 Women formed the “Women in the Vatican” association in 2016.10 Since then, about 50 women within the Vatican have joined.10 Women with positions of power in the Vatican include Flaminia Giovanelli of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Sr. Nicoletta Spezzati who succeeded Sr. Enrica Rosanna as undersecretary, and Natasa Govekar the director of the Vatican Secretariat for Communications.10

Controversy Surrounding Appointment
Historically, the Vatican has had a majority of powerful male representatives and women with minor roles and little authority.1 Sister Enrica Rosanna is the first woman to ever have any form of power or authority within the Vatican.1 Sr. Enrica approached her position with caution due to the historic lack of female representation within the Vatican.1 After Pope John Paul II granted her the position, it was controversial also because she was unordained.6 Historically, lay individuals have not possessed authority over ordained individuals within the Vatican. Critics of the appointment stated that because Sr. Enrica was unordained she could not act over clerics based on canon law.6 Sr. Enrica claims that her appointment from Pope John Paul II was mainly a point of how the Pope viewed women.3

The Feminine Genius
Pope John Paul II coined the term “feminine genius” as the study of a woman and her role in the church, family and society.11 Sr. Enrica also often discussed the feminine genius in interviews and throughout her work.11 The statement began in Pope John Paul II’s “Letter to Women” in 1995. He wrote with the intention of creating a dialogue among women to discuss the need for them within the church.11 The letter covers several mothers, daughters, wives and consecrated women.11 In the letter, Pope John Paul II discussed that his hope in the U.N conference in Beijing was that a fuller truth of women would be revealed.11 He expressed hope that there would be more of an emphasis on the “genius of women” and for ordinary women to reveal more of their gifts not only in everyday life but also in roles of service.11

View on Women in the Church
As the first woman to gain a doctorate at the Pontifical Gregorian University, Sister Enrica Rosanna was used to having to break the ice.1 She was the first woman to hold such a powerful position within the Universal Church in over 2,000 years.1 Sr. Enrica believes that having more nuns and women in powerful positions within the church will add a “feminine genius”.12 She also believes that women can better address issues pertaining to females within the church and provide a much needed insight.12 Sr. Enrica, although believing in the power of women, does not agree with what she calls “pink quotas”.12 Sr. Enrica stated that quotas essentially show that women should gain power by way of their gender and not because of their abilities.12 Sr. Enrica broke down steps to getting women more involved in the pastoral aspect of vocations.12 The first step was for young women to be happy with themselves as women and comfortable in this identity.12 The second step was to recognize and identify the role of motherhood not only within a traditional sense, but as well as a universal sense.12 To Sr. Enrica, motherhood meant taking care of others whether it is children, young people, the poor, or the vulnerable.12 She acknowledged that the models within the church decide the Pope, and with further representation of women perhaps they will have more of an influence.12

View on Vocations
Sr. Enrica addressed that there was an importance for all vocations within the church.12 She believed that sometimes vocations fail to address the feminine genius and this excludes half the population.12 The number of those seeking and following vocations has fallen in both industrialized and non-industrialized countries.12 The response to such a decline in vocations according to Sr. Enrica was to live in a “spirituality of twilight”.12 Such a “spirituality of twilight” leads individuals to be fervent and evangelize.12  Sr. Enrica advocates a potential role reversal in vocations following such a decline. Sr. Enrica  potential role reversal in vocations following such a decline.12 Sr. Enrica addresses that there may be a leap in the direction of disproving how the genius of women intersects with vocational calls.12 She believes that the place to look for vocations is in that of young people.12 In further discussion, she stated that in times of falling numbers within vocations, institutes, such as the Church, may change.12

Views on Nuns
Sister Enrica Rosanna discussed the role of vocation and more specifically that of nuns in an interview with The Gubbernet in 2007.12 In her opinion, nuns have an important role in the process of evangelization and within providing support for the church.12 She discussed how nuns offer different roles and places of support for individuals within the church than do priests, deacons and other ordained ministers.12 She stated that nuns are looked towards for advice and support, always welcoming and helping people.12 She acknowledged that part of the importance of the role of nuns is for providing a different perspective within the church which is important for the representation of all members of the church.12  As she discusses in terms of women within the church, nuns give a touch of “feminine genius” to the church.12

Views on Feminism
Despite her groundbreaking role as a woman within the Catholic Church, Sister Enrica Rosanna does not identify as a feminist.1 In “The Art of Leadership” she fundamentally rejects one side of the feminist notion that there is no difference between male and female capabilities.13  While she acknowledges some feminism looks to the differences of women, she claims that other aspects of feminism try and compare males and females as being exactly the same and for that reason deserving of equal rights.13 However, she claims that it is the differences which make women deserving of leadership positions and of important roles within organizations.13 She states that radicalism, of any kind, referring to feminism in this sort, is fruitless.13  Sr. Enrica rejects the notion of having women in the workplace solely for the reason that they are women.13  She rejects the idea that quotas in the work place or politics provide any support for women in their advancement towards equal representation.13  She views quotas as providing women with positions for the sole purpose that they are women which she does not deem as beneficial.13

Retirement
On October 15, 2011, Sr. Enrica Rosanna retired from her position as undersecretary at the Vatican.13  Her successor is Sr. Nicoletta Spezzati of Italy.13  After her retirement, in 2012, Pope Benedict XVI invited Sr. Enrica Rosanna to attend the Synod Fathers of the XIII Ordinary General Assembly of the Bishops’ Synod.14

Books
Sr. Enrica co-wrote “The Art of Leadership” with Abbot Primate Notker Wolf. Both Sr. Enrica and Notker Wolf have held leadership positions which pushed forward their discussion of what qualities are intrinsic to a quality leader.13  Sr. Enrica possessed the leadership position of the undersecretary of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.13 Notker Wolf was the ninth Abbot Primate of the Benedictine Confederation. They utilize their experiences in the professional world to analyze questions posed on what makes an exceptional leader.

In “The Art of Leadership”, Sr. Enrica says that dealing with men versus women should not make a difference.13  She states that, as a female, if you behave naturally then men will acknowledge your authority.13  Women should develop their own leadership styles and what they do differently from men.13 Sr. Enrica states that one of the female’s best qualities that men lack is that they are trusted to look after people and things.