Archbishop Burke warns against women's ordination

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- St. Louis Archbishop Raymond Burke has warned two Roman Catholic women that they will be excommunicated if they proceed with a planned ordination Sunday.

The two women -- Rose Marie Dunn Hudson of Festus and Elsie Hainz McGrath of St. Louis -- are set to be ordained as part of the Roman Catholic Womenpriests movement that began in 2002.

Only men are ordained priests and deacons in the Catholic Church. The Womenpriests and the advocacy group, the Women's Ordination Conference, are among Catholics pressing to change that tradition.

Both women said they will ignore Burke's warning. The archdiocese is not commenting.

"It's a typically hierarchical form of intimidation, and we will not be intimidated," McGrath said.

The service is taking place at Central Reform Congregation, a synagogue in St. Louis. In response, the archdiocese said on its Web site it would no longer partner with the congregation on any interfaith activities.