Gisela Forster (born 27 March 1946 in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

) is a German writer, teacher, and Catholic theologian.

Life

Forster was born in Munich to parents from Bavaria and Hungary. After school at the Elsa-Brändström-Gymnasium in Munich-Passing, Forster studied Catholic theology, philosophy, arts and architecture at the

Technical University of Munich The Technical University of Munich (TUM or TU Munich; german: Technische Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It specializes in engineering, technology, medicine, and applied and natural sciences. Establis ...

. After graduating, Forster worked as teacher at the

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

Schäftlarn school from 1972 to 1989. In 1989, Forster left the job to marry Anselm Forster, with whom she had two children. She was elected to the district council of

Starnberg Starnberg is a German town in Bavaria, Germany, some southwest of Munich. It is at the north end of Lake Starnberg, in the heart of the " Five Lakes Country", and serves as capital of the district of Starnberg. Recording a disposable per-capi ...

in 1989, serving as chairman on the council until 2002. Since the 1990s, Forster is working as an art teacher in Munich. Forster is a member of the German organisation ''Gruppe Maria Magdala, Priesteramt für die Frau'', which promotes priesthood for women. On 29 June 2002, Forster and six others were ordained priests by Independent Catholic Bishop

Rómulo Antonio Braschi Rómulo Antonio Braschi (born December 25, 1941) is an Argentine independent Catholic bishop, not in communion with the Catholic Church. Braschi was labeled as being an ''episcopus vagans'' in the early 2000s. Biography Born in Buenos Aires, and ...

, a former Roman Catholic bishop from Argentina who left the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

out of disagreement with the anti-liberation theology of the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Vatican City, the city-state ruled by the pope in Rome, including St. Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museum The Holy See * The Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church and sovereign entity recognized ...

to join the Catholic Apostolic Charismatic Church of "Jesus the King". In the media, the ordained women were called the

Danube Seven The Danube Seven are a group of seven women from Germany, Austria and the United States who were ordained as priests on a ship cruising the Danube river on 29 June 2002 by Rómulo Antonio Braschi, Ferdinand Regelsberger (bishop), Ferdinand Regelsber ...

because they were ordained on the

Danube River The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...

near the town of

Passau Passau (; bar, label=Central Bavarian, Båssa) is a city in Lower Bavaria, Germany, also known as the Dreiflüssestadt ("City of Three Rivers") as the river Danube is joined by the Inn from the south and the Ilz from the north. Passau's popu ...

on the border between Germany and Austria. In 2003 the Danube Seven were

excommunicated Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to end or at least regulate the communion of a member of a congregation with other members of the religious institution who are in normal communion with each other. The purpose ...

from the Roman Catholic Church. In 2003, she was nonetheless unofficially ordained a bishop, and in conjunction with another woman unofficially ordained bishop, ordained nine women in Canada in 2005.

Works

* * * * * * ''Dr. Patricia Fresen – Engagement für Menschlichkeit und Gleichberechtigung''. Denkzettelverlag, .

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Forster, Gisela 20th-century German Catholic theologians Women Christian theologians 20th-century German Roman Catholic priests Christian feminist theologians People excommunicated by the Catholic Church 1946 births Living people Technical University of Munich alumni Women religious writers 21st-century German Catholic theologians 20th-century German women writers 21st-century German women writers Clergy from Munich