Last month, Pope Francis created a commission to study the eligibility of women as deacons of the Catholic Church. This announcement was symbolic in the pope’s activism towards social issues and the changes that he has been making during his time as pope.

This step may seem far from progressive in the eyes of many feminists, but the truth is that this commission is the start of something much bigger than merely women’s rights, this step is indicative of structural change within Catholicism.

When looking at the authoritative structure of the Catholic Church you find that all the roles are filled by men. Although men in the church have traditionally been in power for for hundreds of years, if women were granted eligibility it would not be the first time in history that women held the position of a deacon.

“Female deacons were teachers to young women,” said religious studies professor Dr. David Reis. “They had the job of taking care of women who were sick or infirmed.”

Interestingly enough, these women had many responsibilities and expectations from the church for centuries. They performed sermons to particular crowds that mostly consisted of women. They baptized women in order to preserve a sense of privacy and ease the minds of the converters.

“They were in charge of forming and maintaining Christian communities,” said Dr. Reis.

They instilled belief among others and provided practice to the followers. Women deacons were consistent leaders and offered stability and encouragement within the growing faith.

Given that they were so important, it’s difficult to understand exactly why they were ever asked to leave the Church’s authoritative structure. It seems that if they were so essential to the building of the institution, shouldn’t they have been at the forefront?

“I think there are historical reasons for why their roles were diminished,” said Dr. Reis. “Church councils in the 5th and 6th centuries considered women as naturally fragile and deficient physically, mentally and emotionally.”

History shows that women have been underestimated and treated as lesser than men, so one can understand why long ago men would have felt that having women in high positions of their institution was illogical.

But this decision of the pope’s shows that change can and may occur for women in even the most traditional settings. Despite this positive outlook, women have the should be cautious in believing in immediate change. If history has proved anything, it’s that hard work is the only thing that brings about social change – even social change in religion.

“It’s easy to think that it won’t go anywhere,” said Dr. Reis about whether the commission would lead to women once again becoming deacons. “I think that it will be a long-term struggle rather than a short-term shift.”

Despite the unlikeliness that this commission will directly lead to change, women and the remainder of the progressive society should look at the creation of this commission as a large step forward. We have to count our wins as they are and continue to think of ways to push towards this kind of progressive change.

“I think that there are positive things that religious people can do which is re-read the gospel and get reacquainted with the original ideals,” said Dr. Reis.

Ultimately Pope Francis has cracked open the door for women and other activists to help push for more equality of the sexes in the Catholic Church. Although he has not officially said that he would support the readmission of women as deacons, having one of the most influential leaders in the world be open-minded about the subject is a huge breakthrough against gender inequality.