(Andrew Medichini/AP) 
 
 Pope Francis on Thursday opened the door to the possibility of ordained female deacons for the first time in centuries, potentially signaling a historic shift for the role of women in the male-dominated ministry of the Roman Catholic Church. His response was, in essence, “Why not?” 
 
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 “Constituting an official commission that might study the question?” Francis mused, according to The National Catholic Reporter. It also would validate their ministry.” 
 
 The Women’s Ordination Conference, an American organization that supports the idea of female deacons, priests and bishops, said in a statement, “Opening a commission to study the diaconate for women would be a great step for the Vatican in recognizing its own history.” 
 
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 That history, though, is a matter of some debate. “It seems useful to me to have a commission that would clarify this well.” 
 
 The comments may prove to be more of a change in tone than a change in church practice, similar to his remark “Who am I to judge?” made in response to a question about gays during a midflight news conference in 2013. "The only thing that came about was an inconclusive document that said it's up to the ministry of the church to decide on this matter." Yet the idea will face stiff resistance from those who believe that it is the first step toward ordaining female priests, something that recent popes have ruled out, citing church doctrine. “The real problem is that they can’t figure out why a woman can be ordained a deacon but not a priest,” Ms. Zagano said. At the session with the female superiors general on Thursday, Francis admitted that the integration of women into the life of the church had been “very weak” and said, “We must go forward.” Francis “said understanding about their role in the early Church remained unclear and agreed it would be useful to set up a commission to study the question.” 
 
 However, the report also noted that when the pope was asked about women preaching homilies during Mass — which deacons do, as do priests — Francis “said it’s important to distinguish” between different types of speaking, and that speaking during Mass connects the role of priest to the person of Jesus, who was male. More women in leadership positions 
 
 Pope Francis reiterated that he wants to see an increase in the number of women in decision-making positions in the Church, saying women’s perspectives are very important for both the elaboration and the carrying out of such decisions.
– During a meeting with an international group of nuns on Thursday, Pope Francis casually mentioned that he's open to making the biggest change to women's role in the Catholic Church in more than 1,000 years. When one of the sisters asked about the possibility of a commission to look into having women serve as deacons, the pontiff said it was a good idea and it would be useful for him to have the point clarified, the New York Times reports. In the church, deacons are clergy who are allowed to preach and carry out weddings and baptisms, the Washington Post reports. They were important in the early centuries of the church but the role gradually withered from around AD500 onward, though the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s brought back permanent deacons and made the role available to both married and single men. "Many experts believe that women should also be able to serve in this role, since there is ample evidence of female deacons in the first centuries, including one named Phoebe who is cited by Saint Paul in his letter to the Romans," the Vatican press office explained after Francis made his remarks. The Wall Street Journal notes that rising numbers of deacons have helped the church cope with a shortage of priests. Women active in the church in the US say they're thrilled by the apparent shift in policy, which many of them did not expect to see in their lifetimes. "It's very hopeful," Catholic scholar Phyllis Zagano tells the National Catholic Reporter. "It displays Francis' openness to scholarship, to history, and, most importantly, to the needs of the church." (Last month, Francis released a landmark document on marriage, divorce, sex, and family life.)