Plans for the 50 million barracks (pictures below) of the Swiss Guard inside the Vatican, which will open in 2027, include a wing for women.
LeMatin.ch (September 12) quotes Jean-Pierre Roth, a former head of the Swiss National Bank and president of the barrack foundation, “It was important to us from the beginning that the barracks provide a space for women in service.”
The president of the Patronage Committee, Ruth Metzler-Arnold, a former member of the Swiss Government, was even more explicit, “As soon as women are admitted, the recruitment potential of the Guard will also increase."
It is very difficult to find in the secularised Swiss Church young men willing to serve in the Guard.
Picture: © Davidlohr Bueso, Flickr, CC BY, #newsLeyqxkdbjz
Plus surprised at the cushy barracks for the soldier/police force of the Vatican. Looks more like a private club. [full disclosure: no disrespect to the fine men who have served honorably in the Swiss guard. I know one who after his stint went on to become a monk. Now there's the ideal!]