Herein the essay offers a reflection on the cruciform nature of pastoral ministry and its life- giving implications for the oppressed. In particular, the essay invites us to consider the question of women’s ordination in light of the legitimate feminist quest to “break the tradition of male destructive domination of [the woman’s] body and soul.” The first section utilizes the liberationist paradigm of El Salvadorian theologian Fr. John Sobrino for assessing the historical ways in which oppressive male power has all too often “put women on the cross.” The second part examines the self-denying example of the crucified Jesus, and how his cruciform use of power has helped to liberate women. The third section considers St. Paul’s pastoral ministry as a continuation of Jesus’s cruciform “cross-releasing” mission. The final section concludes with some reflections on how all of the above, combined with the work of the German theologian Susanne Hiene, informs our understanding of Jesus’s maleness, the feminist telos of male power, and the logic of women’s ordination.