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Saturday, July 7, 2012

Religion, Equality,the Feminine Face of God and Women Priests

In her article "Living the life you want," Sally Quinn said "There is hardly any religion that does not treat women as second class citizens and, consequently, that has to have an effect on the thinking of both sexes. When religions accept us as equals it will make a huge difference in the way women view themselves and the worlds around them." (Washington Post, July 7, 2012) 
Women priests are visible reminders that women are equal images of God, and that is one of the reasons for ordaining women in the Catholic Church. 
So often, when women attend our inclusive women-led liturgies, they cry. Later many comment that it is a ground-shaking experience. It goes beyond the "holy shakeup" that Roman Catholic Women Priests bring to the church. We glimpse the Feminine Divine in a deep spiritual encounter that liberates God out of the male box and liberates women and men from the male-only symbol system that has predominated for centuries.  It is an earth-shattering experience for some, and quite affirming too. ( especially women who are presently experiencing alienation in Catholic worship with our new/old liturgy with its exclusive language repeated over and over again.)
A major problem with patriarchal religion is that it professes that God is neither male nor female, but uses images and words that are exclusively male to refer to God and teaches that only males can "represent" God in worship and in positions of authority. It is time to encounter God beyond all names and images and explore God's feminine face in our prayer and worship. The Feminine face of God is revealed in the bible and in Christian tradition.
 I have written three books on this topic: Exploring the Feminine Face of God, Delighting in the Feminine Divine, Heart Talks with Mother God (co-authored with Regina Madonna Oliver. Books are available at amazon.com except for Exploring the Feminine Face of God.  Bridget Mary Meehan, arcwp, www.arcwp.org,  sofiabmm@aol.com

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

"inclusive women-led liturgies"

Inclusive, yet no men?

Inclusive view of God, yet no male language?

Veritwas said...

No male doctrine? No male chauvinism? No protection for money-laundering pedophiles?