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1996 Feminist Spirituality: Christian Alternative or Alternative to Christianity? Sandra Marie Schneiders Jesuit School of Theology/Graduate Theological Union, [email protected]

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Recommended Citation Schneiders, Sandra Marie “Feminist Spirituality: Christian Alternative or Alternative to Christianity?” In Women’s Spirituality: Resources for Christian Development, 2nd ed. Edited by Joann Wolski Conn, 30-67. New York/Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1996.

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This Book Chapter is brought to you for free and open access by Scholar Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Jesuit School of Theology by an authorized administrator of Scholar Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Feminist Spirituality: Christian Alternative or Alternative to Christianity?

Sandra M. Schneiders

Let us consider the issue of fe minism in relatio n to Christi an spirituality, i.e . to the area of lived experi ence of the fa ith. It must be noted , however, that the term "spiritua lity" is no lo nger an exclusively Christian , no r even an exclusively reli gious, term . Not surprisingly, therefore , fe minist spirituality is not necessaril y a C hristi an o r even a religio us pheno meno n. In fact , however, as we shall see, fe minist spirituality whether Christi an or not tends to be deeply re ligious. Consequently, o ur first task is to define spirituality and specify the meaning of C hristi an spirituality so that we can then raise the questi o n of how fe minism is related to spirituality and fin all y how feminist spirituality is related to Chris­ tian spirituality. E lsewhe re I have traced the hi story of the term spirituality from its C hristi an biblical roots as a designati o n of that which is brought abo ut by the influence of the H oly Spirit, through its development in Christi an hi story to designate primaril y the inner li fe of the Christi a n striving for more than ordinary holiness, to its contemporary usage not onl y for re ligious experi ence but also fo r non-religio us and even anti-re li gious li fe-organizations such as secul ar fe minism and atheistic Marxism . 1 I defin ed spirituality, as the term is being used today, as " the experience of conscio usly striving to in tegrate o ne's life in terms no t of isolatio n and self­ absorpti on but of self-transcendence toward the ultimate value one perceives. "2 T his de finitio n is open enough to in cl ude both reli gious and no n-religious li fe projects but specific enough to

30 FEMINIST SPIRITUALITY 31 exclude aimless spontaneity, partial projects, or religious dilettant­ ism. Its essential elements are conscious effort, the goal of life integration through self-transcendence, and the finalization of the project by ultimate value. Its marked difference from the tradi­ tional Christian definition lies in its openness concerning the na­ ture of " ultimate value." Christian spirituality involves a specification of this definition in terms of the participation of the person in the paschal mystery of Jesus the Christ. For the Christian the horizon of ultimate concern is the holy mystery of God revealed in Jesus Christ and experienced through the gift of the Holy Spirit within the life of the church. 3 Thus, Christian spirituality, as Christian, is essen­ tially trinitarian, christocentric, and ecclesial. Given the way in which the tradition has presented the trinitarian God, viz. as three male "persons ," the recent presentation of the theological signifi­ cance of the maleness of Jesus by the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith,4 and the church as a hierarchical (i.e. sacral ized patriarchal) structure within which women , on the basis of their sex, are excluded from full participation, it is not surpris­ ing that women, once their consciousness has been raised , have problems with the living of their faith in terms of the principal coordin ates of traditional Christian spirituality. In other words, Chri stian spirituality will become problematic for any woman who becomes a feminist in the sense in which we have been using the term.

II. FEMINISM AND SPIRITUALITY

A . The Background and Development of Feminist Spirituality The term "feminist spirituality" began to be used very early in the "second wave" of the modern feminist movement, arising in the United States in the 1970s and appearing in Europe in the 1980s. 5 It was mainstreamed in the feminist movement in this country with the publication in 1979 of the groundbreaking work Womanspirit Rising: A Feminist Reader in Religion, 6 which was followed ten years later by its sequel, Weaving the Visions: New Patterns in Feminist Spirituality. 7 While some of the feminists 32 SANDRA M . SC HNEIDERS using the term spirituality were practicing members of one or another recogni zed reli gious tradition, and re li gion and/or theol­ ogy was central to the academic feminist in terests of most of them , feminist spirituality did not ari se within or in terms of any parti cular institutional church or recogni zed religion. Catherina H alkes is probabl y correct in locating the origin of fe minist spirituality not in re ligion or even in the critique of reli­ gion but in the reali zation by fe minists that women's estrange­ ment and oppression are fueled not primaril y by sex role polariza­ tio n but by the dichotomy between spiri t and body, with the former assigned to the male and the latter to the female, which is intrinsic to patriarchy. 8 In other words, male control of fe male sexuali ty, as it developed over the ce nturies, led eventually to the identificati on of women wi th their sexual/reproductive function and their consequent identificati on with the realm of the body whi ch led to their gradual exclusion from the realm of the spirit. T hi s spiritual realm , presided over by the male God who reigns in heaven, was opposed to the realm of nature which was relegated to the once universall y powerful but now discredited Mothe r God­ dess, the fe minine divi nity who was fin all y dethroned and defini ­ tively banis hed by the triumph of patriarchal monotheism. 9 Feminist spirituality is the recl aiming by women of the reali ty and power designated by the term "spirit" 10 and the effort to reintegrate spirit and body, heave n and earth, cul ture and nature, eternity and time , publi c a nd private , political and pe rsonal, in short , all those hierarchized dichotomous duali sms whose root is the split between spirit and body and whose pri mary incarnation is the split between male and female . 11 It is well beyond the scope of this work to enter into the complex and much disputed di scussion of how a single , all ­ powerful male God came to take the pl ace of the Great G oddess and the pantheon of lesser gods and goddesses who were wor­ shiped everywhe re in the ancient world before the relatively late advent of patriarchal monotheism in the west.12 However, ce rtain concl usions from the immense amo unt of research whi ch has been done o n this subject can be accepted as established . As far back into antiquity as western religion can be traced the supreme deity was fe male. T he Great Goddess was not merely an earth mother, a mate for a male god, or a fertility FEMI N IST SPIRITUALI T Y 33

goddess whose cult justified sexual license. She was the all­ powerful Creator, Source of life and of destruction , the Queen of Heaven, the Ruler of the unive rse. As a number of scholars have argued, this does not prove that the re was ever a matriarchal society, a theory for which there is no hard evide nce. 13 But even in patriarchal societi es in which me n controlled the myth and symbol systems, the supreme deity was female and the medi ators be­ tween the G reat Goddess and humans were usuall y female priests. Patriarchy, however, was compatible with matrilocal and ma­ trilineal kinship patterns, and strong patriarchal monarchi es did not develop until the economic, social, and military conditions for this type of political organi zation arose. The Israelite monarchy, for example, did not emerge until centuries after the tribes ar­ rived in Canaan, and a major political and military project of the fi rst kings, Saul and David , was to centralize political power. An important aspect of this effort was the unificati on and centrali za­ tion of the cult in Jerusale m. D avid's son So lomon was unabl e to maintain the fragil e unity, and part of hi s failure to do so was hi s in abil ity and/or unwillingness to stamp out the reli gion of the Great Goddess which , in many forms, was alive and well in his kingdom despite the official sanction of Yahwistic monotheism (cf. 1 Kgs 11:1-14) . Gerda Le rn er in her very important study The Creation of Patriarchy descri bes the pattern observabl e in archaic societi es which developed strong male monarchi es.

The observabl e pattern is: fi rst, the demoti on of the Mother­ Goddess fi gure and the ascendance and later dominati on of her male consort/son; then hi s merging with a storm-god into a male Creator-God, who heads the pantheon of gods and god­ desses. Wherever such changes occur, th e power of creation and of fe rtility is transfered [sic] fr om the Goddess to the God. 14

In other words, the source of the power of the Goddess, her originating relation to all life, must become the sole possession of the male God if he is to assume unique divinity. 15 This is precisely the pattern which can be observed in the 34 SAN DR A M. SCHNEIDERS development of Yahwism . T he consolidati on of the coll ection of Hebrew tribes into a single patriarchal monarchy required, as legi timation, patriarchal monotheism. As E lizabeth Dodson Gray says, wi th compelling cl arity:

When the ho ly space of a re li gion is sacred for male sexuality (as in the marking of the covenant upon the male phall us in circumcision) , and sacred for blood-sacrifice presided over by males; and when that same holy space is contaminated by fe male blood and female fertility (as in menstruating and in givin g birth) , we are dealing with a male fe rtili ty cul t , no matter what its other lofty spiritual insights may be . 16

It is not surprising, furthermore, that the second version of the creati on myth, the Jahwisti c (the so-called J) account in Genesis 2:4b- 25 whi ch dates from the earl y days of the monarchy, pre­ sents the creator as a male deity, creating a male human being, from whose side a woman is "born" even though, as everyone kn ows, all men are actuall y born from a woman's womb. What is accomplished by the story is the mythical transference of the power of creati on and of fertility from Goddess to God and fro m woman to man. A nd to put the fin al seal on the process the woman is then made responsible for the man's moral fa ll , thus legitimating hi s dominion over her even though , from creation, she is his equal, "bone of his bone and fl esh of his fl esh ." T he G reat Goddess, however, di d not die easil y in the He­ brew tradition. In fact, she never di ed completely. In the Old Testament we fi nd not only continual prophetic denunciati ons of goddess worship (which would not have been necessary if such worship we re not prevalent) but also, even in the canonical litera­ ture speaking of the one true God of Israel, occasional feminine images of God. In the fi gure of Holy Wi sdom , we have a well­ developed femi nine personi fica tion of God (cf. Wi s 8:1-9:6 ; Wi s 6:12-11:1; Prov 8:1- 9:12) .17 Nevertheless, there is no question that the Ya hwistic commitment to monotheism in volved , at least at the human level , a political commitment to patriarchal religion. To expose the patriarchal political agenda in volved in the development of the Jewish religion is not to deny the divin ity of FEMI N IST SPIRI TUALITY 35 the Judaeo-C hristi an God , the theological truth and impo rtance of monotheism , nor the reve latory character of the biblical text. As Matthew Lamb says in discuss ing the relati on of hermeneutics to di alecti cs:

To acknowledge ideological distortions does not imply a total rejectio n of e ither fa ith or science [in our case , femi ni st his­ torical analysis] in orde r to fi nd some other 'pure' realm of meanin g, no r any lapse into anarchisti c incoherence ; instead it demands attention to an in terpretati ve he uristics open to dialectical criticism. 18

But it is to call fo r a demythologizing of the biblical account for the purpose of distingui shing its patriarchal ove rl ay fro m its theology of God, its a ndrocentris m fro m its theology of humanity, and its sexist ideology from its reve lato ry content just as we must distin­ gui sh its scie nti fi ca lly untenable three-tiered cosmology fro m its doctrine of creation. Monotheism is not necessarily patriarchal any more than Judaism o r C hristianity is necessarily mo narchi cal. In fact , just as the G od of mercy and justice is disto rted by the vindic­ tive warrior persona assigned to G od in some parts of the Old Testament, so the Spirit G od who is utterl y beyond sex is often deformed by the patriarchal mythology in which the biblical God is usuall y presented . T he foregoing di scussio n provides the necessary background for understanding the e me rgence of conte mporary feminist spiri­ tuality. Weste rn reli gio n and , in particul ar, the Judaeo-Christi an tradition is deeply patriarchal, not o nly in its institutional o rgani­ zation but in its theology of G od and of humanity. God is pre­ sented, not exclusively but overwhelmingly, as a male being. Males, who are perce ived to be unequivocall y in God's image, are God's representati ves and ministers. Wo men , by virtue of their fe ma le sex which is unlike the sex attributed to God , are regarded as defici e nt images of the divine , unfit to represent God to the worshiping community o r minister to him in official cul t. Women are subo rdinate to me n, helpers to men in the work of procreati o n , and thus defi ned primarily in terms of their sexual­ ity, i.e. thei r relati o n to men as wives and mothers, and their parti cipation in the natural processes by which human beings 36 SA NDRA M . SC HN E IDE RS come into existence and thus become subjects of the spirituali­ zati o n processes over which men preside . T he di chotomous duali sm between male divine creator and female natural creati o n within which the male human is assimi­ lated to the di vine sphere and the female human to the natural sphere is the paradigm for the e ndless seri es of supe ri or/in ferior di chotomies that is characte rized as masculine/feminine . T hus, at the male pole are divin e creativity, power, intelli gence, ini ti ative, acti vity, goodness, independence , and at the female pole are natu­ ral passivity, weakness, instinct and emotionality, receptivity, evil , dependence. The sho rt-hand cipher for this pervasive duali sm is the spirit/body dichotomy, spirit representing everything divine and body representing everything natural. The spirit is male ; the body is female. C ulture is the triumph of male spirit over female nature . Feminist spirituality, as we have already noted , began as women recl aiming spirit, refusing to be reduced to body. How­ ever, it virtually immedi ately expanded and deepened to include a reevaluation of body. 19 What feminists in the spirituali ty move­ me nt realized was that the root disorder was not wome n's confine­ me nt to the realm of body but the dichotomy itself whi ch split reality alo ng the spirit/body axi s creating an unending and unwin­ nable war between a supposedly superior spiritual (i.e. male) half of reality and a supposedly inferior bodily (i. e. female) half of reality. They reali zed that this leads not o nl y to male o ppression of females, their exclusion from the realms of "spirit" such as religion , education , politics, and culture, but also to wars between natio ns struggling to prove their supe ri o rity to o ne another by reducing the ir enemies to subhuman status, to racial and colonial oppressions of people viewed as intrinsica ll y inferi or, and to the mindless rape of the natural environment by man who sees him­ self as having absolute do minion over nature . The essence of fe minist spirituality, then , is a reclaimi ng of female power beginning with the likeness of women to the divine , the rehabilitation of the bodily as the very locus of that divine likeness, and the ri ght of wo men to participate in the shaping of reli gion and culture , i. e. of the realm of "spirit. " This explain s the generall y re li gious character of feminist spirituali ty and , at the same time , its marginality to the mainstream re li gious traditio ns FEMI N IST SPIRIT U ALITY 37 which are the principal sources of women's exclusion from the wo rl d of "spirit." Against this background we can exami ne some of the main features of feminist spirituality before looking at the specificall y C hristia n fo rm of the movement.

B. Main Features of Feminist Spirituality

1. O utside the Institutio nal Context Feminist spirituality has tended to develop o utside the institu­ tio na l context of eithe r church o r acade my. This is easil y under­ standable since both these institutio ns were develo ped as cultural shrines of the li fe of the spirit, a life fro m whi ch women have been excluded , in whi ch they are supposed not to be in terested , and for which they have been deemed unequipped . Thus the rituals and texts of religio n as well as the research techniques, the canon of classical texts, and the teaching methods of the academy include very little of women's experience or hi sto ry and even less that would be empowering of women. There is little pl ace for women o r for the expe ri e nce o r exercise of fe minine power in either church or academy. In fact, a majo r function of both in sti tutio ns has been to restrict wo men to the private sphere , the domesti c environment, the ancill ary roles, while power was possessed and exercised by me n. T he econo mic arrangements whi ch support both church and academy are such that funding is usuall y not available fo r so-call ed "alternati ve" projects, i.e. fo r projects that fa ll outside the patriarchal inte rests already in place.20 Consequently, feminist spirituality both in theory and in prac­ tice has developed o n the fringes of institutional culture. T his all ows fe minists a certain freedo m to te ll their individual and corpo rate stories whi ch are mutuall y empowering and to experi ­ ment with new theories that are anathema in the academy and new rituals which seem frivolo us o r shocking to mainstream reli­ gio n. However, it has also kept scholars in fe minist spirituality both from the variety a nd scope of critical exchange in the acad­ emy that woul d profit both women fe minist scholars and their no n-feminist dialogue partners and from full participati on in their respective religio us traditi o ns whi ch would be empoweri ng for feminists and purifyi ng and e nriching for their churches. 38 SAN DRA M . SC H NEIDERS

2. T he Discove ry of Goddess21 A n aspect of fe minist spi rituality whi ch is most disturbing to mainline religio n is discourse about Goddess. No doubt there is a deep, visceral awareness, especiall y amo ng the guardians of patri­ archal religion , that the reemergence of the goddess is potentially the greatest conceivable threat to the re li gio us status quo. How­ ever, because of the importance of the Goddess theme, no discus­ sio n of fe minist spirituality which avoids thi s iss ue can be even minimall y adequate. Basicall y, Goddess is the symbol of fe male divini ty, i.e. of feminine sacred power, just as God is the symbol of male divinity o r masculine sacred power. T here are two main questions about the symbol fo r divini ty: Is the divini ty symboli zed in masculine or fe minine form actuall y ma le or fe male? How are real males and fe males related to the di vi nity? Vario us strands of femin ist spiritu­ ality answer these questi o ns di fferently. T hree of these strands are of majo r significance fo r an understandi ng of fe mi nist spirituality. Thealogy: T he most radi cal form of fe minist spiri tuality in­ volves the worship of the Great Mother Goddess who is con­ ceived of as the o ne, true , ultimate divinity. 22 T he study of her nature and her relati o ns with creati o n and humanity is called thealogy, i.e. discourse about Goddess, rathe r than theology or discourse abo ut God . H owever, a majo r difference between the understanding of Goddess is conceived as ultimately immanent rather than ultimate ly transcendent. Mo re exactl y, her transcen­ dence is her all-embracing, all-empowering immanence. She is transcendently immanent. T hus, Goddess not onl y divi nizes the fe minine and its life-givin g myste ri es but also negates the ruinous split between transcendent and immane nt , spirit and body, divin­ ity and nature, heaven and earth with all their Manichean prog­ eny in the realms of tho ught and acti o n. A feminine deity allows wome n to experience themselves as truly " li ke Goddess," as imag­ ing divi ni ty in thei r very li fe-giving powers. R ather than being unclean because of the ir bodily capacity to give life , they are di vine because of it. Wo men are rehabili tated in the rehabilitation of the body whi ch is not the opposite of spirit but the enspirited vessel of divi ne creati vity. Closely related to Goddess re li gion and spiritua li ty but not FEMI N IST SPIRITUA LI TY 39 necessaril y identical with it is the revitalizati on of Wicca, or pre­ Christian , European traditions of pagan reli gion.23 The deity of these nature religions is fe male and her devotees are predomi­ nantly although not exclusively women. They come together in "covens" and ofte n call themselves "witches," a deliberately pro­ vocative practice which not onl y intends to unmas k the irrational male fear of fe male reli gious power but also to expi ate the murder of millions of women throughout Christi an history who have been executed on the charge of witchcraft. 24 Witchcraft is not the "black magic" or nocturnal sexual orgies feared by the reli gious establishment but a ritual participati on in the life-giving and healing powers of nature which are seen as divine. For Wicca, whi ch means "wi sdom" or the "wi se ones," the universe is not an inert thing but a li ving reality in which every­ thing is intimately interconnected. Human bein gs are the priest­ esses of creation, not its lords. Spirituality includes sexuality with­ out being either reduced to it or dominant over it. Life and love are supreme values which are not at odds with truth. Ritual plays a very important role in witchcraft because it is the place where spirit and nature meet and interact, sacralizing all of reality and uniting us to ourselves, to one anothe r, and to the universe.25 God/dess: A less radical form of feminist spirituality, and one with whose approach to di vinity many Christi an fe minists are much more comfortable, is well symbolized by respelling the ver­ bal symbol of di vinity as G-o-d / d-e-s-s. What such women are doing is appropriating for women all that is true in the theological and religious tradition about God . While repudiating the patriar­ chal and masculinizi ng deformati on of the God-tradition, they continue to relate to the deity of Judaeo-Christi an revelation. They emphasize the feminine aspects of the biblical deity, insist on a compensatory highlighting of feminine biblical metaphors for Yahweh, demand the use of gender inclusive language fo r both divine and human being in prayer and worship, and struggle to­ ward a reimagining, fo r themselves and others, of the male God in female terms. In other words, they refu se to all ow the biblical God to be appropriated by men and used against women. They see themselves as fully in the image and likeness of God/dess, not only because they possess intellect and will , i.e. spiritual faculties, but also because they participate bodily in the great divine work 40 SAN DRA M . SC H N E IDERS of giving and nurturing life. Thus they atte mpt to achieve much the same appropriation of spiritual power, rehabilitation of the body, and reintegration of the di cho to mized spheres of reality that more radical G oddess wo rshippers do , but they seek to do this witho ut separating themselves from the Judaeo-Christian bib­ lical and sacramental tradition.26 Therapeutic or Psychological Approach to the Goddesses: A third way in which feminist spirituality has incorporated the god­ dess is basicall y psychological and the rapeutic. Basing themselves on the archetypal theory of Carl Jung, but repudiating o r modify ­ in g Jung's animus/anima dichotomy, some feminist psychothera­ pi sts have seen the po tential of goddess archetypes fo r heali ng the profo und self-hatred and self-rejection which patriarchal culture has inculcated in wome n by teaching them to identify with the inferi o r qualities regarded as "feminine" while assigning the supe­ rior human qualities to men. 27 Jung recognized the potentiality of transcultural intrapsychic patterns, which he call ed archetypes, to co nste ll ate the complexes of thought and feeling whi ch are opera­ tive in o ur dail y experi ence. A fundamental pair of archetypes, according to Jung, are the anima or the feminine principle in the male psyche , and the animus or the male principle in the female psyche . The major problem with Jung's theory, from a fe minist per­ specti ve, is that Jung assigned the culturall y ste reotypical mascu­ line qualities, i.e . those associated with spirit such as logical rea­ son , initiative, creati vity, etc. , to the masculine principle and the culturally stereotypical feminine qualities, i.e. those associated with body, such as emoti o n , instinct, receptivity, passivity, etc. , to the feminine principle. The net result was that me n were enabled to draw upo n the resources of the dark, inferior, and less differen­ ti ated feminine qualities which, in small doses, make life richer, mo re exciting, and more beautiful without ever having to identify with them , whe reas wome n could reach above themselves into the hi gher sphere of spirit, mind, and creativity but coul d never cl aim these qualities as their own. They would always experience these q ualities as recessive in the mselves, foreign to their true nature, bo rrowed fo r speci al occasio ns when they had to act in spheres not their own , e.g. in the academy, political li fe , or religio us FEM IN IST SPIRI TUALITY 41

leadership . Despite Jung's effort to valorize both the fe minine and the masculine , his dichotomo us approach had the effect of canonizing the traditional sexual stereotypes and the cultural hierarchizing of masculine and fe minine which ali enates women from the realm of "spirit. " Feminist Jungian psychotherapists have revised the schema by agreeing that there are indeed archetypes of the masculine and the fe minine in the psyche but that they are multiple. 28 Wome n have a plurality of archetypes of the fe minine within themselves as men have a plu rali ty of mascul ine archetypes. Usin g the an­ cient G reek goddesses to describe the archetypes of the feminine in women , these therapists have explain ed the ascendency in cer­ tain wo men , or in the same woman under di fferent circumstances, of the in ner paradi gms not o nl y of mother, child , and wi fe but also of solitary huntress, warrior and strategist, alchemi cal lover, contemplative virgin , goal-focused achi ever, leader, thinker, intel­ lectual me ntor, artist, craftsperson, spiritual guide , and so on. Neither the bodily nor the spiritual is either mo re o r less "natural" in wo men. The spiritual does indeed have a fe minine persona in a woman, but it is not a recessive masculinity. It is her own fe minine power active in a sphere from which real women have been tradi­ tio nally excluded. T he psycho logical task of women is to actuali ze all the inner goddesses, a ll the archetypes of female power.

3. Sali ent Characteristics of Feminist Spi rituality A gainst thi s background it is fa irly easy to identify the sa­ li ent characteristics of fe minist spirituality and to see their inter­ connectio ns . First, feminist spirituality is both rooted in and oriented toward women's experience, especiall y their experi ences of disempowerme nt and of empowe rment. For thi s reason story­ telling, the narratizing and sharing of the experience of wo men whi ch has been largely excluded from the history of main­ line re li gio n, is central. 29 Story- telling is both a technique for conscio usness-raising and a source of mutual support. By telling their own stories women appropriate as significant their own experience whi ch they have been taught to view as trivial. By liste ning to the stori es of other women they come to see the 42 SANDRA M . SCHNE IDERS

commonalities and the political power in women's experience which they have been taught to believe is purely personal and private. Second, as we have already seen, feminist spirituality is deeply concerned with the reintegration of all that has been dichotomized by patriarchal religion. This involves rehabilitating what has been regarded as inferior and reappropriating that which has been alien­ ated. The fundamental reintegration is that of body with spirit. Thus, feminist spirituality is concerned with giving voice to and celebrating those aspects of bodiliness which religion has covered with shame and silence, particularly those feminine experiences associated with life-giving which have been reduced to sex and those aspects of sexuality which have been regarded as unclean.30 Very closely related to the emphasis on the goodness and holiness of the body is a third characteristic, a profound concern with non-human nature. Feminist theorists have explicated exhaus­ tively the intimate connection between male possessiveness and exploitative violence toward women and that same possessiveness and exploitative violence toward nature. As men have raped women for their own pleasure and utility, so have they raped the environment for the same purposes. Feminists are convinced that only a spirituality which values both women and all those ele­ ments of the universe that have been "feminized ," including na­ ture, children, the poor, the disabled, the aged, and the infirm , can contribute to a renewed and livable world. 31 A fourth characteristic of feminist spirituality is its rejection of cerebral, rationalistic, and abstract approaches to religious par­ ticipation. The emphasis on ritual that is participative , circular, aesthetic, incarnate, communicative, life-enhancing, and joyful is a deliberate rejection of the rigidly unemotional, overly verbal, hierarchical, and dominative liturgical practice of the mainline churches. And feminists choose to organize themselves religiously not in the hierarchical institutional structures of patriarchal reli­ gion with its insistence on obedience and conformity but in com­ munities that are inclusive and participative. Consequently, femi­ nists involved in the spirituality movement are committed to a reenvisioning of ministry, liturgy, theology, teaching, community building, and ecclesiastical organization. A final , but perhaps the most important, characteristic of FEMI N IST SPIRITUA LI T Y 43

feminist spirituality is that fro m the very beginning it has involved commitment to the intimate and intrinsic relationship between personal growth and transformation and a politics of social jus­ tice. 32 T he feminist rall ying cry, "the personal is political," means not only that the problems women have experi enced as their per­ sonal and private concerns are actuall y systemicall y caused and can o nly be rectified through structural reform, but also that soci­ etal transformati o n is onl y possible through and on the basis of perso nal transformati on. Thus, unlike the traditional spiritualities of the churches which constantly (and often unsuccessfull y) seek a point of intersection between a process of personal spiritual growth and a commitment to soci al justice , feminist spirituality starts with a commitment which faces simultaneously inward and o utward . T he changes and growth which must happen in women if they are to be and to experience themselves as full y human, daughters of di vinity and its bearers in this world, are the same changes that must occur in soci ety, namely, the reintegration of what has been dichoto mi zed , the empowerment of that which has been marginali zed and abused, the liberation of that which has been enslaved . T he word whi ch has progressively come to serve as a cipher for feminist spirituality is " inte rconnectedness." In every area fe mi nists in volved in the spirituality movement are seeking ways to reunify everything that has been divided by the all-pervasive dichotomo us dualism of the patriarchal system , to replace the wi n-lose, either-or, we-they, in-o ut, ri ght-wrong bases of mutual destruction with a both-and-inclusive ness which will both achi eve and be achi eved by reconnecting that which has been separated . Feminist spirituali ty prefers networks to chains of command, webs to ladders, circles and mosaics to pyramids, and weaving to building.33 It wants discourse to be both rational and affective, dialogue to repl ace coercion , cooperation rather than competition to be our usual mode of operatio n, power to be used for em­ powerment rather than mastery, persuasion to take the place of force , and all of this to be no t me re ly the way individuals functi on but the way society functio ns. In short, feminist spirituality is a commi tme nt to bringing about, in o neself and in the world , that alternative visio n which is integral to feminism as a comprehen­ sive ideology. 44 SANDRA M. SCHNEIDERS

III. FEMINIST SPIRITU ALITY A ND CHRISTIAN SPIRITUALITY

We come fi na ll y to the questi o n of the relati o nshi p of C hris­ ti an women and men who are fe minists to fe minist spiritualit y. Certain tensions, and also many points of convergence , should already have become obvio us. H oweve r, just as there is consider­ able diversity among secul ar and post-Christian re li gious feminists in volved in feminist spirituality, so Christi ans who are feminists occupy a vari ety of positio ns o n a continuum running from very traditional Christi a n spirituality to very revisioni st approaches. O ne way to distingui sh amo ng Christi ans who are feminists and who are involved in feminist spirituality is to examine the points of departure from which vari o us fe minists have come to identify them­ selves wi th the spirituality movement.

A. Varieties of Christian Feminist Spirituality Not a ll wome n's spirituality is feminist just as not all women's movements are feminist. It is e ntirely possible fo r women to have a very patriarchal spirituality. In fact , it may we ll be the case that the spirituality of most women in the church is still at least unre­ fl ecti vely if not militantly patriarchal. However, the re are women who cl aim the designatio n of feminist fo r spiritualities whi ch most feminists wo uld not recognize as such and mi ght even consider anti-fe minist. Sometimes the designation fe minist is simply an anachronism , a matter of assigning the term fe minist to a woman who had a positive spiritua l self-image and maintain ed her integrity in the face of patriarchal powe r. 34 So metimes the te rm is appropriated by women who exalt the role in the ir re li gious expe ri ence of preci sely those qualities, such as receptivity and passivity, which me n have devalued and assigned to wo men. So metimes peopl e si mply equate the spirituality of wo me n , especi all y in sofar as it seems to contrast with the spirituality of men, with feminist spirituality. As has been said in relati o n to fe minism itself, fe minist spiri­ tuality is necessarily in fo rmed by a deve loped fe minist conscio us­ ness which is quite di ffe re nt from a positive se lf-im age as a woman o r even a basic commitme nt to the well -bei ng of wo me n. FEMI N IST SPIRITUALITY 45

Feminist consciousness begin s in an appropria ted and criticized experience of sexual oppression and in volves a critique of patriar­ chy as the cause of that oppressio n, an alternative visio n of a non­ patriarchal future, and a commitment to structural change to real­ ize that visio n . A first group o f C hristi ans whose spirituali ty is genuinely fe mi­ nist are people who have been deeply in volved wi th personal and/ or social spiritua lity within the Christi an traditio n and who came to fe minist consciousness at some poin t and began to realize that it had serious implicatio ns fo r their spiritual life. 35 Many Catholi c religious women and other ministers have had this experience. They have become sensitized to the oppressive masculinity of the language of prayer and celebrati o n and the way that this li nguistic hegemony functio ns to legitimate and rein force ecclesiasti cal patri ­ archy. T hey are estranged fro m a male God in whose li keness they cannot imagi ne themselves and who is, for a ll practica l purposes, men-writ- large. T hey have become progressively ali enated from a sacramental system in whi ch males exercise sacred power over women to grant o r deny access to God and use sacramental ly based office to excl ude women from full participati on in the church. T hey have come to recognize the ways in which male-controll ed theol­ ogy, moral fo rmati o n, and spiritual guidance have functi oned to infantili ze and demonize women. In short, their conscio usness­ raising has exte nded to the sphere of spi rituality and they have begun to judge traditio nal Christian spirituality as seri ously flawed, even destructi ve of women. 36 A second type of Christi an fe minist is the person whose com­ ing to fe minist spirituality began in her o r hi s in vo lvement in femi nist liberati o ni st praxis.37 As this person has grown in aware­ ness of the ways in whi ch wome n are margin a li zed , excluded , victimized , degraded , and oppressed in fa mil y and society, he o r she has begun to see that wome n undergo the same oppression in the church and that the church is a majo r legitimato r of the oppres­ sion of women in fa mily and society. T he social analys is which enables such people to identify patriarchy as the root of women's social, econo mi c, and political oppression is extended to the church whe re it is ide ntified as the cause of women's religious oppression . However, such people recogni ze th at the situation in the church is complicated by the spiritual element. It is not merely 46 SANDRA M. SCHNEIDERS that the church as social institution is patriarchal but that patriar­ chy has infected the inner life of the church as a community. Sexual apartheid in the church, like racial apartheid in South Africa, is not just an evil social structure but a deadly cancer of the spirit which is destroying not only its intended victims, women, but all believers whose spiritual experience is patriar­ chally deformed. A third type of Christian who becomes interested in feminist spirituality is the woman who has experienced personal oppres­ sion and violence in the church. She may be a religious whose congregation's constitutional revision process has been violated or who has been threatened with serious sanctions for exercising her basic human rights; a married woman enraged by church law on contraception, divorce, or abortion formulated by male celi­ bates without any input from those who bear the brunt of those decisions; a woman in ministry who has been summarily fired without explanation from a post she has filled with distinction for many years because the new pastor is not comfortable with women ; a woman seminary student who cannot accept that her vocation to priestly ministry is simply denied without testing on the basis of her sex; a wife who completes the diaconate forma­ tion program with her husband who is then ordained while she is quietly dropped from consideration; a woman who is raising the child she conceived with a priest who continues to function in good standing while she bears the onus of single parenting and the ecclesial opprobrium of adultery; a parent whose child has been sexually molested by a cleric who is protected by the system. This type of experience, because it is so personally painful and is in­ flicted by church officials who claim to be acting in the name of God, frequently creates a crisis in the spirituality of the victims. They can no longe r relate to the God who is presented and repre­ sented in this way and they are forced, through a crisis of faith , to find a new approach to God or even a new God to approach. A fourth type of Christian feminist is the person who has become involved in the secular or post-Christian feminist spiritu­ ality movement and gradually finds it more sati sfying, more life­ giving, than participation in traditional patriarchal church life. She may continue to go to mass on Sunday and try to pray as before, but she finds herself overcome with anger at the sexist FEMINIST SPIRITU ALIT Y 47 language of the liturgy and the unrelieved maleness of ministry; she can no lo nger read or li sten to the paternali stic pronounce­ ments of the hi erarchy exhorting her to accept with humble joy her second class status in the church; she is unable to read or meditate o n a biblical text that suppresses her hi story and vi olates her sense of self-wo rth; ministering under the domina­ ti o n of clerics is becoming intolerabl e . Little by little she fi nds herself identifying with the community of feminists with whom she celebrates inclusive and empowe ring rituals and disassociat­ ing herself fro m the oppressive experi ences of mainline Christi an spirituality. In summary, women who are both Christi an and feminist come to see the re levance of feminism to their Christi an spiritual­ ity in a numbe r of different ways. For some , feminist insight comes as an addition to and an enrichment of a basicall y tradi­ tio nal experi ence of growth in the Christi an spiritual li fe. For others, the ir fe minist co nsci ousness, raised in other circumstances or in relatio n to other issues, begins to enlighten their Christi an spirituality and to call into questi on the ass umptions of that spiritu­ ality insofar as these are patriarchal and oppressive. Others come to fe minist spirituality out of an experience of ecclesiasti cal op­ pression , and still others out of an alienation that is intensified by its contrast with libe rating feminist experi ence. What all of these paths have in common is that they lead directl y into the area of spiritual ity, i.e . they touch not just in stitutional participati o n but the lived expe rie nce of the fa ith , the intimate place where the human person encounters the H oly Mystery of being, li fe , and love . T hi s is why the issue of feminist spirituality is for most Catho lic women whose consciousness has been raised a much more serious issue than questi ons of institutional reform. It raises questio ns of whether the G od of the Judaeo-Christi an tradi tio n can be God fo r a self-respecting woman; whether Jesus is a savior or an oppressor of women; whether sacraments can be experi ­ enced as symbo li c enco unters with God or o nl y as the sacred ritualizatio n of male dominati on; whether one can find oneself as a person and grow healthily in a community in which o ne 's per­ sonhood and C hristi anity will never be fully recogni zed . The ag­ ony of the Catholic who is a feminist is experi enced primarily in the area of spirituality. 48 SANDRA M . SCHNEIDERS

B. Responses to the Effect of Feminism on the Spirituality of Catholics No matter how the Catholic woman who is a feminist comes to see the connection between her feminism and he r Catholic spirituality, seeing the connection will present at the very least a major challenge in the area of faith life and in all probability a major cri sis . One response to the crisis, and one which is becoming, unfor­ tunately, ever more commo n , is abandonment of the C hristian tradition. Raised feminist consciousness makes the person simply unable to absorb the incessant spiritual abuse of a resolutely patri­ archal institution and she opts for her personhood, her self­ respect , and he r continuing spiritual growth which she realizes cannot be pursued in such an oppressive environment. Such femi­ ni sts oft en refer to themselves as post-Christian, indicating that their roots are in the Christian tradition and that their feminist position is not neutral in relation to that tradition. But they no longe r consider themse lves Christians and no longer recognize the claim of the Christian community or in stitution upon them. T he responses with which I am most concerned in this chap­ ter, however, are those of feminists who do not leave, or at least have not yet left the institution even though many of these admit that remaining is a daily painful choice. There seem to be at least two general groups of women who are both Christian and femi­ nist: 1) those who are basically within the mainstream of the C hristian tradition and whose spirituality remains recognizably Christian but who are involved in a continuous and radical criti­ cism of the tradition ; 2) those who are sti ll formally within the institutional church but who have, to a large extent, re located their spirituali ty into what bas been named "womenchurcb ." These two groups are by no means totally distinct, and most Christian women who are feminists probably have some affilia­ tion with both. I am distinguishing them for the sake of clearer description and analysis .

1. Mainstream : Fe minist Catho li cs For purposes of clarity I will call the first group "feminist Catho li cs ," ma king Catholi c the substantive and feminist a modi- FEM IN IST SPIRITUALITY 49 fier. These feminists are usually women who have spent most of their lives developing a personal spirituality within the Catho li c Christian tradition. Theirs is not a purely in stitutio nal spirituality, a matter of accepting church teaching, keeping church laws, and "practicing the fa ith" accordin g to current church norms. These women, many of whom are or were members of reli­ gious congregations, have developed a deep personal prayer life nourished by prolonged meditatio n o n the scriptures that has formed in them a C hrist-conscio usness which is now integral to their personalities. Often this Christ-co nsciousness has been deeply marked by a personally appropriated study of one or an­ other of the church's great spiritual traditio ns and/or person­ alities, such as Benedictine liturgical spirituality o r Teresian contemplative spirituality. These women responded with spiritual jo y and e nthusiasm to the renewal of sacramental and liturgical life in the concili ar period and were delighted to repl ace the somewhat wooden and impersonal preached retreats of their youth with intense experiences of personal growth in solitary directed retreats. Spiritual vitality overflowed in their adult years in committed and energetic ministry which became more and more creative as the decline in numbers of cl ergy and a renewed ecclesiology conspired to open previously cl erical ministries to the non-ordained. In short, the feminists in this first group are people with mature, personally appropriated spiritualities. Their spirituality was born within and nourished by the Catholic tradition . Jesus is ce ntral to their faith life which is trinitarian and communal, and their ministry is an integral expression of their spiritual lives. Christianity, specifica ll y in its Catholic incarnation, is not merely an institutio nal affiliation of which they can divest the mselves like a person leaving her country club, o r an ideological commitment which one might lay aside by conviction like a Marxist leaving the Communist Party, or even a cherished vocation which o ne might surre nder for a greater good like a teacher retiring in order to raise a child. These people do not belong to the Catho li c C hurch; they are Catholics. And their Catho lic identity is constituted much more by their spirituality, their li ved experie nce of the faith , than by institutional affi li atio n . Even if these feminists chose to sever their institutional connection they would find it virtuall y 50 SANDRA M . SCHNEIDERS impossible to de-Catho licize the ir spirituality because Catholicity constitutes that spi rituality in a fundame ntal way. Whil e it is certainl y not possible to give a single description of the spiritual journey of such a large and di verse group of people, it might be possible to suggest, in a general way, the effect of heightened fe minist conscio usness o n such women and the ways in which the encounter of their two commitments, viz. Catholi­ cism and femi nism, infl uences their spirituali ty. O ne way to orga­ nize this descriptio n is to talk of the inne r and the outer faces of the experience. Feminist consciousness, once raised, can onl y deepen. Consciousness-raising makes it impossible to ever "go home again." Once sensitized to the reali ty and the effects of patriarchy, one can only become ever more aware of its pervasiveness, more convinced of its destructiveness, more resistant to its influence on oneself and one's worl d. T he feminist Catho li c may begin with a mildly disturbing realization that the re ligious language of her tradi­ tion is heavily sexist, that she is being victimized in her mi nistry by the irrational fear and hatred of wome n that has been bred into an all-male , celibate clergy, that the God-imagin g in the tradition is overwhelmingly masculi ne, that she is bein g restri cted in totally unnecessary ways in the exercise of her sacramental li fe because of her sex. But o nce she has begun to see, begun the critical process of analysis, she will necessaril y graduall y be overwhelmed by the ex­ tent, the depth, and the violence of the in stitutional church's rejec­ tion and oppressio n of women. T hi s precipitates the inward crisis which the fe minist Catholi c inevitabl y faces : a deep , abiding, emo­ tionall y d raining anger that, depending o n her pe rsonality, might run the gamut fro m towering rage to chroni c depression. T his experience, whi ch must be distingui shed from the epi­ sodic anger we al l experi ence in the face of frustrations or every­ day mi streatment, sho ul d probably be ca ll ed existential anger. It is not a tempo rary emotio n but a state of being. Members of oppressed races and social cl asses know this experi ence well. Wak­ ing up in the mo rning angry and goin g to bed at ni ght angry, especiall y fo r a person who has been socialized to women's re­ sponsibil ity fo r keeping peace in fa mily and community and who has learned from childhood that a good Christi an does not even feel, much less express anger, is a personall y shattering experi- FEMI N IST SPIRITU ALIT Y 51 ence. T here are no categories or techniques in the repertoire of Christian spirituality fo r understanding or dealing with exi stential anger. 38 T he o nslaught of exi ste ntial anger fa ces the feminist Catholic with a new and a ll -embracing spiritual agenda for which the tradi­ tion offers li ttle help . The data of the experi ence are confli cting. In her heart the fe minist Catholic knows that he r anger is not only justified but mandatory, just as was Jesus' anger at the oppressive hypocrisy of the cl ergy of hi s day, but this does not all ay the guilt that arises from a lifetime of sociali zation and indoctrination about the unacceptability of this passion. At some deep level she believes in the Catholi c fa ith tradition, but she sees more and more clearl y that every aspect of it is not just tain ted but per­ verted by the evil of patriarchy. It is not that the traditi on has some problems; the tradition is the problem. She wants to hope that institutio nal purifi catio n and conve rsion are possible, but there is very li ttle evidence that the male guardians of the patriar­ chal establishment have any intention of even addressing the prob­ lem . She wishes she could focus he r a nger on institutio nal arrange­ ments and doctrinal positions, but the source of her suffe ring and the cause of her anger are most ofte n real people , usuall y males in power positions who reall y cannot be honestl y excused on the grounds of stupidity or ignorance because they do know what they are doing. T hese people are simulta neously her personal oppres­ sors and those for whose salvati on Jesus died. Not onl y are the data of the situation conflicting but the behavioral alte rnatives, at times, are all simultaneously unaccept­ able or ineffective. Walking out of offe nsive liturgies not onl y deprives he r of sacramental expe rie nce but usuall y has little effect on the offending preside r; but re maining only e nrages her and confirms the offende r in hi s oppressive practice. Expressin g her anger to males who are sufficie ntly sensitized to the issue to under­ stand what she is sayin g ri sks ali e nating potential alli es; but ex­ pressing it to those who most need to hear it is a waste of time; and not expressing it at all is psychologically dangerous. Further­ more, the institutional powers are in agreement that a woman accused of "bein g angry," like the woman once accused of "bein g a witch," can be di sposed of with impunity. Thus, expressing her anger can cost he r her job, her reputation, and any leverage she 52 SAN DR A M . SCH NEIDE RS mi ght have for bringing about change, while repressing her anger destroys her own integrity and psychological balance and makes her an accomplice in the oppression of he r siste rs. While these descriptions are indicative rathe r than exhaus­ tive, they should suffice to make the point. The fe minist Catho­ li c is in the sociological position in the church of the person of color in South African society. Sexual apartheid works exactly like racial apartheid . Oppression, frustrati on, discouragement, and hopelessness fuel an existential anger that is overwhelm ing, unquenchable , and utterl y exhaustin g. The spiritual agenda of the fe minist Catholic ofte n consists primarily in searching for some constructive way to deal with existential anger, to become in her own way a spiritual Nelson Mandela or Rosa Parks or Joan of Arc. A Carmelite, Constance FitzGerald, in a widely read article entitled "Impasse and the Dark Night,"39 has suggested a way of conceptuali zi ng, in the mystical categori es of the Carmel ite con­ templative tradition, the expe ri ence of bein g totall y blocked that is central to the existe ntial anger of many feminist Catholics. Carolyn Osiek, in he r book Beyond A nger, 40 has tried to suggest ways to both affirm the anger and to use it without becoming paralyzed by it. E lsewhere I have suggested that women's experi­ ence might be a resource for a renewed theology of the cross4 1 as well as for an appropriation of ministerial gifts .42 These psychological and spiritual resources, some explicitly Christian and religious, some therapeutic, some sociological, are gradually emerging as feminist Catholics share their experiences of alienation and search for a way out. Two major fo ra for this sharing that have proved immensely strengthening for many femi­ ni st Catholics are spiritual direction , especiall y with a feminist woman director,43 and support groups in which women come to­ gether to strengthe n one another in suffe ring, to strategize for change, and to celebrate both traditional Catholic liturgi es and alternative rituals. Their experi ence is not unlike that of the earli­ est Jewish Christians who, while continuing to participate in temple and synagogue, also met together in their homes to share and cele brate their Christian identity and faith which could not find expression in the Jewish assembly. Years of intense living of Christian spirituality has strengthened these women in their con- FEMINIST SPIRITUA LI T Y 53 viction that the re are resources within them for li ving even the passion and crucifixion of eccl esial patriarchy and that resurrec­ tion is worth their hope . T he outward expression of fe minist Catholic spirituality usu­ al ly takes the form of active commitment to eccl esiasti cal reform. Many of these wome n a re acti ve in the Women's Ordinati on Con­ ference, Catholics Speak Out, the A ssoci ati on fo r the Rights of Catholics in the Church, Mary 's Pence, and othe r groups in volved in ongoing chall e nge to the in stitution . Often they serve as well on diocesan pastoral councils, associations of reli gious and/or lay women, and advisory groups to church leaders. Femini st Catholics in the academy are invo lved in a full-scale revisioni st criticism of the Catho lic tradition. Women scholars in church hi sto ry, pastoral theology, biblical studies, systemati c the­ ology, sacramental theology, and moral theology are creating an alternati ve body of theological re fl ecti on which serious theolo­ gians can no longer ignore .44 T hey are demonstrating that what has been blithely regarded as "the traditio n" of the church is, at most, half the tradition. Church hi story is not the hi story of the church but of what men have preserved of male experi ence fo r male purposes. Much that the hi erarchy would like to present as si mply " theology" is the local theology of those in power often developed fo r ideological ends. Biblical interpretation has been done almost exclusively by exege tes wearing, unconsciously but reall y, sexual blinders. And while moral theology has been devel­ oped by male celibates un e nlighte ned by the contribution of at least half of those who lived that morality, pastoral theology has been distorted by the exclusion of the min is teri al expe ri ence of half the church. Feminist Catholics, especially those directly involved in pasto­ ral min istry, are pouring immense energy into the reform of li fe in the grassroots communities of the church. They are refu sing to tolerate gender exclusive la nguage in dail y discourse or liturgical celebration ; they are taking effective action, sometimes even legal acti on , to protect their ri ghts against cl eri cal privil ege and the arbi­ trary use of hi erarchi cal power ; they are changing the dominati ve procedures of the ecclesi asti cal workplace in the directi on of fe mi ­ nist models of coope ration and participati on ; they are building alternati ve models of re li gious community. 54 SANDRA M . SC H NEIDERS

Feminist Catho li c parents and teachers are committed to rais­ ing the next generati o n of Catholics as feminists. They want the boys they deal with to eschew anything, including the ordained ministry, fro m which their sisters are excluded. They want girls to recogni ze their exclusion whe never and wherever it occurs and to protest it loudly and effectively. Above all , they want the gi rl s and boys they are raising and educating to experi e nce the mselves as equals and to treat each other that way so that there will not be replacements for the generati on of patriarchs that is dying. What all of this acti vity has in commo n is that it is construc­ ti ve expenditure of e ne rgy for the transformati o n of the church . Not o nl y does it channel the existential anger with whi ch fe minist Catholics wrestl e interiorly, but it is having an effect. The con­ cerns of fe minists can no longer be trivialized or ignored by church offi cials.45 A lthough it often seems that no progress has been made and no change seems likely, the extent and depth of change is actuall y asto unding whe n o ne reali zes that the Catholic feminist movement is less than thirty years o ld . Institutional ar­ rangements have not been modified in any significant way. But the fo undati ons on which those arrangements rest have been seri­ ousl y undermined and the fl ow of personnel, money, and commit­ me nt necessary to sustain those arrangements is drying up. Like the Berlin Wall and South African apartheid , the church's patriar­ chal sexi sm appears immovable, but it is built o n the sand of oppressio n , and hi sto ry is o n the sid e of liberati o n and justice .

2. Wo me nchurch A second group of wo men who are both fe minist and Catho­ li c are those we might call Catho lic feminists. H ere the substan­ tive is feminist and the adjective is Catholic. T he primary social locati on and focus of personal commitment of these wome n is to fe minism , and this is what characteri zes and determines the ex­ tent and the q uality of the ir participatio n in the Catholic traditio n. Most of these wome n find their spiritual ho me not in Catholic paris hes or alternative communities but in the movement call ed " Wo menchurch. " 46 Wo menchurch defin es itself as church, i. e . as a community of re li giously engaged and motivated people who are women- FEMI N IST SPI RITUALITY 55 identified. T heir starting point is the experi ence of women, not any particul ar institutional reli gious tradition , although the move­ ment originated among Catho li c women moving beyond the goal of ordination into a self- unde rstanding as an exodus community, a community not in exil e from the church in sectari ani sm or schism but the community of church in exodus from patriarchy. Their goal is the fu ll personhood of women , not the maintaining or improving of the reli gious in stitution or the saving of dis­ incarnate souls, thei r own or anyone else's. T he criterion by which they judge the genuinely re li gious quality of any experi­ ence, project, or process is whether it is li fe-giving for women. Women in the Womenchurch moveme nt now come from many different reli gious traditions, Christi an and other, and from no tradition, although most of its members probably are or were originally Catho li c and most Catho li c wome n in the movement remain Catho li cs . Many Catho li c wome n who experi ence them­ selves primarily as feminists but wh o have not abandoned insti tu­ tional affiliati on with Catho li cism find themselves most at home in Womenchurch settings . And many fe minist Catho li cs, such as those described in the previous section, participate in and are nourished by Wome nchurch eve nts even though their primary religious affi li ation remains the institutional church. T he spirituality of Womenchurch is essentiall y feminist spi ri­ tuality rather than the spirituality of mainline Christianity. Conse­ quently, Womenchurch easil y brings together fo r story-sharing, analysis, strategizing, po li tical acti on, and ritual fe minists who share a deep concern for reli gion but no common ecclesiasti cal or cultural history. Catho lics, Protestants , Buddhists, native A meri­ cans, and devotees of pagan Wi cca ; whites and women of color; ordained wome n, lay women , and women religious all come to­ gether in Wo menchurch on the basis of shared feminist theory and praxis which is the fundame ntal shaper of the reflection, action , and ritual of the community. We might illustrate the difference between fe minist Catholics and Catholics in Womenchurch as foll ows. A group of fe minist Catholics might celebrate euchari st without an ordain ed presider but they woul d probably use the basic format of Catho lic eucha­ rist and they woul d be concerned about the questi on of how their celebration is related to the sacramental tradition of the church. 56 SANDRA M. SC HNEIDERS

A group of Catholic feminists at a Womenchurch event, if they chose to celebrate euchari st (which is less lik ely because they woul d have trouble with its patriarchal presuppositio ns no matter who presided and because they would be unlikely to be in an all­ Catho li c group), wo uld probably not be concerned with that ques­ tio n . T hey would be much mo re likely to develo p a ritual, perhaps involvin g the sharing of a communal meal of bread and wine, which they wo uld no t see themselves as "bo rrowing" from a male church which owns the sacrame nts but would see as an organic expression of thei r own power to celebrate their spiri tuality. Characteri sti c, then , of Catho lic feminists is their primary self- locatio n in the church of wome n , i.e. Wo me nchurch , what­ ever other institutio nal religio us a ffili ati ons they might main­ tain . Seco nd, their spirituality is essentially fe minist rather than Christian o r no n-Christia n, altho ugh it is usuall y enriched by those elements of the Catholic traditio n whic h they still find meaningful. Its primary characte ris ti cs are those we d iscussed above under the headin g of fe minist spiritua li ty, viz. non­ institutio nal locatio n , rootedness in wome n's expe ri e nce rather than eccl esiasti cal traditio n , a profound concern to rehabilitate the bodily while recl aiming the spi rit for women and thus heal­ ing the dichoto mo us duali sms characteri stic of patria rchy, eco­ logical sensitivity, a deep commitment to soci a l transformation as integral to pe rsonal transformati o n , and a concern that all of their interactio n be characteri zed by interconnectedness ex­ pressed in full participation , circul arity of organization and shared leadershi p , artistic beauty, inclusiveness, and joy. Catho li c feminists , along with re li gio usly commi tted femi­ ni sts fro m other trad iti o ns, are not content to await, actively or passively, the reform of the institutio nal church. T hey have under­ taken to develo p rituals which no t o nl y do not o ppress them but will give them li fe and hope. T hey do not hesitate to rewrite the stories of the traditio n from the standpo int of wo men's experi­ ence, to repudiate the stories fro m the tradition which mar­ gin a li ze, demo ni ze, or degrade women , and to write new stories which carry the non-patri archal content of the tradition in ways that are meaningful for wome n.47 T hese fe minists are also not waitin g for the institutio nal church to ask for their opini o n about o r to reform the offi cial positions o n moral matters that affect FE MI N IST SPIRITUALITY 57 women. T hey are no t co ntrolled by guilt in rela ti o n to the institu­ ti on , and many have taken anti-establishment positio ns o n such issues as contraceptio n , divo rce and remarriage, homosexuality, and abortion . In sho rt, they are busy being church rathe r than trying to reform the male establishme nt whi ch is usuall y regarded as church. H owever, they bo th hope for and expect that me n of good will will eventua ll y join the m in the reshaping of a church fo r all believers. Thus their sepa rati sm is ne ither total nor ideological but practical and provisional, although no one in the movement thinks that the re integratio n will happen anytime soon.

C. Catholic and Feminist: Th e Future of Women's Spirituality in the Catholic Church W hile some wo me n who are both Catholi c and feminist could locate the mselves clearl y in o ne o r th e other of the two positions described above , many othe rs wo ul d find it very difficult to do so. D e pending o n the situation , the iss ue , the occasion , or the partici­ pants , they wo uld identify primarily with their Catholi c traditio n o r primaril y with the ir fe minist affiliatio n. Against the back­ ground of the descriptio ns given above I would suggest two conclu­ sions abo ut the future of wo men's spi rituality in the Catho lic C hurch .

1. Comple me nta rity of Feminist Catho li cism and Catho li c Feminism First , feminist Catho li cs and Catho li c fe minists are making a comple me ntary contributio n to the transformati on of both Catho­ lic spi rituality and the in stitutional church. In the area of spiritual­ ity it seems clear that the inte ri o r li fe of feminist Catholics is the " place" where the fierce inne r battle over eccl esiasti cal apa rthe id is be ing li ved in a ll its agoni zin g intensity. The church is certainly involved in an institutio nal powe r struggle that is theological and po li tical. But, as with eve ry authentic liberatio n struggle , at its heart li es a spiritual struggle. In every such struggle the victims must fi nd a way between the Scyll a of death-dealing oppressio n by the power structure they are fi ghting and the Charbydis of so ul­ destroying hatred that would make political vi cto ry meaningless. Com munity suppo rt is essential in this struggle , but ultimate ly 58 SAN DRA M . SC H NEIDERS individuals must face, li ve through, and eme rge from the ulti mate threat to their selfhood that the struggle constitutes. E ngaging this inner struggle, finding within themselves the truth-power that will ma ke genuine conversion possible, is a major contribution to femi­ ni st Catho li cs whose spirituality has been subsumed into this pas­ chal experi ence of death in hope of new li fe. However, in the passage through the dark night of external o ppression and inner desolati on it is crucial that the im agination be e nlivened with new possibilities. T he exiles must have hope, and they cannot si ng the songs of Sion in the Babylon of ecclesias­ tical violence. What Catho li c fe minists, especiall y those who are acti ve in Wome nchurch, are contributing to the spi rituality of women who are both Catho li c and feminist is a whole new reper­ toire of songs, new liturgical forms fo r the imagination , a pro­ leptic image of a new church. These women have bravely moved ahead and begun to live what they beli eve, not waiting for permis­ sion or until the rest of the church is ready to move. A nd their living is an assurance that there is reality in the hope of those who live the exil e. If exile is the primary self- im age fo r fe min ist Catho­ li cs, exodus is the primary self-image fo r Catho li c feminists. In fact, there is much mutuall y empowering inte rchange be­ tween the two groups. While feminist Catholics may sometimes fear that their Womenchurch siste rs have "thrown out the baby with the bath" and set sail fo r a non-exi ste nt promised la nd and Catholic feminists may sometimes deplore what looks li ke fearful conserv ati sm in their still "churched" sisters, the two groups are increasingly respectful of each other. Not onl y is inte rneci ne strug­ gle among feminists damaging to the moveme nt ; it is contrary to the very inclusive ness and connectedness that fe minists want to promote and it plays directl y into the patriarchal agenda of sepa­ rating wome n from wome n. There is more than one kind of suffer­ ing, more than o ne kind of fear, and more than one kind of courage. T he gifts of all must meet the weaknesses of each as the struggle continues. In regard to the institutional church all women who are both Catho lic and fe minist desire passionately the conversio n of the institution from the sin of sexism a nd know that this requires a full and fin al repudiati on of patriarch y. Feminist Catho li cs are strug­ gling to find within the traditi on the resources fo r bringi ng about FEMIN IST SPIRITUALITY 59

this massive transformation. The wo rk of fe minist Catho lic theolo­ gians, ministers, and parents toward this end is carried on in the fi rm hope that o ne can use the master's tools to dismantle the master's ho use and that fro m the de bris of the house of eccl esiasti­ cal patriarchy we will be able to construct the home of equal discipleship within which the re ign of G od can be reali zed . By contrast , Catho li c feminists tend, if not to give up com­ plete ly on the institutio n , to regard it as not wo rth their li fe's blood. For the m the best way to bring about a new church is to start being that church now. If the real life energy of the church is diverted into the swe lling to rrent of fe minist spirituali ty, the patri­ archal institutio n will soon be a dried up ri ver bed , an arid trace of a lifeform that refused to change and so remains as a more o r less interesting crack in the surface of hi story. Like othe r lifeforms that could not cha nge, the patriarchal church will become an interesting his to ri cal foss il while the real church moves into the future as a discipleship of equals. Again, the two approaches are no t so much contradicto ry as compleme ntary. T he co mmo n aim is a new re ligious dwelling fo r the disciples of Jesus. Whethe r o ne re builds on the ancestral site or buys new la nd in a di stant locati o n is a prudential decisio n. In either case, a pre-condition of the new constructio n is that the o ld hovel of patriarchy must come down because it is unfi t for human habitati on . What the two groups of feminists in the church have in commo n is their di agnosis of the problem and their co mmitment to solving it. While feminist Catholics bring pressure to bear for transformati o n fro m within, Catholic feminists are serving notice that if the transformati o n is not undertake n in earnest , and soon, increasing numbers of be li evers will look elsewhere for spiritual nourishment.

2. Spiritua li ty as the Place of Crisis fo r Wome n Catho li cs Who A re Feminists

T he second conclusio n l would draw from the fo regoing re­ flectio ns o n the spirituality of wo men Catho li cs who are fe minists is that spirituality, the lived expe ri ence o f the fa ith , is the pl ace of crisis for wome n whose conscio usness is raised as well as fo r the church as insti tutio n. 60 SANDRA M. SCH NEIDERS

What began fo r most wo men as a problem with the institution has become in recent years a problem of fa ith. When the first Wo me n's O rdinati on Conference met in D etroit in 1975 the women who atte nded were focused on the transformation of the power arrangements in the in stitutional church specifica lly through the admissio n of women to o rders. By the time the second Wo me n's O rdinatio n Confere nce met in Baltimo re three years later, the women who attended were already aware that the "add women and stir" recipe fo r church reform was totall y in adequate. · Since 1978 wo men have come to realize that, in reali ty, we are not talking about how to organi ze the institutio n. We are talkin g about whether the God of Judaeo-Christi an reve lati o n is the true God or just me n-writ-l arge to legitimate their do minati o n; whether Jesus, an hi sto rical male, is or can be messiah and savio r fo r those who are not male; whether what the church has called sacraments are really encounte rs with Christ or tools of male ritual abuse of women; whether what we have call ed church is a community of salvation or simply a male power structure. In other words , because the issue has moved from the realm of politi cs to the realm of spirituality, the stakes are now very hi gh.

IV. CONCLUSION

At no time in its hi sto ry, except perhaps at the time of the Protestant reformatio n, has the church faced a cri sis of such pro­ portio ns. H owever, the Protestant reformati o n in volved a rela­ ti vely sma ll segment of the church in the tiny theater of western E urope. Feminism in volves over half the church in every location in the world. A ll of the mothers of future Catho li cs are women and, despite the exclusio n of wo men fro m o rders, by far the ma­ jority of the church's professio nal min isters are wo me n. While not all Catholi c wome n are feminists, time and hi stori cal process is on the side of ri sin g liberationi st consciousness, not on the side of oppressive ideology. T he church as institutio n cannot survive the fi nal disi llusionment of women altho ugh women, as church , can probably survive the demise of the patriarchal insti tution. The conclusion is that because the iss ue is in the arena of spirituality it must be taken with utte r seri ousness. If anything is to be learned FEMINIST SPIRITUALITY 61 from the Protestant reformation it is th at when reform is urgent it may be deferred but it cannot fin all y be avoid ed and the price of deferral can be disastrously high. However, precisely because the fem ini st issue within the church has resituated itself in the realm of spirituality, there is some reason to hope that the in stitutional church may be abl e to meet this monumental chall enge to grow from a male power struc­ ture imprisoning the word of God into a fitting locus for the epiphany of the reign of God in this world. Women who are feminists and Catholics bring to the church not onl y a powerful critique and the very real possibility of massive withdrawal but enormous resources for transformation. They bring an image of a renewed church that is derived from the gospels rather than from imperial Rome, the feudal middle ages, and th e divine right mon­ archies of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. They also bring a spi ritual stre ngth tempered in intense suffering and a loyalty that has survived twe nty centuries of exclusion and oppres­ sion. To this vision of fa ith and this stre ngth of hope they add a love of Christ, of the church itself, and of the world that has fueled a burning commitment to ministry since the earliest days of the church's hi story and which is still unquenched despite what raised conscio usness has enabled them to see. The feminism of Catholi c wome n is both the church's ulti­ mate and most serious cha ll enge and its best hope for a future worthy of its gospel roots. When the male disciples of Jesus re­ turned from the town of Samaria where they had gone to buy lunch they found Jesus in deep theological conversation with a woman . We are told that they were shocked and could not imag­ ine what Jesus wanted from a woman or why he would bother to talk to her. But they knew better than to challenge Jesus' designs whose horizons were o bviously we ll beyond their culture-bound ken . So the woman, like other apostl es who left boats and nets and father and tax stall to follow Jesus and ann ounce the good news, left he r water jar and went off to announce Jesus and to present her fellow townspeople with the only question that reall y matters: "Can this be the Christ?" Women today are asking this same question of the institutional church. Can you recogni ze in us , in our persons and in o ur experi ence, the image of Christ, and wi ll you choose to act accordingly? 62 SAN DR A M. SC HNEIDERS

NOTES

1. See Sandra M. Schneide rs, "Theology and Spirituality: Strang­ e rs, R iva ls, o r Partners?" Horizons 13 (Fall 1986) 257-260. 2. Schneide rs, "Theology and Spirituality," 266. 3. Sandra M . Schneiders, "Spirituality in the Academy," Th eologi­ cal S IU dies 50 (Decembe r 1989) 684. 4. A n E nglish translation of Inter lnsignores is avail able as Decla­ ration on the A dmission of Wom en to the Ministerial Priesthood (Wash­ ington , D .C. : United States Catho lic Confe re nce, 1976). See pp. 11 -15. See also Sandra M. Schneiders, Wom en an d the Word (New York: Paulist Press, 1986) 3-5, o n the maleness o f Jesus. 5. Cathe rina H a lkes, "Feminism and Spirituality," tr. Joan van der Sman, Spirituality Today 40 ( 1988) 220. 6. Carol P. C hrist and Judith Pl askow, eds., Womanspirit Rising: A Feminist Reader in Religion (San Francisco: Ha rper and Row, 1979). 7. Judith Pl askow and Carol P. C hrist , eds., Weaving the Visions: New Pauerns in Feminist Spirituality (San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1989). 8. Halkes, " Feminism and Spirituality," 220. 9. Fo r a readable but very in formative accoun t of the o rigin of weste rn re li gio n as the re li gio n of the G reat Goddess and the gradual triumph of the male warrio r God of the lndo-E uropean and Hebrew peopl es, see Joseph Campbell with Bi ll Moyers, Th e Power of Myth , ed. Betty Sue Flowe rs (New Yo rk : Do ubleday, 1988) 164- 183. For a schol­ arl y disc ussion of the o ri gin al supremacy o f the Goddess, he r eventual replacement by the male G od , and the re lati onship of this transforma­ ti o n of mytho logy to the actual social conditio n of wome n, see Gerda Lerner, The Creation of Patriarchy (New Yo rk: Oxfo rd Uni versity Press, 1988) 141 - 160. 10 . Carol P. C hri st has been a primary fi gure in the theoretica l development o f feminist spirituality both through her li terary analyses of wo me n's lite rature of transformation and through her work o n the func­ ti on of "the goddess" in wome n's psycho logica l develo pment through the appropriati o n and inner di vin e power and outward po litical powe r. For examples of her wo rk in these areas, see her essays, "Margaret Atwood: T he Surfacin g of Wo men's Spiritual Quest and Vi sion," Signs 2 (Winte r 1976) 316- 330; " Why Wo men Need the Goddess: Phenomeno­ logical, Psychologica l, and Po litical Re fl ectio ns," in Womanspirit Rising: A Feminist Reader in Religion, 273-287. 11. See, fo r example , the expl anati o ns o f this fun damental char­ acter and agenda of fe minist spirituality by She ll ey Finson, " Feminis t FEMIN IST SPIRI TUALITY 63

Spirituality Within the Framework of Feminist Consci o usness," Studies in Religion l6 (1987) 65-77; Patricia Schechter, "Feminist Spirituality and Radical Political Commitment," Journal of Women and Religion 4: 1 (Spring 1981) 57; Sall y B . Purvis, " Christi an Femini st Spiritualit y," Christian Spirituality: Post-Reformation and Modern , Loui s Dupre and Don E. Saliers, eds. [World Spirituality: An Encyclopedic History of the Religious Quest] vol. 18 (New York: Crossroad, 1989) 500-519. l2 . See Lerner, The Creation of Pa triarchy, fo r a comprehe nsive treatment. 13. Lerner, The Creation of Patriarchy, 36 , refers to the hypothesis of an origin al matriarchy as the creation of a compensatory myth for which there is no compelling evidence. Other feminist scholars who reject the hypothesis of an ori ginal matri archy are the following: E li za­ beth Dodson Gray, Patriarchy as a Conceptual Trap (We llesley, MA: Roundtable Press, 1982) 28- 29 ; Ha lk es, "Feminism and Spirituality," 221 ; Rosemary R. Ruethe r, "Feminism and Re li gious Faith: Renewal or New Creatio n?" Religion and Intellectual Life 3 (Winte r 1986) 8; Merlin Stone, " When God Was a Woman," in Womansp irit Rising: A Feminist Reader in Religion, [26-130; Deborah Streeter, "The Goddess: Power and Paradox," Journal of Wom en and Religion 1 (Fall , 1981) 13- 14. 14. Lerner, The Creation of Pa triarchy, 145 . 15. Ruether, in "Feminism and Re li gio us Faith: Renewal or New Creation?" 9 , expl ains this process, and its continuation in Christianity, as follows: " ... the mo re one studies diffe rent reli gious traditions and their early roots, the more one is tempted to suggest that religion itself is essentiall y a male creation. The male, marginalized from direct participa­ tion in the great mysteri es of gestation and birth , asserted hi s superior physical stre ngth to monopolize le isure and culture and did so by creating ritual expressions that dupli cated fe male gestating and birthing roles, but in such a way as to transfer the power of these prim ary mys teries to himself. T his would pe rhaps expl ain why mothe r-goddess fi gures pre­ dominate in early re li gion , but do not function to give women powe r. T hi s ritual sublimati o n o f female functio ns, as transfer of spiritual power over life to males, is continued in Christi anity. The central myste ri es of Bap­ ti sm and the E ucharist duplicate fe male roles in gestation, birth and nourishment , but give the powe r over the spiritualized expression of these functions to males, and only males who eschew sex and reproductio n." 16 . Gray, Patriarchy as a Conceptu al Trap, 26. (This citation is in italics in the o ri ginal text. ) 17. For an accessible but well -developed treatment of Wisdom as a feminine personificatio n of God in the Judaeo-Christi an tradition , see Susan Cady, Marian Ronan, and Hal Taussig, Sophia : The Future of 64 SANDRA M. SC HNEID ERS

Feminist Spiritualiry (San Francisco: Harpe r and Row, 1986). El izabeth Jo hnson , in "Jesus , Wisdom of God: A Biblical Basis fo r a Non­ A ndrocentric C hristo logy," Ephemerides Theologicae Lovanienses, LX I :4 (Decembe r 1985) 261 - 294 , suggests the theological potential of this biblical tradition for dealing with contemporary problems in christology. 18. Matthew L. Lamb, " The Dialectics of Theory and Praxis Within Paradigm Analysis," in Paradigm Change in Th eology: A S ympo­ sium for th e Future, Hans Ki.in g a nd David Tracy, eds. , Margaret Ko hl , tr. (New York : Crossroad , I 989) 96 . 19. Some feminist spirituality invo lves a lyri cal celebration o f the bodil y as sacred. See, e.g., Starhawk (Miriam Simos) , " Witchcra ft and Wome n's Culture ," C hrist and Pl askow, eds .. Womanspirit Rising, 263 . See also E li sabeth Schussler Fi o re nza, " Feminist Spiritua li ty, Christian Ide ntity, and Catholic Vision." C hrist and Plaskow, eds., Womanspirit Rising, 127-138, for the connecti o n between goddess spirituali ty. which we will take up below, a nd the recl aiming of the bodil y power to give li fe in the image of divinity. 20. Plaskow a nd C hrist, eds. , " Introductio n," Weaving the Visions, 6- 11. 2 1. I have atte mpted to distinguish between divinity presented in feminine fo rm and particular fem inine personificati o ns of divinity by referring to the fo rmer as "Goddess" (without the articl e and capital­ ized, as we use the term God) and to the latte r as " the goddess" o r '·a goddess" (with article a nd in lowe r case, as we would speak of the gods). 22 . In answe r to the question of whether Goddess is si mply "fe­ male powe r writ large" or a real entity, Carol C hrist, in "Why Women Need the Goddess," C hrist and Pl askow, eds., Womanspirit Rising, 278- 279 , repli es that diffe re nt women answer that question differently. Some see Goddess as a real divine protectress to whom o ne can pray. Othe rs see her primaril y as symbo l of e ithe r life-death-rebirth or of the beauty a nd legitimacy o f female power. 23. Miriam Simos, who is a leading practit ioner and t heo ri st of witchcraft and who is known by he r wicca name of Starhawk, provides an excell ent explanation of this a ncie nt religious tradition and its fat e i n Christi an E urope in " Witchcraft and Wo men's C ulture ," in C hrist and Pl askow, eds., Womanspirit Rising, 259-268. 24. Ibid. 26 1-262 . 25. Ibid. 263. 26. Rosemary Radford Ruethe r, in "Feminist Theology and Spiri­ tuality," in Christian F eminism: Visions of a New Humanity, Judith L. Weidman, ed. (San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1984) 11 . puts it well : " Feminist theology starts with the a ffi rmation that God , the g round of FEMINIST SPIRITUALITY 65 being a nd new being, unde rlies, includes, supports, and promotes fe­ male personhood as much as male personhood. Woman is not subo rdi­ nate or ' included under,' but equivale nt as imago dei. " 27. An importa nt contribution to this discussion is C hristine Down­ ing's Th e Goddess: Myth ological Images of 1h e Feminine (Ne w Y o rk: C rossroad, l 981). 28. An excell ent study o n th e goddesses as a rchetypes of the fe mi ­ nine is Jean Shinoda Bolen's Goddesses in Every Woman: A New Psy­ chology of Women (San Francisco: Ha rpe r a nd Row, 1984). 29 . Cf. E li zabeth Dreyer, -- Recovery of the Feminine in Spiritual­ ity,'' New Ca th olic World 227 ( 1984) 71-72. Purvis, in --C hristi a n Femi­ nist Spiritual it y,'' 503-504, ca ll s s tory- telling the creative mo me nt in Christian feminist spirituality. 30. See, e .g ., C hrist , ·'Margaret Atwood," in C hrist and Pl askow. eds., Womanspiril Rising, 329-330, who in sists, in regard to me nstrua­ tion , pregnancy, and childbirth , that " it seems to me far wiser for women as persons a nd as critics to name the power which resides in our bodies a nd o ur potential closeness to na ture positively, and to use this new naming to transform the pe rvasive cultural and religio us devaluation o f nature a nd the body." Purvis, in "Christi an Feminist Spirituality," 504-5 14, names ··em­ bodiment" as o ne of the major characteristics of feminist spiritualit y. It involves a rejection of m ale fear of sexuality a nd an e mbracin g of the erotic as a source of passio n fo r uni on in love, fo r social justice, a nd for encounterin g God. Schussler Fiorenza, describing the effect of goddess consciousness, says in '·Feminist Spirituality, C hristia n Ide ntity, and Catho lic Vi sion," in C hrist a nd Pl askow, eds. , Womanspirit Rising, 127- 138: "The God­ dess is the give r a nd nurturer o f life, the dispe nser of love a nd ha ppi­ ness. Woma n as her image is therefore not 'the othe r' of the di vin e. She is not body a nd carnality in oppositi o n t o s pirit a nd soul , not the perpct­ uator of evil and rebelli on. Being a woman , li ving in sisterhood under the aegis of the Goddess, brings us in touch with the creative , healing, life-giving power at the heart of the world. " 31. Cf. Streeter, "The Goddess: Power and Paradox," 9 ; Riley, Transforming Feminism, 97 , says, " For radical feminism , the primary root [of warj is me n 's will to dominate wome n. From this root come a ll o the r forms o f d o mination. The will to dominate appears s ubtly in the patriarchal social structures and the c ultural ideology that supports those structures. It a ppears overtly in a ll acts o f violence: rape, torture, sexual abuse, incest, pornography, domestic vio le nce. the destructi o n of the earth. It fi nds its ultimate expression in war. . 66 SANDRA M. SCHNEIDERS

32 . Some authors who explicate this connection arc the foll owing: Margaret Gali ardi, "Bonding, The C ritical Praxis of Feminism," Th e Way 26 (1986) 134-44; Patricia Schechter, " Feminist Spirituality and Radical Political Commitment," Journal of Women and Religion 4: l (Spring 1981) 51-60; Rosemary R. Ruether, "Feminism and Religious Faith: Re newal or New C reation?" Religion and Intellectual Life 3 (Win­ ter 1986) 7-20; Dermot A. Lane, "Christian Feminism," Furrow 36 (November 1985) 663- 675 ; Plaskow and Christ , eds. , " Introductio n," Weaving th e Visions, 1- 11 and Maria Riley, Transforming Feminism (Kansas City: Sheed and Ward, 1989). 33. Purvis, "Christian Femini st Spirituality," 509. 34 . I suspect most feminists would not recognize as feminist the approach taken by Mary E. Giles, in The Feminist Mystic and Other Essays on Women and Spirituality (New York: Crossroad, 1982) 5. Giles objects to much of conte mporary feminism and reveals her own ap­ proach , which most feminists would label at least anachroni stic, when she says, on p . 30, "Catherine and Teresa were free, joyous, loving and creative , ali ve in and through their being women. As such they were feminists. " 35. One can see this kind of development, for example, in the work of Joann Wolski Conn who, in he r first major work on spirituality, Women's Spirituality: Resources for Christian Development (New York: Paulist, 1986) 8-27, was hesitant to use the term "femini st" and pre­ ferred to speak of "women's spirituality. " However, she has since be­ come quite expli citl y feminist in her treatment of spirituality. See e .g., " Discipleship of Equals: Past, Present and Future?" Horizons 14 (Fall 1987) 231-261. 36. Carol Christ , in the chapter " A Spirituality for Women ," in Laughter of Aphrodite: Reflections on a Journey to the Goddess (S an Francisco: H arper and Row, 1987) 56-72, describes this process as she experienced it. In he r case it led to an abandonment of the Chri sti an tradition in favor of Goddess spirituality. 37. A very good personal account of this type of journey is given by Riley in Transforming Feminism, 1- 11. 38. See Fran Ferder, " Zeal for Your House Consumes Me: Dealing with Anger As a Woman in the C hurch ," Women in the Church I, ed . Madonna Kolbenschlag (Washington, D.C.: Pastoral Press, 1987) 95- 113 for a d iscussion of the psychological as well as spiritual dimensio ns of this experience. 39. In Joann Wolski Conn , ed., Women's Spirituality: Resources for Christian Development (New York : Paulist Press, 1986) 287- 311. FEMIN IST SPIRITUALITY 67

40. Carolyn Osiek, Beyond Anger: On Being a Feminist in the Church (New Yo rk: Pauli st, 1986). 41 . Sandra M . Schneide rs, " Women and Power in the Church: A New Testament Reflecti o n," Proceedings of the Ca th olic Th eological Society of America 37 (June J0- 13, 1982) 123-128. 42. Sandra M. Schneiders, "The E ffects of Wome n's Experience o n Their Spirituality," Spirituality Today 35 (S ummer 1983) JOO- I 16. 43. Sec Kathleen Fischer, Women at the Well: Feminist Perspecti ves on Spiritual Direction (New York: Pauli st, 1988) 175-194. 44. For a good treatment of the impact of feminist scholarshi p o n the theological academy see Carr, Transforming Grace, 63-94. 45. T hi s fact has been recogni zed by the undertaking by the U.S . bishops of the writing of a pastoral letter on women's concerns. See Nati o nal Confe rence of Cathol ic Bishops, "Partne rs in the Mys te ry of Redemption: A Pastoral Response to Women's Concern s for Church and Society," Origins l7 (April 21, 1988) 758- 788. 46. See "Women-Church: A Feminist Exodus Community," in Rosema ry R. Ruethe r, Women- Church: Theology and Practice of Femi­ nist Liturgical Communities (San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1986) 57- 74, for a succinct summary description and analys is of the hi story and present shape of this moveme nt. 47 . Cf. Ruethe r, " Feminism and R e li gious Faith : Renewal o r New Creation?" 17.