Author Archives
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Painting, Privilege, and “Going Tiny” in Hawai’i by Angela Yarber
It started with Pelé, the Hawai’ian Volcano Goddess who governs fire, lightning, volcanoes, and the flow of lava. When my little family set off on a big adventure in June 2015, I knew I’d research and paint her as a… Read More ›
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Painting Our Lady of Sorrows: Mother’s Day and Resurrection by Angela Yarber
The month of May finds those within the Christian tradition solidly within Easter season, reveling in the promise of resurrection, while simultaneously celebrating Mother’s Day. To be honest, I’d never seen much of a correlation between these two events in… Read More ›
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Painting a Goddess of Grief by Angela Yarber
In many ways, I’ve thought of the myriad Holy Women Icons I’ve painted as mediators, guides who accompany us, women who have shown us the way. Whether they enliven us to create, inspire us to sustain, or embolden us to… Read More ›
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Painting the Mother of Exiles by Angela Yarber
Last month, my column focused on the importance of intersectionality within the feminist movement by highlighting the revolutionary work of Sojourner Truth, an escaped slave, abolitionist, and women’s rights activist. I’d like to continue to press the importance of intersectionality,… Read More ›
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The Need for Intersectionality: Repainting Sojourner Truth by AngelaYarber
I’ve long held that feminism, in order to be true and engaged and practical, must be intersectional. Such is also the case, I believe, for LGBTQ rights. The work of justice for women and LGBTQs people must also include justice… Read More ›
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Painting Lilith, Queering Lilith by Angela Yarber
Lilith has been a misunderstood, appropriated, and redeemed woman throughout the ages. Many feminists claim her as an empowering figure in Jewish mythology, her story reclaimed by contemporary artists such as Sarah McLachlan, who created the all-women music tour, “Lilith… Read More ›
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Painting Mary(s), Queering Mary(s) by Angela Yarber
It’s no secret that the holidays are often a difficult time for queer people. Disproportionately estranged from family, we often must create our own family. While these chosen families can be tremendously life-giving, it’s tough not to long for our… Read More ›
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Painting Our Lady of Light: Winter Holidays 2016 by Angela Yarber
There’s nothing like the holiday season to bring out everyone’s least feminist self. In one of the courses that I teach—Gender, Food, and the Body in Popular Culture—students are assigned to examine gender roles throughout the holiday season through the… Read More ›
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Nominating Holy Women Icons by Angela Yarber
Who is your Holy Woman Icon? When I began the academic study of religion in 1999, I was struck by the pantheon of male saints, venerated, honored, painted, adored, perhaps even worshipped. From virtually every tradition, men reigned supreme—in leadership,… Read More ›
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Holy Women Icons Contemplative Coloring Book by Angela Yarber
Around the time Microaggressions in Ministry: Confronting the Violence of Everyday Church was published, I was under contract and furiously trying to finish yet another book project, a coloring book of all things. On the heels of such imperative justice… Read More ›
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Drawing Pele, Retreating to Hawai’i by Angela Yarber
I knew I’d paint her from the moment we discovered that we would spend three months of our Year of Volunteer Travel Discernment in Hawai’i. Little did I know how Pele would turn our world inside out, destroying what needed… Read More ›
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Painting the Virgen de la Caridad, Doing Intersectionality by Angela Yarber
The most recent Holy Woman Icon with a folk feminist twist that I’ve painted is the Virgen de la Caridad. Like Mary, Guadalupe, La Negrita, and the Virgin of Regla, she was commissioned by a bold and brilliant friend, a… Read More ›
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Painting Jane Addams by Angela Yarber
As bright red hearts grace every storefront in anticipation of Valentine’s Day, the virtue of love remains at the forefront for many feminists. Let’s set aside Hallmark and the commercialism of romance for a moment and focus on some forms… Read More ›
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Coloring Holy Women by Angela Yarber
Coloring is a fast growing trend among over-stressed adults. “Soothing coloring pages” are a top Google search item. There are coloring books featuring mandalas, garden scenes, inspirational quotes, and even curse words written in fancy calligraphy sprouting branches, flowers, and… Read More ›
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Painting Marys, Welcoming Refugees by Angela Yarber
This holiday season, in the midst of our ever-repeating mass shootings and debates about the welcoming of Syrian refugees, I have seen a meme, a pithy quote, a bumper sticker time and time again amidst my fellow liberals: “If only… Read More ›
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Microaggressions and the Grimké Sisters: Between Painting and Writing by Angela Yarber
As an artist and author, my time is often divided between painting and writing, with my interests in religion, gender/sexuality, and justice being the connection between the two. Painting teaches me something unique about writing, at the same time that… Read More ›
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Holy Women Icons: Arts and Spirituality on Retreat by Angela Yarber
I’ve noticed some growing trends in feminist spirituality. Recently, I’ve encountered several feminists who have attended “virtual retreats” from the comfort of their homes. I’ve also been overwhelmed by the number of clergy, scholars, and feminists who have begun coloring…. Read More ›
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Broken Mirrors, Broken Bodies, and Sophia Wisdom by Angela Yarber
Freshly cleansed, I stood naked in front of a foggy full-length mirror. I had just taken my first hot, indoor shower in nearly two months. I’ve been volunteering in a National Forest all summer with my wife and toddler; it… Read More ›
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Painting Herstory: Our Lady of Silver Lake by Angela Yarber
It has become my new routine during the first phase of my queer little family’s year-long journey. After completing my chores, I run along the trails surrounding Silver Lake and once I’m thoroughly drenched in sweat, I grab a book… Read More ›
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Painting Perpetua and Felicity: Patron Saints of Same-Sex Couples by Angela Yarber
Recently, I realized the heart’s capacity to hold both extreme tragedy and utmost joy simultaneously. Surely this is something I’ve experienced in the past, but both personal and nation-wide events have served as poignant reminders. First, the racism that primarily… Read More ›
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Holy Women Icons on Tour: A Motley Crew of Unlikely Saints Hits the Road by Angela Yarber
Several months ago I introduced one of my newest Holy Women Icons with a folk feminist twist, the intrepid traveler and passionate nomad, Freya Stark. In writing about her fearless journeys to far-flung places women only dreamed of visiting in… Read More ›
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Guanyin Revisited: Queer, Pacifist, Vegan Icon by Angela Yarber
Each month, I delight in writing about a revolutionary woman. Whether she is from history or mythology, sharing the stories of my Holy Women Icons with a folk feminist twist is one of my favorite things to do as a… Read More ›
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Painting Sophia by Angela Yarber
Sophia was the first Holy Women Icon with a folk feminist twist I ever painted. A church gallery was hosting a Lenten triptych exhibition with the theme of “The Many Faces of Jesus.” I knew immediately that the face of… Read More ›
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Painting Deborah by Angela Yarber
Deborah is one of the few women in scripture depicted as a strong leader who does not need the help of a man. The start to Deborah’s story appears bland, a mere introduction to a narrative that will later become… Read More ›
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Feminist Freedom: Finding, Following, and Painting Freya Stark by Angela Yarber
“There can be no happiness if the things we believe in are different from the things we do.” –Freya Stark Ok. I’ll admit it. We all have our secret indulgences, don’t we? It is Valentine’s Day, after all. Shouldn’t we… Read More ›
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Painting Lottie Moon, Redeeming Lottie Moon by Angela Yarber
I never imagined I’d paint her. Though I was not raised in church, I have vivid memories of worshiping in Southern Baptist Churches, churches where women’s voices were not permitted behind the pulpit, churches where women could never dream of… Read More ›
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Painting Aurora by Angela Yarber
For those of us in the northern hemisphere, December is one of the darkest months. The days are shorter. Night comes earlier. Each morning I eagerly await the dawn, the potential sliver of sunshine seeping through my window and warming… Read More ›
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Painting “Unknown” Holy Women: Commissions, Gifts, and the Unsung Stories of “Ordinary” Women by Angela Yarber
Each month on Feminism and Religion, I feature a Holy Women Icon with a folk feminist twist. The painting is accompanied by an essay describing the holy woman’s life and the ways she stood for justice and peace, the ways… Read More ›
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Painting Mother Teresa by Angela Yarber
Of all my Holy Women Icons, Mother Teresa joins Blessed Mary in being one of the most familiar, and often the one least cited for the cause of feminism. Joining Virginia Woolf , the Shulamite, Mary Daly, Baby Suggs, Pachamama… Read More ›
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Painting Tiamat/Tehom by Angela Yarber
Today I am honored to give a lecture on “Queering Iconography: Holy Women Icons from Sappho to Pauli Murray” at the North Star LGBT Center in Winston-Salem, NC. So, I want to continue the theme of featuring some of my… Read More ›
