Spiritual Power is arguably the most dangerous power of all. In the wrong hands, it gives the power to make judgments even about the eternal fate of another person. It needs a sign on it at all times saying, ‘Handle… Read More ›
Catholicism
Abuse of Power in the Catholic Church: Undoing Almost Fifty Years of Progress – Part I, by Michele Stopera Freyhauf
“Now the Vatican says that nuns are too interested in “the social Gospel” (which is the Gospel), when they should be more interested in Gospel teachings about abortion and contraception (which do not exist). Nuns were quick to respond to… Read More ›
Presumed Guilty by the Sin of Silence: U.S. Nuns, Network, and The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith by Cynthia Garrity-Bond
In 1965, the Council document Perfectae Caritatis, Decree on the Adaptation and Renewal of Religious Life, encouraged women religious to situate themselves and their vocations in the social milieu to which they belonged. Each religious community adjusted rules and customs… Read More ›
Reflections on My Spiritual Journey: Claiming Judaism By Ivy Helman
“Is Ivy Helman Jewish?” This question and knowing that eventually I’d have to respond one way or another to it has caused me many sleepless nights. At the same time my faith journey has become integral to who I… Read More ›
Life Must Always Be Protected by Bridget Ludwa
Women’s dignity has often been unacknowledged and their prerogatives misrepresented; they have often been relegated to the margins of society and even reduced to servitude… Then too, when we look at one of the most sensitive aspects of the situation… Read More ›
Do Man-Made Laws Trump the Authority of Jesus? Reflecting on the Meaning of Humility, Priestly Service, and the Issue of Women’s Ordination by Michele Stopera Freyhauf
Maundy Thursday – the imitation of Jesus’ act of service and submission is re-created. Controversy surrounds the “disciples” – must they be all men? Are women allowed? Who steps into Jesus’ role? Men, women, or both? Why, when it comes… Read More ›
Is Baptism a Male Birthing Ritual? By Michele Stopera Freyhauf
Quite a number of years ago I had a conversation with one of my professors, a feminist theologian, who posed the question “Why do I need a man to purify my baby with the waters of baptism? Is there something… Read More ›
Pink Smoke Over the Vatican: A Review by Kate Conmy
Review: Pink Smoke Over the Vatican (2010) Award-Winning Independent Documentary Film Directed by Jules Hart By Kate Conmy, MA. Membership Coordinator of the Women’s Ordination Conference. Last weekend I had the honor of joining over eighty Women’s Ordination Conference members… Read More ›
Catholicism, Contraception, and Conscience: Church Imposed Teaching, God’s Gift of Free Will, and Political Rhetoric by Michele Stopera Freyhauf
Certainly one cannot turn on the news without seeing a story about the feud over the Catholic Church’s stance on forbidding the use of contraception and Obama’s Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) that mandates free contraception to women. … Read More ›
Son of Man: An Updated Gospel Story of Jesus Set in South Africa by Michele Stopera Freyhauf
January 12, 2012 Son of Man is an updated story of the life of Jesus set in the fictional State of Judea that is modern day South Africa – complete with warlords and child soldiers. It could easily be mistaken… Read More ›
The “Tenting” God and the Tenacity of Hope by Sheila E. McGinn, Ph.D.
Easter Sunday 2010 marked the last Mass at Historic Saint Peter Church in Cleveland, Ohio. After over 150 years of continuous use, the oaken doors of this sacred space on 17th and Superior were closed and locked. In rich irony,… Read More ›
Of Human Life* By Carol P. Christ
Watching the last episode of the Australian series Brides of Christ in which Catherine leaves the sisterhood of the convent because of her disagreement with Humanae Vitae brought me right back to the Yale Roman Catholic chapel and the folk… Read More ›
The Undoing of Patriarchy in the Life of Tom Jorde (1922-2011)
Last week I attended the funeral of the one man, who in my feminist musings, was able to image the maleness of God as father, friend and pastor. If I had thought about it, I would have given him the… Read More ›
Birthing God at the Edges of Life, Death, and Beyond: Reflections on Mary, Motherhood, and Kali Part III By Tracy Sayuki Tiemeier
Tracy Sayuki Tiemeier, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor of Theological Studies at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, CA. She teaches and researches in the areas of women and religion, interreligious dialogue, comparative theology, Asian and Asian American theology, and Hindu-Christian studies. Tracy also co-chairs the Los Angeles Hindu-Catholic Dialogue. When… Read More ›
Birthing God at the Edges of Life, Death, and Beyond: Reflections on Mary, Motherhood, and Kali Part II By Tracy Sayuki Tiemeier
Tracy Sayuki Tiemeier, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor of Theological Studies at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, CA. She teaches and researches in the areas of women and religion, interreligious dialogue, comparative theology, Asian and Asian American theology, and Hindu-Christian studies. Tracy also co-chairs the Los Angeles Hindu-Catholic Dialogue. Mary,… Read More ›
Birthing God at the Edges of Life, Death, and Beyond: Reflections on Mary, Motherhood, and Kali Part I By Tracy Sayuki Tiemeier
Tracy Sayuki Tiemeier, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor of Theological Studies at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, CA. She teaches and researches in the areas of women and religion, interreligious dialogue, comparative theology, Asian and Asian American theology, and Hindu-Christian studies. Tracy also co-chairs… Read More ›
Does My Faith Have Gender? By Brooke Nelson
The following is a guest post by Brooke Nelson, a Ph.D student in Religion at Claremont Graduate University. She is interested in themes of feminine agency, authority, and textual representation in early Church texts, and how these themes intersect with… Read More ›
Part I: Advent as the Active Wait By Cynthie Garrity-Bond
In the Advent reading of the Annunciation we are silent witnesses to the conversation between the Angel Gabriel and Mary (Luke 1: 26- 40). I would like to bring to the surface two ways of looking at the season of… Read More ›
Diminished Quality of Catechesis as a Basis for Limiting the Role of a Catholic Theologian: An Examination of the Controversy Surrounding Elizabeth Johnson’s Book The Quest for the Living God By Michele Stopera Freyhauf
The biggest mistake people make is to use theology and catechesis interchangeably. This is an important distinction that impacts the scholarly community of Catholic Theologians. So what is the difference? Catechesis in the Catholic tradition is an “echoing” of the… Read More ›
In Search of My Religious Identity By Gina Messina-Dysert
I try to avoid watching too much television – it feels like there are so many other things I should be focused on; but I was quite engrossed in the show Big Love during its run on HBO. Its concluding… Read More ›
My Body Image: Between Perception and Incarnation By Cynthia Garrity-Bond
No matter what shape or size, the words “body image” conjure-up pictures of the self that are like looking into those funny mirrors which distort and expand the body. With few moments of relative slimness in my life, I have… Read More ›
“She stood up straight and began praising God”: Luke 13: 10-13 By Theresa A. Yugar
The following is a guest post written by Theresa A. Yugar, Ph.D. Candidate in women studies in religion at Claremont Graduate University. The gospel story of the crippled woman healed by Jesus of her ailment in the Gospel of St…. Read More ›
This is What a Catholic Looks Like By Kate Conmy
The following is a guest post written by Kate Conmy, MA, Membership Coordinator for the Women’s Ordination Conference. Kate celebrates spiritual activism, feminism, and human rights. She currently works as the Membership Coordinator for the Women’s Ordination Conference and lives in Washington,… Read More ›
Feminism, Ontology and the Priesthood of all Believers
At a surprisingly early age, perhaps nine or ten, I became the author of my own spiritual narrative, meaning, I took it upon myself to initiate and pursue the deep mystery of my faith. Weekly Mass was an event, not… Read More ›
Between Mother Mary and Mother God: It’s a Mystery!
“It’s a mystery!” was the repeated response my mother gave to me whenever I asked her theological questions that fell outside the realm of the Catholic Baltimore Catechism. To be fair, my questions were usually a bit precocious for a young… Read More ›
