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The Religious Imagination of American Women

Mary Farrell Bednarowski author

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Indiana University Press

Published:22nd Oct '99

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The Religious Imagination of American Women cover

An exploration of five central ideas in the theological imagination of women

An exploration of five ideas that have become particularly powerful catalysts in the theological imaginations of women in many difference communities. It offers a multi-voiced response to the question: 'When women across many traditions are heard speaking theologically, publicly and self-consciously as women, what do they have to say?'.

"This book is a nuanced discussion of contemporary feminist thought in a variety of religious traditions. It draws from both academic and popular writings and offers a rich selection of books to pursue on one's own." —Re-Imagining

"This remarkable book examines American women's religious thought in many diverse faith traditions. . . . This is a cogent, provocative—even moving—analysis." —Publishers Weekly

This study of the fruits of many different women's religious thought offers insights into the ways women may be shaping American religious ideas and world views at the end of the twentieth century. At its broadest, this book presents a multi-voiced response to the question: "When women across many traditions are heard speaking theologically, publicly and self-consciously as women, what do they have to say?"

Since there is not a long bibliography of works addressing the religious thought of women, Bednarowski (United Theol. Seminary of the Twin Cities) plows new ground. Although intimating that she speaks for all American women, Bednarowski primarily focuses on the thought of liberal Christian feminists writing in the last decade of the 20th century. In surveying a wide range of popular and scholarly publications, Bednarowski discerns five common themes or characteristics and devotes a chapter to each. According to Bednarowski, women's religious thought is (1) ambivalent, because it is produced by people who feel that they are both insiders and outsiders in their traditions, (2) characterized by an awareness of the immanence of the sacred, (3) down—to—earth and celebratory of the revelatory power of the ordinary, (4) characterized by themes of relationship and relatedness, and (5) pervaded by the idea of healing. Bednarowski argues that these themes constitute something of a worldview shared by women from a diverse range of communities, and her extensive examples seem to support this argument. Scholars will find that this exploration of women's public discourse about religious ideas helps to reveal the common threads that run through women's writing. Graduate students; faculty and researchers.

-- L. H. Hoyle * Choice *

Scholars will find that this exploration of women's public discourse about religious ideas helps to reveal the common threads that run through women's writing.May 2000

* Choi

ISBN: 9780253213389

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: 408g

256 pages