Noticing the role of women in changing the world
What I am noticing right now about the role of women in the world is that it is being taken seriously as the solution to the economic, ecological and social crises of today. A new study released this September on violence against women conducted over four decades and in 70 countries reveals the mobilization of feminist movements is more important for change than the wealth of nations, left-wing political parties, or the number of women politicians. The book Half the Sky: Turning … [Read More...]
Noticing the power of life to renew itself
Metaphor and Everyday Life: Our Maple Tree Because of the power of its metaphor, I have written before about the maple tree that stands next to our apartment building. Nearly three years ago, this tree suffered the loss of many branches and limbs in the fierce winds of a rare September New York City tornado. Indeed, at first the tree appeared so badly damaged that we thought all was lost. Yet the tree surgeons from the city worked tirelessly to save our maple. They spent hours sawing and … [Read More...]
Noticing the rising tide of womens’ voices
What am I noticing right now… …about the rising tide of women’s leadership? …about women reclaiming their spiritual power? …about your own spiritual journey? …about the role of women in the world? This question is so timely for me, as I have been chosen by WorldPulse to become an editorial mentor to a woman from an oppressive country. The purpose of the WorldPulse effort is to assist women who have stories to tell of problems still besieging women. The campaign is to … [Read More...]
What are you noticing right now…?
Dear beautiful women, Spring is FINALLY in the air. Phew! (Sorry, I'm in New York...) And as buds and new life appears, so we start to see things. We start to look around us again, we dig in corners, we ferret out all of the junk we were sitting on during those dark days. And we notice. So the question this month is: What are you noticing right now… ...about the rising tide of women’s leadership? ...about women reclaiming their spiritual … [Read More...]
Mother-Work: How women give and receive
As custodians of life, our families, our communities, the earth, we know the awe of responsibility. But how do we listen to the real need – both in ourselves and in life? For many years I have listened to women tell stories about their lives. Women who share dreams they have at night, and images that arise in meditation or while engaged in some daily task like washing dishes. I believe these stories and wisdom have to do with a language that is emerging, to help women understand how we … [Read More...]
Mother-Work: Voice of the Mother
For the last two years I have sung in a gospel choir that has changed my life. A chorister since I was seven, I have ever prided myself on my technique and my discipline. So it is that I found my first few months with this choir challenging. I didn’t understand why our conductor wasn’t stricter, why he didn’t correct our rhythms more, why he didn’t direct the dynamics of every phrase. “When was he going to kick us into shape?” I wondered. We needed a little bit of the hard … [Read More...]
Mother-work: God is Like a Mother Hen
When I was part of an Episcopal Women to Women trip to Jerusalem, we went to a chapel called Dominus Flevit on the western slope of the Mount of Olives just across the KidronValley from Jerusalem. The church designed in the shape of a teardrop has a picture window overlooking the city and at the foot of the altar is a mosaic of a mother hen gathering her chicks under her wings recalling Christ’s words “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to … [Read More...]
Rachel Barenblat – mother, writer and rabbi – on the poetry of motherhood
Here at Women of Spirit and Faith we are all about weaving connections... So...one of our lovely young leaders, Ayesha Mattu hosts a blog called "Love InshAllah: The Secret Love Lives of American Muslim Women" (also the title of her extraordinary book). This month Love InshAllah reviews a beautiful collection of poetry from poet, mother and rabbi, Rachel Barenblat. In Waiting To Unfold Rabbi Barenblat documents her pregnancy and the first year of her son’s life … [Read More...]
My Mother-Work as Woman Warrior
I married young in order to have somewhere to shelter my siblings, as we came from parents whose parenting consisted in religion-prescribed punishment. The matriarch whom I chose as my mother-in law was happy to include me and my family under her huge heart and in her powerful arms. Tragically, she was taken by cancer before the birth of her first grandchild, a girl. During her dying, my husband was also dying; his manhood was dependent on his mother's strength. I was still an … [Read More...]
Mother-work: Mothering is Helping Others
Mother. When most people think about the word, they think of the woman who raised them as a child. But what does the word mother really mean? Does it have something to do with the person who raised you? Or is there more to the word then there seems at first glance? From my perspective, a mother is someone who takes care of others, a person who helps someone that cannot help him/herself. For me helping others is something I enjoy very much. I am planning on going on my fourth mission trip … [Read More...]
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