Whether Beaudoin's proposal seems agreeable or startling, use your reaction to notice your own perceptions about what a Catholic woman looks like today.
In your mind, what does a Catholic woman look like? From where did you derive your notion of Catholic practices and identity? Compare your perceptions of Catholic practices and identity to the real Catholic women in your life. Who are the real people who reinforce or defy the notions you possess about Catholic women today?
Read earlier installments of Young Women & Catholicism --
- "In All Things,"on the unique identity of young Catholic women.
- "Young, Female, and Catholic," on the "Catholic glue"that keeps us in the Church.
- "Role Models," on the need for models of faith and service.
- "Defending the Saints," exploring the role of saints in the lives of Catholics.
- "Spiritual but Not Religious?,"addressing the ambivalence many young Catholics feel about the religious structures of the Church.
Jessica Coblentz is a graduate student at Harvard Divinity School. Follow her writing on the Web at www.jessicacoblentz.com.
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