(I have never read this book and it may be fabulous but a pink flower in a shopping bag does not make me in any way confident or want to be a woman)
So, let's look at the examples that we often see portrayed for us. I believe the two women most commonly presented as mentors in the faith is Mary the mother of Christ and Mary the sister of Martha. The first Mary is often portrayed with delicate white features and a sickeningly sweet, soft voice that can not belong to anyone but the most naive and shy individual. Mary #2 is seen as a quiet smiling woman sitting at the feet of Jesus looking serenely at Him as he rebukes her sister for working. Well, this portrayal isn't cutting it. This dissatisfaction with the basic "feminine ideal" can be seen on the walls of most of my college girl friends who have "She is clothed with strength and dignity and laughs without fear of the future" (Prov 31:25) emblazoned in some prominent place. This quote shows a fierceness and boldness that matches our daily life in a much more real fashion. So where is the example for us to follow?
Let's look again at the two Marys mentioned before. Mary of Nazareth said yes to an angel who told her that she was going to be a potentially single mom and have to take care of the biggest responsibility in the history of the world. She says yes without skipping a beat and proceeds to jump on a donkey alone to go take care of her cousin. She comes back and turns right around for another trip on a donkey to go have her baby in a cave before booking it to Egypt running for her sons life. The other Mary many believe was Mary Magdaline. She was a prostitute who decided that she wanted to see Jesus so she broke into the house of the people that had previously tried to stone her during a dinner party and walked straight up to Jesus to take care of His feet because Her Savior was not properly taken care of by His hosts. Both of these women were incredibly tough, resilient, and courageous. The bible gives many more examples such as Jael, Judith (both killed tyrants), Ester, and Rahab who all risked their lives to save whole nations.
Yes, these women all had all of the gifts that are so often discussed, but they had faith because God had helped them in incredibly dangerous times, they were receptive because they had made the choice to act with God's plan, they were meek and humble because they saw the power of God, and they were serene because they had experienced times of turmoil. They were strongest when they were called to act out of love for another. It was in self-gift that they found power and might.
We are called to change the world in radical ways. We should not be afraid. I challenge you, as a woman of God, to accept this mission and to be willing to take the jump and live fearlessly. Do not be ashamed or daunted by your passions, your abilities, or your role in life. This is true femininity; acting as we were meant to in love. Go out and follow in the footsteps of the saints.
"I am not afraid, I was born to do this" - St. Joan of Arc
We are called to change the world in radical ways. We should not be afraid. I challenge you, as a woman of God, to accept this mission and to be willing to take the jump and live fearlessly. Do not be ashamed or daunted by your passions, your abilities, or your role in life. This is true femininity; acting as we were meant to in love. Go out and follow in the footsteps of the saints.
"I am not afraid, I was born to do this" - St. Joan of Arc
Footnote...So when I was looking up how to spell Jael I stumbled across this article about women crushing the heads of evildoers in the Old Testament and how that points to Mary fulfilling Genesis 3:15 as seen in Revelations 12. Here is the link and also a picture of a statue of Mary being awesome.
I own none of these pictures
