A Woman's Journey to God

by Borysenko, Joan

• ISBN13: 9781573228350
• ISBN10: 1573228354
• Edition: Revised
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2001-02-01
• Publisher: Riverhead Trade

Summary

More and more modern women are abandoning the religious beliefs they were raised with to search for a more authentic--and feminine--spiritual path. Now the author of "A Woman's Book of Life" shows contemporary women how their spiritual discontent can pave the way to a deeper, more meaningful faith.

Table of Contents

Preface: The Power of Bear: Reflections on a Path of Our Own	p. xiii
Introduction: We are All Relations: the Household of God is Big Enough for All	p. 1
A Spiritual Pilgrimage: the Renewal of Faith	p. 13
Modern Miracles	p. 20
The Mystery of Not Knowing	p. 37
Trains to Glory: Religion and Spirituality	p. 44
Religious Dropouts	p. 46
Anger as a First Step to Healing	p. 56
Partners in Religion and Spirituality	p. 62
From Religious Anger to Spiritual Experience	p. 63
Intuition and Reason: Jacob's Ladder and Sarah's Circle	p. 69
Jacob's Ladder	p. 70
The Dark Nights of Soul Making	p. 72
Trusting the Intuition	p. 76
Sarah's Circle	p. 78
A Brain of Our Own for a Path of Our Own	p. 84
Women's Wisdom: The Intuition Network	p. 88
Women's Relationality: Wired for Empathy	p. 94
Naming the Mystery: Father, Mother, or Other?	p. 100
The Likeness of the Divine	p. 103
God the Father	p. 106
Embracing the Patriarchy on Our Own Terms	p. 109
God the Mother	p. 115
Healing Ourselves and Our Image of God	p. 122
God as Mother/Father	p. 126
Developing a Relationship to God: Friendship and Intimacy, Sensuality and Sex	p. 130
The Anam Cara: Soul Friends	p. 134
Holy, Passionate Sex	p. 141
Women as Lovers	p. 149
God as Beloved	p. 151
Sensuality, Not Transcendence	p. 156
Spiritual Identity and Healing: the Heroine's Journey	p. 160
Healing the Woman's Self-Identity	p. 167
Authenticity and Wholeness	p. 170
The Descent of Inanna: The Secret of Love's True Power	p. 174
Susan's Healing: The Arts of Truth and Lovemaking	p. 183
The Spiritual Self	p. 188
Voices of Our Ancestors: Reclaiming Women's Religious Stories	p. 191
Of Lilith and Eve: The First Storytellers	p. 195
Taking Lilith Personally	p. 198
The Primordial Battle of the Sexes	p. 200
Taking Eve and the Snake Personally	p. 203
Mary Magdalene: The Most Beloved Disciple	p. 208
Jesus and Mary Magdalene: A Heretical Love Story	p. 215
Jesus and Mary: Partners in the Hieros Gamos	p. 218
Ritual and Prayer: Gathering in Spiritual Community	p. 227
Women's Spiritual Groups	p. 229
Altars in the Street	p. 233
The Science of Ritual, Intention, and Prayer	p. 238
The Four Types of Women's Ritual	p. 243
Earth Cycles, Seasons, and Holidays	p. 246
Rituals Marking Life-Cycle Passages	p. 251
Healing Rituals	p. 253
Daily Life: Doing and Being	p. 259
White Buffalo Calf Woman	p. 261
Balancing Male and Female Aspects in the Workplace	p. 263
Being True to Ourselves in a Man's World	p. 268
Taking Care of Ourselves	p. 272
The Synergy of Doing and Being	p. 276
Being in the Natural World	p. 279
Surrendering with Humor	p. 281
Peace of Mind Is the Journey and the Destination	p. 284
The Healing of the World: and Strangers Shall Be as Friends	p. 288
Endnotes	p. 297
Acknowledgments	p. 309
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