Godly Women [Paperback]

Brenda E. Brasher (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0813524687 | ISBN-13: 978-0813524689 | Publication Date: November 1, 1997

Fundamentalist women are often depicted as dedicated to furthering the goals and ideas of fundamentalist men and thus of ancillary importance to the movement as a whole. Godly Women, Brenda Brasher's groundbreaking ethnographic study, reveals the paradox that fundamentalist women can be powerful people in a religious cosmos generally understood to be organized around their disempowerment. Brasher spent six months as an active participant in two Christian fundamentalist congregations to study firsthand the power of fundamentalist women. In addition to the narrow set of religious beliefs that constitute each congregation, she discovered that gender functions as a sacred partition which literally divides the congregation in two, establishing parallel religious worlds. The first of these worlds is led by men and encompasses overall congregational life; the second is a world composed of and led solely by women. Brasher explores how and why women become involved in this highly gendered religious world by examining women's ministries, Bible study groups, and conversion narratives. She discovers that women-only activities create and sustain a parallel symbolic world within and among congregations, which improves women's ability to direct the course of their lives and empowers them in their relationships with others. The women develop intimate social networks that act as a resource for those in distress and provide the basis for political coalition when women wish to alter the patterns of congregational life. Brasher's study sheds new light on the ideas and faith experiences of fundamentalist women, revealing that the religiosity they develop is not as disempowering as one might think. Brenda Brasher is an assistant professor of religion at Mount Union College.

Product Details

• Paperback: 232 pages
• Publisher: Rutgers University Press (November 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0813524687
• ISBN-13: 978-0813524689
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #986,970 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Reveals the lived experience of conservative religious women, June 2, 1999

By 

Nancy E. Macdonald (Sumter, SC USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Godly Women (Paperback)

The value of Brasher's book resides in its ability to probe and explore paradox. Women who believe in submission to men find power in that world view. Scholarly analysis and empathic description yield different but interwoven truths. Readers tired of simplistic discussions of any of Brasher's concerns--women, fundamentalism,family life--will find this a refreshing book.

Brasher's ethnographic approach gave her insight into women's lived experience, both the rational and irrational bases of their choices to become fundamentalist, as the women she interviewed did. The sources of female power within the fundamentalist churches are real and concrete. Women's ministries and gender segregated congregational activities provide an alternative source of political power as well as providing women with mutual emotional and material support. Informal influence is also expressed by women in complex negotiations with the male power structure, whose power both in the church and in the home, ultimately resides in male submission to God. All are spiritually equal before God.

Brasher further notes that the stereotyped view of fundamentalist women as antifeminist ignores wide variation in actually held views. These views vary by individuals as well as by issue. Workplace equality is endorsed by a majority of her interviewees. The relationship between conservative religion and the popular cultural context is as complex and nuanced as the other relationships she explores.

My only (minor) complaint stems from the book's brevity. While Brasher balances scholarly analysis and narrative description of lived experience, I sometimes found the resulting discussion oddly abstract. While her empathic style allows these women's voices to be heard, at times it is nevertheless a slightly muted voice. Moreover, and despite the book's brevity, many of Brasher's major conclusions become repetitive. In particular this was the case with her emphasis on the role of women's ministries as an outlet for female energy and growth. At times I felt like saying, "Okay, I got the point." On the whole, however, this book is refreshingly insightful, and ultimately respectful of its subject. For those of us who, like Brasher, remain concerned about the negative cultural influences of fundamentalism, this is Brasher's most significant accomplishment.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ethnographic Study of Christian Fundamentalist Women in USA, December 22, 1997

By 

"brashebe" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Godly Women (Hardcover)

Fundamentalist women often are depicted as dedicated to furthering the goals and ideals of fundamentalist men and thus of ancillary importance to the movement as a whole. In Godly Women,I examine the paradox that fundamentalist women can be powerful actors in a religious cosmos generally deemed to be organized around their disempowerment. In doing research for this book, I spent two years as a participant/observer in Christian fundamentalist congregations followed by six months of immersion specifically in congregational-based women's ministries. Thus, the book draws upon my first-hand observations as well as excerpts from my interviews with fundamentalist women across the US to present a uniquely personal portrait of contemporary female Christian fundamentalists.

5.0 out of 5 stars Empowering Faith, January 30, 1998

By 

Camille K. Lewis "Mom of 2 on Earth and 4 in ... (South Carolina) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Godly Women (Paperback)

Brascher's Godly Women is an empathetic, inductive, and scholarly look at religious women who use their faith as a source of empowerment. Focusing on women's talk within two fundamentalist churches, Brascher's ethnography questions the assumptions that religion-especially fundamentalism-is merely male-dominated or misogynistic. Her subjects find many nuanced and creative ways to influence their culture. What I continued to hear in Brascher's ethnography was my own mother's voice. She continues to attribute her empowerment to her faith. "Before I was a Christian, I didn't want to say or do anything. When I got saved, I had something important to say. I wanted to get involved." It seems before her conversion the world was too big and her voice was too small. Afterwards, however, she saw avenues of influence in small groups. The world was smaller, and her voice was enabled. Many scholars do not take the time to see and listen to that kind of power. Brascher takes that opportunity and proves that religious women can enact real change.