Missing Mary: The Queen of Heaven and Her Re-Emergence in the Modern Church [Paperback]

Charlene Spretnak (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1403970408 | ISBN-13: 978-1403970404 | Publication Date: September 22, 2005

Was Vatican II right to downgrade the Virgin Mary? This fall marks the fortieth anniversary of the final session of Vatican II (1962-65) at which the Roman Catholic Church brought itself "up to date"--and, asserts Spretnak, fired the Virgin Mary as Queen of Heaven, demoting her to being "just like us," merely the first Christian. Spretnak, a liberal Catholic who agrees with 95% of Vatican II's decisions, cuts across the battle lines of a polarized American Catholic Church, challenging Catholic progressives not to acquiesce to the Catholic Right's claiming of the Virgin Mary as emblematic of their political positions. This is a book about religion and modernity that has reframed the thinking about Mary in our times.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Spretnak, a feminist Catholic and religion professor, argues forcefully that while the "progressive" (rational, modern) wing of Catholicism that initiated reforms in Vatican II made some very good changes, it was utterly wrong to "disappear" Mary. Spretnak purposely uses this verb in the same manner as with unexplained kidnappings and murder by a Latin American junta: the Catholic Church, she says, took the Salve Regina out of the mass and removed her statues from the churches. But just as the families of los desaparecidos keep their loved ones' images alive through private memories and tributes, so too have millions of Catholics kept Mary in her former place as Queen of Heaven. Spretnak is not convinced that it is a more feminist position to reduce Mary to her biblical role as a simple woman from Nazareth; she claims instead that it would be much more empowering to women to return Mary to her cosmological office as a mediatrix and co-redeemer. The book is a nice blend of theological argument and reportage of popular piety, outlining a fissure within the Catholic Church between those who miss the old Mary and those who support her more limited status. Spretnak highlights the resurgence of Marian devotions and veneration, which have been privatized to the home (home shrines, the revival of the rosary) and even the garden (the resurgence of medieval Mary Gardens). Spretnak's writing is engaging but occasionally overly strident, as when she follows a factual statement with the gratuitous italicized comment, "I'm not making this up."
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Review

"For anyone who has ever loved Our Lady, or desires to, Charlene Spretnak offers a clear vision of Blessed Mother's true and enormous shape - one that some, over time, have tried to reduce to dust. But The Mother of the Immaculate Heart is a wild one. She refuses to be made small. As in the oldest 'call and response' songs, Spretnak has called on Blessed Mother's magnitude. And the Holy One has responded with her immaculate love; this is evident on every page. This book and its author are to be treasured as truly enacting the deepest spirit of ¡Viva La Virgin!"--Clarissa Pinkola Estés, PhD, author of Women Who Run With The Wolves and The Faithful Gardener: A Wise Tale About That Which Can Never Die

"Missing Mary is a classic! Charlene Spretnak offers authentic insight into the mystery that is Mary. The book is elegant, playful, and real. It's history and theology. It's mythic, scientific, and above all, it's cosmological. Her critique of the Marian decisions at Vatican II is wonderful, and her vision is urgently needed now. She has set a great course into the future."--Thomas Berry, author of The Great Work

"Missing Mary is a joy to read - luscious language, brilliant ideas, and a many-layered wisdom that continually astonishes. Charlene Spretnak has given birth to a work that, if fully apprehended, will change the course of history. Certainly the debate between science and spirituality is now permanently changed. Spretnak offers direct access to a deep spirituality that has the power to tear open modernity's materialist ideology, allow a fountain of grace to flow into the human heart, and save us from plummeting finally into chaos. The impact on a reader of this daring and beautiful book is profound."--Brian Swimme, Ph.D., author of The Hidden Heart of the Cosmos

"In Missing Mary, Charlene Spretnak has returned Mary to our midst where she belongs. Spretnak explores the numerous facets of Marian devotion and doctrine with gusto, including Mary's mystical presence. Spretnak's incisive arguments, her careful research into the shifting perception of Mary since Vatican II, and her clear-headed thinking about the variety of responses to this enigmatic figure are indeed welcome. A profound grassroots devotion to Mary has persisted throughout the centuries. This book brings the wisdom of that ancient belief in the 'Mother Who Contains the Uncontainable' into our world today."--China Galland, M.A., Professor-in-Residence, C.A.R.E., Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, CA; author of The Bond Between Women: A Journey to Fierce Compassion and Longing for Darkness: Tara and the Black Madonna.

"Charlene Spretnak skillfully sheds light on the remarkable reawakening of devotion to the feminine in a modern context. Her careful historical analysis and her clear insights into the cosmological implications of Mary make this book fascinating and indispensable reading. With this path breaking work the bridges can now be made to the enormous energy of devotion to the feminine in many parts of the world that reflect our new historical moment."--Mary Evelyn Tucker, Department of Religion, Bucknell University

"Passionate and courageous, Missing Mary is a rousing call to recover and reclaim the mystical dimensions of the cosmic 'Queen of Heaven.' Spretnak rescues Mary from social conservatives and actually makes it 'safe' for progressives to reclaim the mysteries of Marian spirituality. In a narrative filled with suspense and surprises, Spretnak traces the fate of Mary in the Catholic Church in recent decades and charts a path for revitalizing her spiritual presence in the world today. For all those who have hungered for the power of the Blessed Mother in their lives, Spretnak's book is a banquet."-- Professor Sarah McFarland Taylor, Department of Religion, Northwestern University

"In Missing Mary, Charlene Spretnak details the opposition to Our Lady during and after the Second Vatican Council, how liturgists, catechists, religious educators, ecumenists and feminist theologians have tried to diminish Mary's role in Catholic life . . . She argues that they almost succeeded, but now there are signs of a 'return' to Mary."--Fr. Andrew Greeley, National Catholic Reporter

"In her well-researched original work, Spretnak has composed one of the most profound theological reflections on the post-Vatican II church. With clear and lyrical prose, she names the challenges and points us well beyond."--Catholic New Times (Toronto)

"Mary's comeback as Queen of the Universe makes her, in Spretnak's words, 'much more than a nice lady mentioned in the Bible.'"--Los Angeles Times

"The book is a nice blend of theological argument and reportage of popular piety...Spretnak's writing is engaging."--Publishers Weekly

 

"If you have prayed for a closer walk with Mary, then this book is an answer to your prayer. Charlene Spretnak serves not just Mary, but all of us, in returning her to her proper place in the cosmos and in our hearts."--Marianne Williamson, author of Everyday Grace

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan (September 22, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1403970408
• ISBN-13: 978-1403970404
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #243,376 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Charlene Spretnak is the author of several books on ecological and relational thought, cultural history, spirituality and religion, feminism, the problems of modernity, and contemporary events. These include GREEN POLITICS: The Global Promise (principle coauthor); THE SPIRITUAL DIMENSION OF GREEN POLITICS; STATES OF GRACE: The Recovery of Meaning in the Postmodern Age; THE RESURGENCE OF THE REAL: Body, Nature, and Place in a Hypermodern World; and RELATIONAL REALITY. She is also author of MISSING MARY and LOST GODDESSES OF EARLY GREECE, as well as editor of an anthology, THE POLITICS OF WOMEN'S SPIRITUALITY. She is currently working on a book on the spiritual dimensions of modern and contemporary art. She was one of the initial theorists of the women's spirituality movement in the 1970s and was a co-founder of the Green Party movement in the United States in the 1980s. In 2006 she was named by the Environment Department of the British government one of the "100 Eco-Heroes of All Time." She was raised in Ohio and now resides in Ojai, California, with her husband, where she enjoys gardening and walks through the nature preserves. For further information about her books, see www.CharleneSpretnak.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Restoring Mary for Progressive Women & Men, December 22, 2003

By 

Marguerite Rigoglioso (California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Missing Mary: The Queen of Heaven and Her Re-Emergence in the Modern Church (Hardcover)

This book should be right up there with Elaine Pagels' work on the Gnostic Gospels and Margaret Starbird's work on Mary Magdalene. In her characteristically sophisticated and trenchant style, Spretnak interprets and advances the case for the current grassroots resurgence of Marian spirituality, restoring her as a mystical female embodiment of power, compassion, and grace. In doing so, she gives Mary -- BIG Mary, in all her fullness -- BACK to progressives inside the Catholic Church, as well as those who have left the Church, particularly on feminist grounds. She also introduces her to Christians and others who may never have had the benefit of learning about this powerful manifestation of the Sacred Feminine in the West. What's more, by movingly sharing her own love and spiritual connection with Mary, Spretnak invites the rest of us intellectuals who have been cut off from spirit in this post-modern world to open our hearts to new mystical possibilities. As someone who grew up Catholic but has since become disenchanted with the Church and all of its male hierarchy, I was ecstatic reading this book about the Great Mother who has been in my backyard all along.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars wonderful, October 8, 2007

By 

Ann Bronte (Portland OR) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Missing Mary: The Queen of Heaven and Her Re-Emergence in the Modern Church (Paperback)

Spretnak provides an interdisciplinary scholarly work on Mary. Her sources are solid and her interpretation impeccable. I am familiar with many of her sources, and I am thankful for her groundwork. Spretnak blends psychology, theology, quantum physics, as well as art to illustrate her complex and multifaceted take on why the church has in some ways submerged Mary. I never got that she said Mary was a goddess and so some reviews are perplexing to me. Spretnak never says Vatican II was bad, only that in the attempt at ecumenism with protestants Mary was minimized. I am sure she as well as many realize the benefits of Vatican II.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mary for the new millenium, July 24, 2007

By 

D. Kovacs (San Antonio, TX) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Missing Mary: The Queen of Heaven and Her Re-Emergence in the Modern Church (Paperback)

In this extraordinary book, which is a perfect blend of scholarship and personal experience, science and art, history and hopes for the present and future...Charlene Spretnak, a prosacramental progressive CATHOLIC, makes it clear that Mary is not the Goddess or a goddess but instead, "with her fully human embodiment and experiences, carries forth the lineage of the symbolic sacred female into the Christian era but does so in a new, material dimension". She also includes a whole chapter entitled "Where Mary Still Reigns", which covers current Catholic practice which does NOT minimize Mary. Her scholarship regarding the decisions regarding Mary during Vatican II is faultless and makes fascinating reading. Highly recommended for those across the entire Catholic spectrum who remember that we would not have Our Lord without Our Lady.