The Feminine Face of Christianity (Paperback)

by Margaret Starbird (Author) "After two thousand years the charismatic personality of Jesus Christ continues to fascinate and appeal to a broad spectrum of peoplepassionate believers and casual observers..." (more)
Key Phrases: sacred feminine, vesica piscis, Our Lady, Mary Magdalene, Holy Spirit (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Even though feminine values have always been at the core of Christianity, its long history has often ignored or marginalized women’s key role in it. Margaret Starbird’s unique view from the feminine perspective serves the need many are feeling to search their traditional faith for fresh meaning and inspiration in these difficult times. This is the second in a series of splendidly illustrated but affordable gift books on the feminine experience of religion (following Gill Farrer-Halls’ The Feminine Face of Buddhism, 2002, and anticipating Mariam Baker’s The Feminine Face of Islam, 2003, both by Quest Books).

Starbird notes the early pattern of gender equality in the early Christian community, noting the "sister-wives" who accompanied male disciples on their missionary journeys, forging a new understanding of the "sacred marriage" at the heart of the Christian Gospels. She also gives us the rich heritage of stories about women’s generous service and encouragement for the inner journey, ranging all the way from little-known early saints to Mother Theresa. She points out that fundamental Christian values such as compassion, reconciliation, and the healing of crippled bodies and broken hearts are all strongly feminine in nature. Her view, though, is cooperative rather than contentious: She aims, not to discredit the masculine, but to right the missing gender balance she finds inherent in the faith.

The result is a powerful and lovely tool for contemporary women seeking the Divine Feminine within Christianity. Each chapter includes inspiring sidebar quotes, prayers, poems, liturgies, and meditations—both traditional and modern—to provide manna for the spiritual journey and practice the presence of a God beyond gender, but immanently within reach.

About the Author
Margaret Starbird received her B.A. and M.A. degrees in comparative literature, German, and medieval studies from the University of MD. She received a Fulbright Student Fellowship for study in Germany. Author of The Woman with the Alabaster Jar, she travels giving retreats and seminars reclaiming the sacred feminine in Christianity. She lives outside of Seattle, WA.

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Quest Books; 1 edition (May 25, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0835608271
• ISBN-13: 978-0835608275
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.8 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #321,021 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tactile document of hope, October 24, 2003

By A Customer

For women questioning their diminished presence in a largely patriarchal religion, Margaret Starbird's The Feminine Face of Christianity is affirmation, inspiration and retrospection, a call for involvement and an enlightened history lesson asserting with great conviction the unequivocal importance of the feminine in Christian worship. Starting with the holy mother and the example of Mary Magdalene, Starbird observes that some of Christ's most steadfast examples of unconditional faith and virtue were women; they were, in effect, a sort of template for Christ's ideas on true faith. The paradigm of selflessness was discovered when Mary Magdalene washed Jesus' feet and dried them with her hair; the pinnacle of faithfulness was found in the near-penniless doyenne who gave what few pennies she owned to the church offertory; and was there a more complete vision of generosity and gentleness in contemporary Christianity than Mother Theresa?

More than just a survival guide for negotiating the complex contradictions and reinterpretations of the church's often-exclusive view of Christ's teachings, this book thoughtfully includes meditations to connect with God on an individual and spiritual level. In this sense, Starbird's text seeks to give women a choice: re-immerse yourself in the church with a greater understanding and directed passion or apply this newfound knowledge in a personal spiritual journey. Essentially-one gets the feeling-what's most important to Starbird viz. the female reader is a heightened sense of value and purpose; in what forum this inchoate enlightenment is refined is nearly irrelevant. This emphasis on the spiritual journey as a sort of meritocracy by grace stands in brave defiance to the de rigeur standard of uninspired and often materialistic worship found in many protestant churches.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How Lovely and Informative! Inspiring!, May 31, 2006

By	SaintSusanna "AngelicSpirit" (North Carolina) - See all my reviews

This book is so wonderful. Presenting Feminine icons throughout the realm of Christianity and their overlapping with other female religious deities, etc. This book packs alot of material into a very easy to read format, it also offers suggestions for personal prayer/meditation, such as using a rosary, prayer veils etc. This is a great book to use as an introduction to all of Starbird's books to follow, I read it in one night! The pictures throughout are great too. Excellent!