WomanPrayer, womanSong: Resources for Ritual

by Miriam Therese Winter, Meinrad Craighead (Illustrator)

In her preface, Miriam Therese Winter asserts that "the status of women [in Christianity] is the consequence of a worldview shaped by centuries of ritual behavior that rehearses and continually reaffirms that women are subservient and therefore excluded by the rules from certain roles." Here, in this book, Winter aids a reversal of that status quo by providing both liturgies and songs to provide new, inclusive rituals, and models how a feminist hermeneutic can revitalize tradition. The author is a member of the Medical Mission Sisters and was Professor of Liturgy, Worship and Spirituality at Hartford Seminary in Connecticut at the time this was written.

Genres: Feminism, Womens, Spirituality, Religion

254 pages, Paperback

First published April 25, 1987

Reviews

[Marla]

miriam therese winter has been a catholic feminist for 40 years. this book is one of many of her works i have used in planning retreats for both women and young adults. the rituals described in this book are powerful in and of themselves but are more valuable, in my opinion, for their ability to help readers view practically any object or any event as sacred. for every ritual i have used in a retreat based on mt's work, i have been able to creat two or three of my own. i appreciate the perspective.

mt is my friend--i met her fifteen years ago and we stay in touch--but even if she weren't, her writing connects readers to her and to others. what more could we ask?

[Molly]

Some interesting content, but very embedded in a Judeo-Christian mythos. Revisioned stories, scripture, and lessons with Biblical origins, using feminine pronouns, this book is deeply rooted in the language/perspectives of the Bible, but framed in female language.