Heart of Flesh: A Feminist Spirituality for Women and Men

Sarah Stratton, who holds a Ph.D. in American history from York
University, teaches at Open College and is a member of the
research/program staff at the Women’s Inter-Church Council of Canada.

Joan Chittister, a Roman Catholic nun, is one of the clearest, most
powerful voices in the field of feminist spirituality. Her latest book
is a passionate plea that we make faith a visible part of our lives and
feminism a visible part of our faith.

Chittister’s definition of spirituality is not some vague notion of
being at peace with oneself, but a coherent philosophy of working for
social and economic justice in a violent, fragmented, and commercialized
world. Feminist spirituality challenges the structures of an unjust
world.

She explores the central question of how it is possible to be a good
Christian without being a feminist through a brief examination of
Christ’s ministry to those who were outside the margins of society,
including women. She concludes that his vision of justice was a feminist
one. To be true to Christ, then, is to be true to the ideals of
feminism, not just through the inclusion of women, but through
“respect for otherness, equality, mutuality, interdependence, and
nurturance.”

Heart of Flesh offers no earth-shattering new thesis, but rather a
distillation of Chittister’s and other feminist theologians’ musings
on what it means to worship and do justice within a feminist Christian
framework. It is a wonderful introduction for those who are questioning
and those who have begun such a journey, and an invigorating refresher
for those already so engaged.