Book 53: She Who Is: The Mystery of God in Feminist Theological Discourse by Elizabeth A. Johnson

I first read this book in either 2016 or 2017, and I bought my copy in 2017 specifically for seminary (I very rarely had he opportunity to use it in seminary as the studies weren't advanced enough for this book to be applicable). It blew my mind when I first read it; most of the theological ideas weren't new to me as I'd been Wiccan for years, what was more shocking was that these advanced feminist Catholic materials had been around for so long and I'd had no idea of their existence! 

This was my first time rereading it in years, probably my third time reading it altogether. It's a very academic book, which used to be very appealing to me but not as much anymore. The references to St. Hildegard of Bingen were more inspiring to me this time since I know who she is now; Johnson, like many others, wrote about her as though the reader already knew who she was which left me lost the first few times I read She Who Is. 

What I appreciate the most about this book this time around was the emphasis on communal spirituality. Not necessarily participating in liturgy or a religious service together, but on communal relationships being a part of Spirit moving through the world. Johnson explains this in gendered terms within the context of classical theology, and also points out that most of existence is (thankfully) outside of classical theology and therefore freed from binary gender. 

I wish she had written more about how the binary gender system is rooted in land ownership, but in 1992 that idea probably wouldn't have gone over very well in white academia. 


https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/171002.She_Who_Is

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