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Much of our modern understanding of God has been handed to us through patriarchal institutions. As a society, we generally accept this as the default way of relating with the Divine.
But patriarchal theology leaves zero room for women’s ways of knowing God. Her ways, the ways of the feminine, are often brushed aside, labeled as ‘old wives tales’ or even ‘witchcraft.’
Breaking away from limited understandings of God can be extremely liberating—and can also leave us stranded in the desert, feeling lost and alone. Who can we turn to for guidance as we seek a new way forward?
The Feminist School of Theology is where we come together to unshackle spirituality from patriarchal systems, bring forward the voices of our forgotten mothers, and empower ourselves and our sisters to imagine new possibilities.
Through each course, we will uncover the voices of the matriarchs, mystics, theologians, philosophers, and Goddesses that came before us, and use their wisdom to blaze new paths of spiritual liberation.
By studying their voices, we can gain the power to break free from old paradigms. We can create new concepts, practices, and rituals to honor the Divine within us, and redefine God in our own terms.
We are all familiar with the dominant patriarchal views of God perpetuated by Church fathers. We have read what the male philosophers, theologians, prophets, and writers have said about “Him.”
But what about the mothers? What about the Matriarchs? What wisdom have women shared about the Divine?
In this six-week course, we will examine the forgotten voices of women, both from thousands of years ago and from the present day, who have spoken about their encounters with the divine. Now is the time to tune into their wisdom.
By the end of this course, you will have a strong understanding of women theologians and philosophers, and the ways in which they shaped our current understanding of the Divine.
Week 1: Our Mothers’ Teachings From the Beginning – How was God known in neolithic and pre Iron Age communities?
Week 3: Meeting the High Priestesses – Women leadership in the ancient world.
Week 4: Women Philosophers, and Poets – Women thinkers that influenced our ways of knowing God.
Week 5: Women Mystics – The women who spoke with God.
Week 6: Women Theologians – The women who paved the way.
Women Philosophers, and Poets – Women thinkers that influenced our ways of knowing God.
Week 5: Women Mystics – The women who spoke with God.
Following the call of the Divine Feminine can be overwhelming at first. And understandably so, since most spiritual practices we know center around patriarchal notions focused on an external, dominant, and masculine deity.
This six-week course looks at simple feminist practices that can help you connect to and honor the divine, by connecting with the Divine Feminine that is within and all around you.
By the end, you will have set up a foundation of spiritual practices rooted in liberating your connection to the divine outside of patriarchal structures.
Week 1: Alchemizing the Old – How many practices you already know can honor the Divine Feminine.
Week 2: Honoring the Body – How connecting with your body connects you to the Divine.
Week 3: Dancing with the Goddess – Using movement to honor your darkness and your light.
Week 4: Sanctifying the Profane – Seeing the holy in what patriarchy has called evil.
Week 5: Connecting with the Moon – Finding God in the cycles of the body and the sky.
Week 6: Embrace the Taboo – Learning to see sacrilege in a new light.
In the vast majority of dominant religions, men have been in charge of interpreting, studying, and understanding who God is. They, in turn, would tell the rest of us how to know God, how to honor “him,” and what “he” wanted.
Women we predominantly asked to stay silent on the matter. The influence of the feminine was considered dangerous and potentially misleading. Yet we did not remain silent.
This six-week course looks at the concepts of feminist thinking and how they have influenced theological thought for the past sixty years, as well as what feminist historical theology has taught us about women of the past.
We will look at feminist ways to interpret religious texts. We will also examine how justice movements surrounding race and class have influenced feminist thought and informed our understanding of the Divine.
By the end of this course, you will learn how to examine your own feminist theological ideas and cultivate ways to incorporate them into your spiritual practice.
Week 1: Feminism 101- a basic foundation
Week 2: Womanism and Womanist Theology
Week 3: Feminist Biblical Interpretation
Week 4: Feminist Theology and God Talk
Week 5: Feminist Thinking and Liberation Theology
Week 6: Feminism, Colonization, and Appropriation
Hi, I'm Lurie! For the past ten years, I have studied feminism, goddess spirituality, and theology in the academy and my personal life. I had one central goal to uncover the sacred feminine ways of knowing and honoring the divine.
Like many others, I was thirsty for the voices and knowledge of women. Yet, no matter where I looked I seemed to continually run into the brick wall of patriarchal theology. I was told repeatedly their ideas were either unimportant, old wives' tales, or heresey. Intentionally brushed aside or hidden away by male-run institutions and religions.
Enough is enough, this is why I created The Feminist School of Theology, where we can study the divine outside of patriarchal restraints and celebrate the sanctity of the feminine in all her glory.
