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“Look to Mary as a model of authentic womanhood.” That’s the message church leaders have directed at generations of Catholic women and girls. Often, latent in this message, is the notion that authentic womanhood means being docile, obedient, submissive, and innocent. So it’s no wonder that many people, both inside and outside the church, view feminism and Catholicism as incompatible. There are many different types of feminism but none are known for preaching docility.
Nevertheless, Catholic feminists exist. They are scholars, religious sisters, activists, community leaders, workers, and mothers. They make significant contributions to theology, too. Are these women failing to emulate Mary sufficiently? Or, alternatively, are they following Mary’s example? What if Mary herself was a feminist?
This episode of Glad You Asked is part of a three-part season finale looking at Mary as a figure of liberation. This segment of the series focuses on Mary from the perspective of feminist thought, considering whether the historical Mary was a champion of women’s liberation, whether feminists can look to her for inspiration, and whether Marian devotion is compatible with feminist thought.
To discuss Mary as a figure of women’s liberation, the hosts talked with theologian Julie Hanlon Rubio. Rubio is the Shea-Heusaman Professor of Christian Social Ethics and Associate Dean at Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University in Berkeley, California. She is the author or editor of seven books, most recently Can You Be a Catholic and a Feminist (Oxford University Press). She has published in a variety of academic journals as well as popular venues, and serves on the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ National Review Board.
You can learn more about this topic, and read some of Rubio’s work, in these links.
- Can You Be a Catholic and a Feminist? by Julie Hanlon Rubio
- “Why did God choose Mary?” by LaRyssa Herrington
- “Could Mary have said ‘No’?” by Kevin Considine
- “Why was Mary a virgin?” by Alice Camille
- “Don’t make Mary the feminine face of God,” by Elizabeth Johnson
- “Catholic and feminist: You got a problem with that?” by Megan Sweas
- “Real biblical womanhood: the defiant women of Hebrew scripture,” by Rebecca Bratten Weiss
- “Was Jesus a feminist?” by Bernadette Raspante
Glad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries USA, a congregation of Catholic priests and brothers who live and work with the most vulnerable among us. To learn more, visit claretians.org.
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