Truly Our Sister: A Theology of Mary in the Communion of Saints

by Elizabeth A. Johnson

Overview

The first-century Jewish woman Miriam of Nazareth, mother of Jesus, is the most celebrated female religious figure in the Christian tradition. Elizabeth Johnson offers an interpretation of Mary that is theologically sound, spiritually empowering, ethically challenging, socially liberating, and ecumenically fruitful. In particular, she sees the image of Mary as a blessing rather than a blight for women's lives in both religious and political terms.

"If you read only one book on Mary in your lifetime, let this be the one." American Catholic Booksellers'

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780826418272
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	02/28/2006
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	400
Sales rank:	532,722
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.82(d)

About the Author

Elizabeth A. Johnson, C.S.J., is distinguished Professor of Theology at Fordham University. She has received numerous awards, including the Louisville Grawemeyer Award in Religion for She Who Is (1993), the American Academy of Religion Award for Excellence in the Study of Religion for Friends of God and Prophets (1999), and the Book Award of the College Theology Society for Truly Our Sister (2004). She was also the recipient of the John Courtney Murray Award of the Catholic Theological Society of America, the Jerome Award of the Catholic Library Association, and the Monika K. Hellwig Award of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities.

Table of Contents

Part I: Women's Voices in a New Key 1. Fragments in the Rubble2. Women's Theological WorkPart II: Roads Not Taken3. Cul-de-Sac: The Ideal Feminine Woman4. Cul-de-Sac: The Maternal Face of GodPart III: A Way Forward 5. A Modest Proposal 6. PrecedentsPart IV: Picturing the Historical World of Mary of Nazareth7. The Political-Economic World: Galilee8. The Religious World: Second Temple Judaism9. The Social World: GenderPart V: Mosaic: The Dangerous Theological Memory10. Scripture Through Women's EyesA. Outside B. Among the Unconventional ForemothersC. Scandal and the Spirit D. Wisdom from the East E. Refugees from Slaughter F. Call of the ProphetG. Joy in the Revolution of God H. "And she gave birth ..." I. Fulfilling Torah J. Losing and FindingK. Wine at the WeddingL. Near the Cross M. "All Filled with the Holy Spirit"11. Mary as Friend of God and Prophet in the Communion of Saints

Editorial Reviews

"When it comes to the subject of Mary," writes Johnson, "women's judgment is decidedly ambiguous." On the one hand, Mary has been an icon of obedience-thus perpetuating women's subordinate place in the church. On the other hand, she is an inspirational sister for the common woman. After all, Miriam of Nazareth was a lower-class Jewish woman living in a poor and politically oppressed region of the world. In the face of tyranny, poverty, and prejudice, Mary represents the ongoing feminine quest for "God's compassionate and liberating justice." Written like a doctoral thesis, Johnson's book argues for a feminist and empowering vision of Mary. She is overt in her criticism of "patriarchal mariologies that function to subordinate women." Many traditional assumptions are challenged, from the belief that Mary was reading a book when the Angel Gabriel came to her, thus symbolizing the rewriting of her life story (doubtful, given the low literacy rate of peasant girls), to Mary's appearance: Europeans often depict her as a delicate, blonde-haired beauty. As a Jewish peasant girl, she was probably a dark, muscular teenager. Johnson is at her finest when she offers her feminist interpretations of Mary's central moments in the Bible. For instance, Mary's brave witnessing of the crucifixion represents the fact that "life given by women's bodies keeps on being taken away by brutality, war and terrorism," and her memory comforts all the grieving mothers who lose their sons to political acts of violence. While this offers a fascinating revamping of Mary's story, readers who are looking for a new spin along the lines of The Red Tent will not find it here. Unfortunately, the scholarly tone of Johnson's writing will limit this book's appeal. (May) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

An American Catholic whose subspecialty is feminist theology, Johnson (Distinguished Professor of Theology, Fordham Univ.) here presents a companion book to her Friends of God and Prophets, combining her research on the communion of saints with her feminist theological interests. Johnson does not portray the heavenly Mary in her role as patroness, queen, or intercessor. Instead, she places Mary in human time, portraying her in the midst of her hardscrabble history as an actual woman humanized and made holy by God. Johnson claims that Mary's human, historic response to divine love discloses that God " is no longer to be sought in the clouds but here on earth, in the flesh, in birth, and in a grave, however surprisingly empty." Finally, Johnson enfolds Mary into the remembering, loving, expectant community of disciples of the Lord Jesus. Johnson's fresh insights into St. Mary and the communion of saints are significant for Catholic theological conversation. This important book is recommended for seminary and academic libraries and for public libraries with a good circulation of religion titles.-David I. Fulton, Coll. of St. Elizabeth, Morristown, NJ Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

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