I asked the congregation: When you look at this picture what do you see? Do you see structure and order? or do you see nurture and wisdom? Without hesitation I heard a rousing "nurture and wisdom" response.
I followed with: I would like to introduce you to Mother Jesus.
Like a koan, a paradoxical anecdote or riddle, this image of Jesus as Mother can lead us into the full integration of a whole spirituality that is well beyond the dualism of the present time. That is where we are going, after all; where all of us are going. We are moving toward full integration; to a broader, deeper, and far more comprehensive understanding of ourselves as spiritual beings than ever before in our common history.
When I speak of integration I am talking about achieving greater balance between two opposing and equally necessary energies. There are two kinds of energy that are present throughout the universe: feminine and masculine energy, aka Yin and Yang in the East. It is essential to understand that this has little to do with gender. All humans have within them both energies. Men often have more dominate male energy, but not always. Women are generally believed to have more feminine energy. However, I suspect that this used to be far more true 50 years ago. But today I experience many women as predominately masculine in energy with the corresponding attributes (again, I am not speaking to physical attributes or characteristics but rather the attributes of feminine and masculine energy which I will describe in detail below. In fact, the social equality of women with men (while a great improvement for women worldwide and a great enrichment to society in general) has also, in my opinion, created a kind of feminine oppression internally as well as socially. (I am not against women's liberation!!! but I am observing a possible byproduct of it.) There have been some very good books written on the topic of masculinity and femininity. One such is Matthew Fox's, The Green Man, which addresses the divine masculine, and how the loss of this sacred knowledge has adversely affected men, young men particularly, in modern culture.
Many attributes can be assigned to both types of energy but for the sake of brevity I will simplify it with the attributes of Structure and Order as expressions of male energy and Wisdom and Nurture as expression of female energy. The construction of buildings are male in their nature as are modes of transportation - cars, planes, trains - the fastest way from A to Z. The world is organized and runs ordered by logic, mathematics, engineering. Law and the maintaining of order in highly male. Think Pharisees. But without the feminine wisdom (Sophia), the Law (Torah) becomes legalistic. Let us be clear: masculine energy is good and necessary. Without it, things fall apart. But it requires its counterpart for the stability of the whole.
Feminine energy is slow and expanding. It does not seek the fastest and most efficient route but rather takes the long way and stops to speak to everyone with measured words, listening and responding without hurry. It intuits the whole of the human condition, embracing it with joy and laughter, appreciates mystery and suspects certainty; it smells the roses along the way to wherever it is going. The journey is all that matters; the destination is a footnote. In the Judeo-Christian tradition Wisdom is associated with Sophia, the divine feminine. The entire Wisdom tradition of Judaism and Christianity and the mystics of every ancient faith tradition are characterized as feminine in nature.
Mary and Martha are good examples of these opposing and equally necessary energies. It was Jesus who said that Mary had the better part - not as a judgment against the efficiency and goodness of Martha but rather because the world was in such short supply of the feminine energy she embodied. Consider also the woman with the alabaster jar. Masculine energy sees this as inefficient and wasteful (Judas in this story). Mother Jesus makes room for the feminine expression of the extravagant outpouring of nurture and healing, unrestrained.
Most, perhaps all, of our institutions are structured and are organized in a way that is historically patristic/male dominated (going beyond the fact that men have traditionally build and led them - but more so that male energy (and to my earlier point, regardless of the gender of the people in power) remains dominate. This is great for a society that honors order and structure, until that is all that there is; the Spirit of the Law has been trampled by the foot of efficiency and expediency and the humanity of the people is of little account. Consider Jesus' teachings. Did he promote more order and structure or more wisdom and nurture? Was he forcing an outcome? Was he rushed to get to the end of the journey? Did he take the shortest route with greatest efficiency? Was he concerned about time? Did he speak in story and metaphor or in clear and logical language that left nothing to the imagination? Did he appeal to the Wisdom Tradition or the legalistic teachings of the Pharisees? Did he care about the fulfillment of the Spirit of the Law or the correctness of carrying out Levitical Law? Was not the restoration of relationships through love, we with one another, we with God, the primary teaching upon which all else rested? Jesus was fully, biologically male, and offered to his generation and ours a model of perfect balance.
Within the church there is an acknowledgment of the need to right the scales and to balance these energies in our common life but the remedies sometimes miss the mark. That is to say, that just because women are being increasingly ordained to the priesthood and voted into the House of Bishops, does not mean that the church will necessarily became more integrated. As I have said previously, we generally, an erroneously, assume that women have more feminine energy and males more masculine energy - but that is not necessity the case. There are powerful forces at play within the structure of the church (as well as socially/culturally) that maintain the patristic character and the residential masculine energy of the institution. In my experience as a female priest, most congregants want their priest to perform duties and lead worship in the same way as their traditional male counterparts have done historically (which is decidedly masculine in character). To vary from this overarching model is not well tolerated because the entire system is in itself dominated by masculine energy and its attributes with expectations of structure and order above all else. Structure and order are good and necessary but they, in themselves, are only one half of a balanced equation.
Further, I submit that is hard for us to imagine what that would look like in practice. The Book of Common Prayer and its liturgies are masculine in nature - structure and order - but contain within them the spirit of wisdom and nurture. But the potential for realizing balance in their application does not come naturally because we are individually so out of balance. An energetically balanced liturgy requires the allowance of curiosity and experimentation; for flow to replace process. Such a worship experience might include such elements as art, poetry, spontaneous prayer, liturgical dance, dramatic enactments, storytelling, the presence of water and incense, a variety of musical expressions, anointing for healing, periods of silence and meditation, and other infusions of feminine energy. This shift in liturgical expression would not just look different on paper but would be experienced quite differently than what is presently in use. Matthew Fox's "Cosmic Masses" are integrated worship experiences in their fullest expression; I had the honor of experiencing one held at the National Cathedral some years ago. Expressions of both masculine and feminine energies and their attributes are necessary for liturgies that are fully integrated and are worth the effort, even in small measures, introduced a little at a time.
There is a great wave of spiritual awakening occurring here on planet earth presently. One of the obvious signs of this is the breaking down of systems: political institutions, educational institutions, monetary institutions, health institutions (big Pharma), agricultural institutions (big Agra), religious institutions, etc. I am not declaring any great prophecy here, I am simply pointing to what is actually occurring. This is not to say, with undue hysteria, that everything is falling apart and we are heading into chaos. I am saying that we have systems that are not well balanced energetically and they cannot stand long-term because the consequences of their actions on the human family can be, and, in fact, are devastating. Let me give an example of how this plays out in real life (and I'm sure you can come up with several of your own):
In indigenous, earth-based cultures, there is a strong and long tradition of "grandmothers." These are the wisdom keepers. (In this culture these are gender specifically women.) Whenever a change in the way of doing things is being considered, it is presented to the grandmothers for the final word. The main question before them is: How will this affect the 7th generation? After sitting with this question for some time, if the decision is that it would not benefit the 7th generation the idea is put away. In our modern, "advanced" society, there are no grandmothers to be consulted because there are no official wisdom keepers (expressions of the divine feminine) who have a say in the things that affect humanity down the road. "Progress" moves forward with speed and efficiency; short-term profit, and the creation of structures to execute the decisions of the men and women who are in positions of authority, with little to no thought of the generations to come. No one on the planet is protected from the consequences of this imbalance of masculine and feminine energy and its attributes and its often highly regrettable affects on human life and the future of our species.
"Just because you can do something does not mean you should." - Jeff Goldblum, Jurassic Park
Having noted this rather sobering example, let us also acknowledge that the fevered pitch of the masses who stand in complete opposition to one another in each of the institutional sectors and on every issue of our time, stands in equal measure to the integration/awakening that is occurring. Let us look at an example of that:
There is a very large and increasing number of youth who are grappling with the question of what it means to be female and male, and the attributes of the feminine and masculine. There is a lot of exploration and experimentation going on. Let us observe without judgment; let us listen and understand, asking: "Tell me what you see about yourself and how you are relating to the world" (wisdom and nurturing, attributes of feminine energy (not biological women) used constructively). Let us spare our youth from any further impositions of structure and order - "something is wrong with you because you're breaking the rules/social norms/my expectations of who you are supposed to be" (attributes of masculine energy (not biological men) not used constructively). I do not believe this cultural phenomenon to be a fad, but rather an important part of a cosmic event - the shift to full integration (of the energies - apart from gender considerations - which may be a part of that, but is not the topic of this article). The young ones are reflecting back to us the process of full integration that is occurring globally. We should be paying close attention and engaging thoughtfully in discussions with these young explorers - especially those of us who claim a religious or spiritual practice. What I have observed in these courageous youth is that the pull to question is far greater than the need to assimilate. (That, in itself, is movement toward full integration.)
They are asking, in their own way: Assimilate to what?
Let me be clear: I am not interested in or suggesting Mother Jesus as a transgendered icon for the LBGTQI+ community - to make that inference is to miss the point entirely. Full integration, in as far as the limits of this article, is not about gender; nor promoting a cause. I'm not an activist calling out for social justice and I'm not particularly interested in convincing anyone about anything. I'm happy for you to totally disagree with me and delighted that you engaged long enough to do so! This is not an easy concept for the West. But the energies and the attributes of the masculine and the feminine are beyond agreement and disagreement, they simply are; it is understanding that is lacking.
Out beyond right doing and wrong doing there is a field. I'll meet you there. - Rumi
To gain understanding, I ask that we, as the spiritual beings that we are, observe, without judgment, these energies and their attributes so that we might then be able to intentionally work toward and recognize full integration. Integration is not a lofty ideal; Mother Jesus is a substantive model that all of us can strive to emulate. Full integration is the outward and visible sign of the inward and invisible awakening to self (God's indwelling).
In the present moment, the forceful measures and pressures of forced assimilation are met with equal forces of awakening to self.
Many of us are asking: Assimilate to what?
This question creates space for an understanding of the Christ as Mother Jesus who holds together the two powerful and necessary forces of masculinity and femininity; structure and order and wisdom and nurture in perfect balance creating a foundation upon which we can rebuild our world, institution by institution, one relationship at a time, for the good of the 7th generation.
After-note: For further discussion on this topic see: Julian of Norwich [d. 1416]: Celebrating Mother Jesus, https://qspirit.net/julian-norwich-mother-jesus/, which came to my attention after I had published this blog entry.
Thank you for reading my blog and walking with me in the path of spiritual grace; for your willingness to spend this time with me, as together we learn how to see and be Christ in the world. Rowena +
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