Faith, Feminism And My Mothers Church
It is still hard for me to see how my mother could reconcile the Catholic faith with feminism.
05/09/2017 01:38 pm ET | Updated 12 hours ago
As we approach Mother’s Day, I wanted to share this essay with other feminist mothers who remain committed to their religious faiths whose adult daughters no longer share that faith. Written by my daughter, Valerie Wexler, it is a testament both to our love ... and our different paths.
I have told my mother I am an atheist twice so far.
It was a realization that came quickly but it took me a while to tell her, the only person who would be affected by this discovery in any significant way. My Jewish atheist dad had never discouraged or encouraged any sort of belief, I didn’t have any seriously religious friends. But my mom had always been Catholic, and had always had some hope, I think, that I would return to the church someday.
Recently, we discovered old film of her first communion. She fidgets excitedly in her white dress and huge veil, trying to stay appropriately solemn as she is escorted by my grandfather and a small boy in his best suit. As she lines up with the other children she looks for a familiar face. You can’t tell if someone called her name on the silent film, but suddenly she sees the camera. Her smile is like my smile. She was on her way to accepting the grace of God into her heart and officially becoming a member of the church, but for her and those children surrounding her, Catholicism had always been an immutable part of life.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/faith-feminism-and-my-mothers-church_us_5911fc9ae4b0e3bb894d5af9
