The Contribution of the Feminine Genius to the Church Essay

The Contribution of the Feminine Genius to the Church: A Critical Analysis of John Paul II's Mulieris Dignitatem

Mulieris dignitatem is an apostolic letter written by Pope John Paul II on the dignity and vocation of women. Published on 15 August 1988, the letter advocates Christian complementarianism, in which the pontiff expresses the complementary roles of men and women in philosophical spectrum of new feminism. The letter promotes a vision that centres on three core aspects, complementarity, equality, and communion between man and woman. Pope John Paul II takes an opportunity to expound on the role and value of women with regards to the church, the family and the society.

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Pope John Paul II 's apostolic letter emphasises the fundamental role of woman's ability to love and her sensitive nature that reflects her femininity to others. Mulieris Dignitatem explores the unique nature of women by explaining the physical and spiritual dimensions of marriage, virginity, and motherhood. John Paul II cites several women who have made significant contributions to the church and the society at large. Virgin Mary becomes the centre of focus in John Paul II's writing in which he refers to her as the archetype of woman and the "New Eve."

Mulieris Dignitatem reveals how man and woman were created in the image and likeness of God. In Mulieris Dignitatem, the Pontiff clearly demonstrates that, "the human race, which takes its origin from the calling into existence of man and woman, crowns the whole work of creation; both man and woman are human beings to an equal degree, both are created in God's image." Further, the pontiff illustrates that man and woman are relational beings, and that the two come to understand the strength they possess through a sincere gift of self.

Mulieris Dignitatem widens the scope of woman's position in marriage in which the Pontiff observes that marriage is not the only way to exist side by side but to mutually exist for each other. The aspect of equality is expounded to encompass a mutual interaction that is complimentary in nature. According to the Pontiff, man and woman are different only on their physical attributes and their inner beings from an ontological perspective. The pontiff, elaborates how the principle of mutual being, between man and woman exist for the other, and he refers to this as the interpersonal communion. For the pontiff, womanhood is the development of humanity itself in which God integrates masculine and feminine.

Mulieris Dignitatem also emphasises the particularity of womanhood by referring to woman as the "genius." The aspect of genius, as pointed out by the pontiff, is that God created woman to be open to others. The woman is open to God's love as it was for the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Blessed Virgin Mary gave love both as a mother and a virgin. Motherhood, in the view pontiff's scholarship, is a spiritual aspect of human existence. The Catholic doctrine views the role of a woman through the Blessed Virgin Mary as the Mother of God and the Mother of all churches. John Paul II's Apostolic Letter reinforces this view that "A woman's dignity is closely connected with the love which she receives by the very reason of her femininity, and likewise connected with the love which she gives in return...... Woman can only hand herself by giving love to others."

The woman is supposed to exhibit endurance the same way the Blessed Virgin Mary did at the foot of the cross, John Paul II writes. The compassion that Mary exhibited at the cross reveals how a woman can bring healing around her. John Paul II is of the view that the suffering of Mary at the cross brings forth the sensitive nature of the woman. It is this sensitive nature that plays a critical role in society.

Mulieris Dignitatem, between 29 and 30, presents woman's goodness that prevails over evil. Here, Mulieris Dignitatem presents woman as a tool used against evil in the world. Her love is seen as the perfect basis of peace and justice in the world. John Paul II is of the view that woman's dignity dictates the order of love that is essentially the order of justice and charity. The pontiff writes "A woman is strong because of her awareness of this entrusting, strong because of the fact that God" entrusts the human being to her"...and she becomes...an irreplaceable support and source of spiritual strength for other people, who perceive the great energies of her spirit."

The Concept of the Feminine GeniusTo fully understand Pope John Paul II's Mulieris Dignitatem on woman vocation and dignity, the writer embarks on a mission to review and analyse the concept of "feminine genius,". To have a clear picture on the concept, the writer first analyses Edith Stein's works , who today is regarded as the precursor of the new feminism. A Carmelite nun, a teacher, and also a philosopher of the church, she provides a working definition of feminine genius as a natural ability bestowed upon women to seek and embrace that which is "living personal, and whole." Stein further contextualised the term by asserting that although the previous definition is mainly for generalisation, "No woman is only woman; like man each has her individual specialty and talent." Stein continues to expound on the aspect of feminine genius as a view of womanhood as an inclination to "cherish, guard, protect, nourish, and advance growth." As a precursor of new feminism, John Paul II appears to adopt Stein's definition, as briefly envisaged in encyclical Evangelium Vitae, "The Gospel of Life," in section 99. It is not clear if the pontiff texts were citing St. Teresa Benedicta (Stein), but their views expressed in these scholarships greatly align each other. John Paul II writes;

In transforming culture so that it supports life, women occupy a place, in thought and action, which is unique and decisive. It depends on them to promote a "new feminism" which rejects the temptation of imitating models of "male domination," in order to acknowledge and affirm the true genius of women in every aspect of the life of society and overcome all discrimination, violence, and exploitation. (...)

A further definition of feminine genius is employed in 1988 Apostolic Letter, Mulieris Dignitatem, where John Paul II define the term as "the moral and spiritual strength of a woman." According to Pope John Paul II, this is a connection awareness in which God entrusts humanity to a woman in a special way. John Paul II also clarifies this description by pointing out that "God entrusts every human being to each and every other human being." To highlight the critical role of women in the church, the definition that the Pope provides emphasises the concept of feminine genius as a call to not only the entire humanity, but as a separate mission in the church. The pontiff rightly observes that the "entrusting" that God implies is a mission that recognises womanhood in a special way, precisely by the femininity identity, a phenomenon that dictates the woman's vocation.

The concept of feminine genius brings forth the understanding of women as a form of care thinking. Carol Gilligan observes the concept of care thinking, as a network with various relationships. The observation denotes the notion of care thinking. Similarly, the notion of care thinking is captured in the works of Stein in which the scholar refers to empathy where the approach to womanhood sustains various relationships in the society. It is what Carol Gilligan refers to as a moral imperative. For Gilligan, the focus of care thinking is centred on both care and responsibility to the other. The concept of feminine genius epitomises the respect and the dignity of entire humanity in the midst of woman's personal dignity for womanhood. Stein righty points out that "there is no profession which cannot be practiced by a woman." Stein continues that women have the potential and capabilities to execute duties in both public and domestic realms. The concept of feminine genius is personified by women across the board by working both at the community level and in the church.

The Feminine Genius in Mulieris Dignitatem

If the aspect of feminine genius is critically examined, especially after Mulieris Dignitatem, one can also begin to see its effects in regard to the role they play in the church and see whether it's a reflection of greatness of their mission. According to Leonie Westenberg, the difference can be seen through the role played by the lay men and women in the post conciliar church. The Second Council has been referred in many theologian scholarly works as "the light of the church and the light of the world." Pope John XXIII strived for the need of aggiornamento, in which he saw the need to renew and bring up-to-date the church that serving the world that has undergone widespread political and social change. The challenge, therefore, in the current world is to explore the role that is available to women in such a way as to reflect 'the greatness of their mission. The most urgent question addressed and posed is what have been the fruits of Mulieris Dignitatem fifty years after the Council. The fruits have been echoed by various scholars and Pontiffs over the history of the Catholic Church. Pope Benedict XVI, rightly observed in the year of faith in 2011, in reference to the lay vocation and lay ministry, that this was a positive fruit that is attributed to the Mulieris Dignitatem.

However, Pope Benedict XVI and those that came in the years after Mulieris Dignitatem, observe that there are crises of faith among Catholic Christians. According to Benedict XVI, there has been apathy to not only the faith but also to the Christian religion. Pope observes that the apathy is due to the fact that many women are experiencing disenfranchisement and exclusion as far as religion is concerned. Dorr Donal observes that more often than not, women have over time, especially during difficulty circumstances, experienced exclusion , found their rightful place in the church and more worryingly, have found little compassion for their difficult circumstances. As noted in Lumen Gentium, in the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Church has achieved perfection and, therefore, should show motherly love in its missionary works. The motherly love should be extended to other women inside and outside the church, including those that are marginalised through gender ascriptions and poverty.

The aspect of motherly love has been used by the John Paul II to mean "feminine genius" and what has been referred to as spiritual motherhood. The quality of feminine genius is modelled by the church in its pastoral programs such as educating on the nature of dignity of women (ENDOW). More importantly, the aspect of feminine genius has been expounded on by Janet Smith, to mean spiritual midwifery Janet Smith observes that this form of spiritual midwifery presen...