Asking the Clergy: What are your most significant female figures?

Roman Catholics recently celebrated the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into heaven. The mother of Jesus is one of many women venerated not only by Catholics but by other world faiths. This week’s clergy discuss women who have inspired them by their religious writings, virtuous lives and courageous acts.

The Rev. Linda Anderson

Community minister in affiliation with the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Stony Brook

At a time when hardly any denominations would ordain women to the ministry, the Universalist Convention of New York, in 1863, ordained Olympia Brown. She was the first woman to be ordained in my faith tradition and indeed the first woman whose ordination was recognized by an entire denomination. This was a symbolic, highly significant gesture affirming the acceptability of all women to preach the word of God.

On a more concrete level, Brown serves as a model for women to persist in the struggle for what they believe is just. Not only did Brown serve as a minister (in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and Racine, Wisconsin), she was among the first suffragettes calling for women to be granted the right to vote. When it finally came about, in 1920, that women could cast ballots for their candidates of choice, Brown was the only one of the original suffragettes left alive to do so. Not only did she work for women’s rights; not only did she serve her call to ministry, she married and raised a family. Her husband, John Willis, stood by her and supported her in her work.

Unitarian Universalists assert that women need to see other women in positions of significant authority in the faith as an affirmation of the inherent value and equality of women. Brown blazed a trail for Unitarian Universalists to more fully live our commitment to human rights and to embody the love which those early Universalists taught that God has for each and every one of us.

Sister Mary Alice Piil

Director, Office of Faith Formation, Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre

The number of significant female figures in the Roman Catholic Church fills many pages. Each generation has raised up women who played a major role in the life of the church.

While the Blessed Virgin Mary is the model for all others, two stand out. St. Clare of Assisi, patron of my home parish in Rosedale, Queens, had a great influence on my faith development. Noble-born Clare chose a life of poverty. Converted to a radical Christian lifestyle by St. Francis of Assisi, Clare stood out among women of her time. She wrote a rule of life for the Poor Clares, a community of contemplative nuns, and was appointed abbess (leader) of a large community of women, a task traditionally given to a man.

St. Teresa of Ávila, a mystic and Carmelite nun, has also had a major influence on the church these past 500 years. Teresa taught generations to pray through her writings, in particular "The Interior Castle" and "The Way of Perfection." A fearless leader, Teresa stood up to the status quo. She inspires women of today to take their place in the life of the Roman Catholic Church.

Finally, as the Roman Catholic Church prepares to celebrate the canonization of Bishop Oscar Romero, we must remember the four women who were raped and murdered as they ministered to the people of El Salvador in the 1980s. While not yet recognized as saints, they stand out as witnesses to authentic missionary discipleship by giving of themselves to bring others to the faith.

Panna Shah
Member, Long Island Multi-Faith Forum

In the ancient Indian religion of Jainism, history and teaching can be traced through a succession of 24 pathfinders called tirthankaras or jinas. Mallinath, the 19th tirthankara, was believed to be a woman by the Shwetambar sect. This makes her the most honored female thousands of years ago.

The 24th tirthankara, Mahavira, in 500 BCE organized a Jain community that included women as nuns and laypeople and promoted equality. Mahavira declared, “Do not injure, abuse, oppress, enslave, insult, torment, torture or kill any creature or any living beings.”

There are numerous instances of revered female figures. Women who were worthy of worship because of their spiritual achievements included the mother of the first tirthankara, Marudevi; Mahavira’s mother, Trishala; and his first ordained nun, Chandanbala Yaksis. Spiritual female attendants of jinas, such as Padmavati and Ambika, were also venerated. Female deities such as Saraswati (Goddess of wisdom) and Laxmi (Goddess of wealth) were significant.

In the 20th century, a title of acharya was bestowed on Chandanaji befitting her service, education and spiritual practices and humanitarian work for the poor. At 81, she draws crowds for her sermons in India and abroad. Mrigavati Shri Ji Maharaj was one of the most renowned sadhvi — a Sanskrit term that means, “virtuous woman,” referring to women who have renounced their possessions to focus on a spiritual life. In the Terapanth Jain sect, samani (nuns) visit institutions in India and abroad to pursue academic research in religion.