Called to Question : A Spiritual Memoir

Rating:
Summary: Sr. Issues strikes again
Review: I first encountered "Sr. Issues" by way of "Wisdom Distilled from the Daily," a fine read on St. Benedict if you could get past the occasional barbs against the church vis a vie "womans roles." With this latest work, Sr. Issues revisits and expands on this and other topics.

In short, Traditional Catholics would be well served to ignore Sr. Joan, there are so many fine Catholic authors ones' money and time is too precious to waste on a schismatic. For those who seek "reform" in the name of destroying the true faith, "Kerry" Catholics, or quasi-Episcopalians, then Sr. Joan is right up your alley.

Rating:
Summary: How well do you question?
Review: If you have questions or doubts or strong feelings about spiritaul matters that are pertinent particularly to women or you are a man who recognizes that the Catholic Church does not think women exist you must read this book. Her spirituality is sound, her questioning of herself and her church are sound. She challenges herself and her life, would that all of us would do the same.

Rating:
Summary: Why men don't get it!
Review: Please note that the previous reviewer, DS in NJ, did not disclose with "his" opinions, that "his" views are colored by "his" natural gender bias. It is commendable that he recommends Sr. Joan's book, despite his obvious disagreement with her contention that it is time for an open dialog about the role of women in the Catholic church. Hopefully, DS's suggestion that readers skip the section of the book he found objectionable will draw more attention to ideas sorely missing from open discussion between men and women of Catholic faith. DS contends that feminism is dead. Sr.'s serious presentation of long ignored issues concerning women's roles in Catholisism are an indication that feminism has matured and has grown long reaching roots. It is crucial this book is read completely, in order to initiate debate, discourse and deliberation, as Sister obviously intended. My suggestion? Read, think, express your views, listen to others, think more and talk!

Rating:
Summary: 2 books in one - spirituality and feminism
Review: Sister Joan Chittister has actually written two books in one. The first, which I found to be tremendous, and for which I would have given a rank of a 5, is on spirituality. I found myself realting to much of what she offered. It was powerful and moving.

But then we come to the second book-within-a-book, which deals with feminism. Here, we see that Sister Joan is an angry woman: angry at men and especially angry at the Church. She seems to question her own place in it. She relates how, during a mass for religious women, as the priests processed in, a few started changing the pronouns in the song they were singing, and more and more followed suit - she felt such power from this. But all I could see was a bunch of crap -- changing mankind to humankind, to resent the image of God as father, and so on apparently makes her and her ilk feel powerful. Oh, my. Perhaps Sister Joan is unaware that the feminist movement is dead.

In one chapter she writes: I have a notion that we'll know the world has become healthy when we no longer think in terms of either women or men.

But that seems is all she thinks about. Virtually all of her quotes are from women. She's a woman-centric being, who's frustrated and angry at men. Too bad.

Had the book been properly labeled, it would have said two-books-in-one. It didn't, and that's the misleading part of the book. The spirituality side would sell well; I doubt that the feminist side would.

In spite of this, I would recommend it to anyone interested in spirituality - the feminist parts can be skipped, unless you're into anger and frustration.

Rating:
Summary: Called to Question moved me to deepen spiritual growth!
Review: Upon hearing about Sister Joan from Sir Walter Brueggemann and Patricia Hallum who are both avid readers, I tackled her two latest treasures. Bruegge's awesome evaluation after speaking in Mississippi Conference last year with Marcus Borg, Bishop Spong plus Sister Joan was simply "She is a fearless Lady!" All of her writing has great simplicity, profoundity, richly mined metaphor plus an awesome collection of Epiphanies. Some of her numerous quotations by Teresa of Avila, Julian of Norwich, May Sarton, Sue Monk Kidd, Donna Schaper and Marie Fortune: "In the midst of profound suffering, God is present and new life is possible." As personal response in her Journal: "Why is God in suffering? Maybe because, in those moments, there is little of anything else there! Only in God can we come to see the broader view of suffering....Suffering pares us to the core, strips us of our complacencies, and leaves us naked of ourselves. Suffering exposes us to ourselves!"

Other than Karen Armstrong, who provides her personal accolades on the book cover, Walter Brueggemann, and Barbara Brown Taylor, no one else inhabits my ballpark as equally inspiring, noteable writers! These and others often gift me with courage, Faith and spiritual endurance to guide me through those deeper waters of spiritual growth! Retired Chaplain Fred W Hood