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From: jan@orc.olivetti.com (Jan Parcel)
Newsgroups: soc.feminism
Subject: Re: Feminism in the Craft
Message-ID: <61131@aerospace.AERO.ORG>
Date: 14 Nov 89 02:10:40 GMT
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>Steve Bloch writes:
>
>>[...]straight men have something "better": powerful, established religions
>>and social structures that tell them they're wonderful.
>
>Social structures, maybe.  But religions?  Which religions?  This seems like
>an overgeneralization.
>
>Charley Wingate
>
For an analysis of the subconscious effect on both men and women of 
worshipping the "Father", and of worshipping God as male, or even of
being an atheist in a male-God-worshipping society, read "The Changing
of the Gods" (I think by Judy Goldberg, not sure), and "WomanSpirit Rising",
by Carol Christ and Judith Plaskow.

I personally found that just calling God "she" for 6 weeks (seriously,
including picturing Her giving birth to the universe and spreading Her
skirts over the Heavens) was a very scary and life-changing experience.

In essence, until you invert the usual practice, the effects are powerful
but invisible.  Whether you are a Christian, a new-ager, or even if you are
an atheist, try referring to the God that does or doesn't exist as "She".

If you think you are advanced past the point where this would affect you, I
can only say I thought so too, but there is a big difference between holding
an intellectual opinion that God is genderless or that the ways you use to 
refer to God are unimportant versus actually experimenting with vocalization 
and visualization.

If you believe it would be evil to refer to God as "she" for 6 weeks, then
the point that it affects us very strongly is already made.

Also, a thought experiment: imagine confessing something like wife-beating to

1.  God (male), who created the Universe and can throw thunderbolts,     vs
2.  God (female), who created the Universe and can throw thunderbolts.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The Universal Consciousness cannot be confined to any of the 5 genders, 
but we must worship Uy as each in turn in order to keep a balanced outlook."
					-- St. Xphlcyb of Alpha III