Synopses & Reviews
Given the significance of spiritual leadership in modern Christianity, surprisingly little attention has been paid to the tradition upon which todays spiritual leadership is built. Patricia Ranft sheds new light on the way society understands a woman's spiritual life and her role in the Christian world, as well as Christian understanding of the role of women in society and as spiritual beings. She examines spiritual leadership from early Christianity to the early Medieval West to the late Middle Ages and finally the modern era. This book delineates the history of spiritual leadership for women and by women within the larger context of the history of Christian spirituality and its understanding of human perfectibility.
Review
"A history Ranft analyzes with insight".
--Library Journal Review
Ranft analyzes [Roman Catholic and Protestant Christianity] with insight.
—Library Journal
Synopsis
Given the significance of spiritual direction in modern Christianity, surprisingly little attention has been given to the tradition upon which todays spiritual direction is built. This book delinates the history of spiritual direction for women and by women within the larger context of the history of Christian spirituality and its understanding of human perfectibility. By examining the ways in which women practiced spiritual direction, this study reveals the degree to which women influenced society by using an avenue of influence previously overlooked by scholars.
Synopsis
Ranfts insights shed light on the understanding society had of women as spiritual beings and on the position of women in a Christian society.
About the Author
Patricia Ranft is Professor of History at Central Michigan University. Her books include
Women and the Religious Life in Premodern Europe and
Women and Spiritual Equality in Christian Tradition.
Table of Contents
Introduction * Early Christianity * Women Spiritual Directors of Church Fathers * Early Monasticism and the Early Medieval West * The Great Medieval Directors * Late Middle Ages: Direction Comes of Age * Confessors, Spiritual Directors, and Women * Spiritual Directors within the New Orders * Spiritual Direction among the Protestants * The Modern Era