Synopses & Reviews
What does Emanuel Swedenborg, an eighteenth-century mystic, offer that is relevant to understanding women's spirituality today? Twenty-five contributors to Rooted in Spirit explore the impact of Swedenborg's insights on their lives. This anthology of original essays, poetry, journal writing, and short stories introduces women whose lives are "rooted in spirit." Some of the writers were raised in Swedenborgian churches; others have chosen in their adulthood the philosophy of Emanuel Swedenborg as the ethical basis for their lives. These women of diverse ages, backgrounds, races, and occupations, writing from the heart of their experience, find inspiration in a Swedenborgian understanding of the life process.
Synopsis
This anthology introduces twenty-five women whose lives are rooted in the spirit of Swedenborg's thoughts. These women, reflecting both traditional and nontraditional views of God, write from the heart of personal experience. Whether employing a scholarly approach, a personal retrospective, the image of poetry, or a glimpse of daily life, the writers sing their own, specifically feminine songs.
About the Author
Alice Blackmer Skinner was trained as a social group worker (University of Minnesota) and, after years of working and raising a family, earned a Ph. D. in Personality and Developmental Studies (Harvard University), becoming a research psychologist who studies womens lives. Alice serves as president of the Swedenborg Foundation and also as art editor for the annual Chrysalis Reader. She and her husband, Wickham, enjoy their retirement years on the coast of Maine. They have two children and three grandchildren.