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© Katherine Brizek & Mary Tillotson
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Welcome to Female He Created them—a podcast about women in the Christian intellectual tradition.
femalehecreatedthem.substack.com
femalehecreatedthem.substack.com
27 Episodes
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In this episode, Mary and KT are joined by Mary's husband Luke to discuss John Paul II's "Meditation on Givenness." Topics include what's up with phenomenology, questions about KT’s memory, the philosophical anthropology of gift, and whether there is a particular character to the man-woman dynamic outside of an exclusive relationship.Other references:Origen’s Revenge: The Greek and Hebrew Roots of Christian Thinking on Male and Female - FHCT episodeOther Feminisms Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
In this episode, KT and Mary discuss the beginning of Simone de Beauvoir's The Second Sex, the magnum opus of the mother of modern feminism. We're interested in her also because Beauvoir was raised Catholic. Topics include existentialism and whether one is born or has to become a woman, the invisible ways the built world is hostile to female bodies, and Beauvoir's take on why societal sexism goes much deeper than men thinking women are equal.Other references:The Hidden Face by Ida Görres"The Friend-Group Fallacy" in The Atlantic My Antonia by Willa Cather"Does the Built World Welcome You?" in Other FeminismsThe Saints and Spousal Abuse episodeHe Leadeth Me by Walter Ciszek, SJ Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
In this episode, Mary and KT are joined by Margaux to discuss an article about Servant of God Maria Aristeia Ceccarelli and her experience of intimate partner violence. How ought the Church to tell the stories of women who were heroically holy, even in circumstances they shouldn't have been in? If we uphold someone as a saint so that the living can imitate them, what are the potential dangers of not telling the story of an abused woman carefully? Also includes reflections on what faithfulness in marriage is--and what it isn't.Other references:Episode on the Eternal WomanThe Long Loneliness by Dorothy Day"Love, Guilt, and Forgiveness" by Eleonore Stump Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
In this episode, Mary and KT discuss the Sisters of the Little Way audio documentary, Descent into Light. The discussion is more about the theory of what is abuse, why does it happen in Church-spaces, and what is a ‘culture of abuse.’ We also talk about spiritual abuse, abuse as the sin of power, and more.There are no descriptions of actual sexual abuse nor similar explicit content. Other references:Lumen GentiumCollaborators and PrivatesThe Catholic Church Lacks an Imagination for Lay Agency Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
In this episode, KT is joined by Rachael Killackey of Magdala Ministries. We discuss the sinful woman of Luke 7 and the woman caught in adultery of John 8, who to KT's surprise, is not necessarily Mary Magdalene. We also discuss Rachael's work with women healing from sexual sin and a lot of other biblical Marys.Other references:Gregory the Great's Homily 33Five for Sorrow Ten for Joy by Rumer GoddenThe Chosen (TV show)Letter on the Collaboration of Men and Women in the Church and the World by Josef RatzingerAbout Time (movie)Marnie FerreeLove & Responsibility by Karol WojtylaOther Feminisms Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
In this episode, KT and Mary talk about lots of things, including the three munera of Christ, Abigail and David, whether women are natural mothers while men are natural priests, gang violence, and making peace through vulnerability as the image of God.Other references:Judith EpisodeSheila Wray Gregoire“Idolizing Virginity” by Rachael Gieger KillackeyJesus of Nazareth by Joseph RatzingerThe Last of the MohicansPocahontas (yeah)A Catholic Introduction to the Old Testament by Brant Pitre and John BergsmaI Will Take Joy by Rachel WilhelmSuffer the Children by Carl Bloch Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
In this episode, KT is joined by her sister Grace (BA, Catholic University of America; MA in Theology, University of Notre Dame) to discuss Jesus' encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4. Themes include how God thinks about women, why KT dislikes bridal imagery but how it might be thought of in an empowering way, and why we're so intent on being indispensable.Other references:The Great Divorce by C.S. LewisDeus Caritas Est episodeGood Good Father - Curt Vernon and Julie Futch Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
This episode is a paper Mary wrote about the woman at the well in John 4. The main thrust of this mini-episode is that much ink has been spilled about what Christians should think about women. But perhaps we don't often enough ask ourselves what God thinks about women. The best way to find that out, of course, is to look at how God actually interacted with women while he was incarnate on earth.Other references:Maximus the Confessor"Jesus and the Transformation of Gender" by Wesley Hill Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
In this episode, Mary and KT talk about the new commandment in John 13 and happy marriages (not those with the most children) as the preeminent evangelical tool of the Church. We also talk about how eros and agape are not in conflict, that suffering isn’t the end, and the works of charity for the poor as both constitutive of the Church’s identity and the lay vocation.Other references:Faith, Hope, Love - Josef Pieper (We also talk about an episode on the saints and spousal abuse, which will be posted next season) Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
In this episode, Mary & KT discuss the Book of Judith. Apparently Judith might not be a real person (according to scripture scholars). If she’s a symbol, what does that mean about what God thinks about women? Also thoughts on women who prefigure Christ in the Old Testament and Judith's killer Holofernes-slaying outfit. Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
In this episode, KT and Mary discuss Mary’s paper “A Better Homily on the Household Codes. ” Some features include thinking about the political context of early Christianity and why Paul might not have been that interested in toppling societal structures built on hierarchical marriage. Plus, Mary’s favorite marriage book: Deep Conversion, Deep Prayer by Thomas Dubay(Spoiler: it’s not a marriage book) Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
In this episode, Mary reads us a paper she wrote about how to preach on the household codes in chapter 5 of Paul's letter to the Ephesians. She looks at two commentaries which represent diverse views on how a contemporary audience should approach Paul's advice to husbands and wives and talks about where they fail to be helpful. She also recommends what attitudes and mindsets best enable one to preach/teach about these issues in a way that is useful for growing in holiness.References:The Letter to the Ephesians by Peter T. O'BrienSacra Pagina: Colossians and Ephesians by Margaret MacDonald Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
In this episode, Mary & KT discuss how women are presented in the book of Sirach, employing some of the tools we talked about last episode, such as looking at multiple translations to see how valences of a passage change, considering genre, and audience. References:Mrs. Maccabee's Miracle by Elka Weber Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
KT and Mary kick off season 2 by discussing how to read the Bible, as a prelude to the next four episodes, which will be about different passages from Scripture that pertain to women.We talk about paragraphs 11-12 in Dei Verbum as well as what Mary learned about how to read the Bible as something affirming of her as a person rather than God affirming everything that is done--and women are often treated--in the Bible. KT chimes in some miscellaneous thoughts about the history of Scripture scholarship and her passion for lectio divina. Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
In this episode, KT & Mary discuss KT's talk on 'Woman as the Image of God.' We talk about issues in considering God as primarily masculine (e.g. ‘we are all feminine in relation to God’) and how we can actually value the feminine, i.e., not patronizing or condescending or caricaturing. We also talk about the primacy of spiritual acts, that men and women are fundamentally both active and passive, and why thinking about God as feminine is good for men. Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
This episode is a recording from a talk given at Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago, as part of their Salon Series, on January 27, 2024.In the talk, KT addresses the question as to how women as women image God, by exploring the gender-coded dyads of Father/Mother, Priest/Victim, and Bridegroom/Bride and providing a theological and philosophical argument from the Church's tradition for thinking about God as mother, victim and bride.Major references include Thomas Aquinas, Catherine of Siena, Julian of Norwich, and a variety of Church Fathers.KT used slides during the talk, which unfortunately we don't have a way to link to at the moment. Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
In this episode, KT and Mary discuss Abigail Favale’s book The Genesis of Gender: A Christian Theory, including whether women are just as much a part of the tradition as men, issues surrounding the notion that men image Christ and women image the Church, and thinking about what women contribute beyond motherhood.Other References: Book of the City of Ladies by Christine de PizanRevelations of Divine Love by Julian of NorwichRec from KT: Blessed is She Planner Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
In this episode, KT & Mary discuss two essays by Dorothy Sayers: "Are Women Human?" and "The Human Not Human." Topics include men taking 'women's work,' considering men as 'homo' and 'vir' but women only as 'femina' and whether we have any right to be touchy about olde timey gender norms.As you'll notice, this episode was recorded in 2024...Lastly, the episode Mary mentions about Ephesians 5 will come out in season 2.Other references:The Body and Society: Men, Women, and Sexual Renunciation in Early Christianity by Peter Brown Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
In this episode, we discuss Origen’s Revenge: The Greek and Hebrew Roots of Christian Thinking on Male and Female by Brian Patrick Mitchell. Mitchell examines the two streams of tradition from ancient communities that inform contemporary Christian thought on sexual difference: Greek and Hebrew (anti-sexual and pro-sexual, respectively). We also talk about Trinitarian theology and the problem with the gap between neat theories of ‘what women are like’ or ‘how men and women relate’ and the reality of individuals and their unique relationships.Other references:We mention an episode about Abigail Favale’s book on gender, which episode is forthcoming. Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
In this episode, KT and Mary discuss Louise Perry's piece "The Myth of Female Agency." The conversation is very little about Lily Philips and a lot about concepts of agency and the spiritual life. Get full access to Female He Created Them at femalehecreatedthem.substack.com/subscribe
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