~~Goddesses & Activism~ EcoFeminism Marguerite Rigoglioso

Today's feminist revisioning of the past challenges many scholarly assumptions about spiritual practices in early human societies. Not surprisingly, what some call the "sacred history" of the women's spirituality movement remains the subject of intense debate. But on a personal level, most spiritual feminists find this reinterpretation empowering. To them, the idea that spirituality was once the province of women is, as Dukakis puts it, "an incredible validation of instincts and feelings that many women have had all along." The broad question of what life was like in ancient Goddess times interests many spiritual feminists. And the desire to restore the Goddess ñ and by extension all women ñ to a respected place in society inspires much of the movement's ritual, art, scholarship, and political activism. Making pilgrimages to sites of ancient and present-day Goddess worship is another way women deepen their spiritual commitment and their sense of connection to a sacred past. For many women, encountering the history of the Goddess evokes a sense of "coming home." Some even recall past lives in Goddess times. But despite these intuitive connections, an awakening to female spirituality raises inevitable questions: Just who is the Goddess? Is She omniscient, omnipotent, God in drag? Is She an Earth spirit? Or does She dwell within?