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This winter, the Library will explore Paths of Peace in Crisis with three afternoon speaker and conversation sessions. On Thursday, February 16 at 5 p.m., Reverend Dr. Carl Scovel and Judy Huenneke continued the series. Their discussion examined the work of two extraordinary women, and the power of their spiritual writing to create peace even within contexts of conflict.
Reverend Dr. Carl Scovel, Minister Emeritus of Boston’s historic King’s Chapel and a teacher on spiritual writing and spiritual autobiography, delved into classics of this genre. He examined the medieval text, Julian of Norwich’s Revelations of Divine Love, in particular. The work is not only compelling, but is the first text in English that can be identified with certainty as the work of a female writer.
Judy Huenneke, Senior Research Archivist at the Library, picked up this thread by examining Mary Baker Eddy’s own spiritual autobiography, Retrospection and Introspection, published in 1891.
Although centuries apart, both women articulated radical spiritual visions, challenging male-dominated theological and ecclesiastical tradition. Their personal experiences of both crisis and healing had a profound influence on the new insights that they put forward. Through this program, we examined the role of, and power of, spiritual writing in such a context.
This one-hour program, held in the Library’s 3rd floor conference room, was open to the public and offered free of charge. The series will continue on Thursday, March 15, with a panel discussion on Women in Military Ministry. For more information, please contact Jonathon Eder at ederj@mbelibrary.org or 617-450-7131.
photo by Matt Samolis
