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WebReporter Featured in February Book Ronnie Angelus part of a book on women's spirituality

Jeff Rholl enjoys his volunteer job as webmaster for stjoan.com and working with delightful people like Ronnie Angelus.

We announced in a feature story back in August that our own Ronnie Angelus would be one of the women featured in a new book on women's spirituality with the unusual title of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Women's Spirituality. Ronnie was noticed for her wonderful "Stories of Grace" series on this website in which she told the stories of several of the residents and staff at our neighboring Grace House. Ronnie has since had some rather serious health issues that have limited her writing. She is feeling a little better and will be producing a feature story next week on this website.

We promised that we would announce when the book will be released. The official release date is a couple of weeks away, February 6th. You can now preorder the book at amazon.com for $13.26. It will also be available in all major bookstores. The book is paperback and 360 pages long. It is published by Alpha Books and the ISBN number is #0028642244. The author is Mary Faulkner. Mary sent us this brief description of the book last week:

Mary Faulkner has a a master of religious education from Scarritt Graduate School in Nashville, Tennessee, post graduate work at Boston College, Seattle University, the Institute of Creation Centered Spirituality, and the International Women's Studies Institute in Greece and Turkey. She is originally a Minneapolis "girl", attending Resurrection grade school and the Academy of the Holy Angels (class of '57). Mary has a private counseling practice, leads retreats and women's groups, and lectures on finding ones spirituality.       My book with a story on Ronnie and St. Joan of Arc is The Complete Idiot's Guide to Women's Spirituality, part of a series on religion published by Alpha Books division of Macmillan, U.S.A., Inc. The series is proving to be quite popular, and The Complete Idiot's Guide to Understanding Catholicism, by O'Gorman and Faulkner is leading the pack, virtually becoming a best seller, so much so that a Spanish edition was recently released. My current book, Women's Spirituality, looks at an important modern spiritual movement whose roots go deep into the human psyche, back to prehistoric time. It tells the story of pre-patriarchal goddess religions and shows why the female principle brings an important revelation to women and to the world today. The book looks at the characteristics of how women practice their spirituality both historically and currently. We hear stories of women from traditional arenas such as Judaism, Christianity, Native American practices, black "womanist," spirituality, Celtic Christianity, neo-paganism and wicca. These personal stories tell how different women followed an inner voice and discovered important spiritual truths about themselves. - Mary

Mary also sent us the introduction to the book written by Patricia Monaghan. Monaghan is a leader in the women's spiritual movement and the author of many (15) books on goddess spirituality, and is a member of the resident faculty of the School for New Learning at DePaul University in Chicago.

Patricia Monaghan

Suddenly the goddess is news. Across the globe, whenever women look for a divinity that reflects their lives, they find her. In dreams and in poems, in rituals and in silence, women find the image of the goddess opening up to them an inclusive, accepting, celebratory spirituality, one that does not lock the doors against them as participants or leaders.

But new as the goddess seems at the turn of the millennia, she is as old as the human heart. Ancient sculptures attest to her significance to people who lived thousands, even tens of thousands, of years ago. We may not know the names by which those unknown ancestors called her, but the art and artifacts they left behind in bone and stone, in clay and fiber, show her as an ample embracing deity, one who we can envision caring like a mother for her many human children. From this maternal goddess descend the many forms she takes in the imagination of her worshipers: huntress and poet, wanton and crone, magician and healer.

The great diversity of goddess imagery is one of its most appealing features, for women of all ages, races, and walks of life can discover a powerful divine image that speaks directly to them. Men are not excluded from this search, for they recognize in the goddess their daughters and lovers, mothers and friends. In the shadow of the goddess, half of the human races comes forth into the light.

In this book, Mary Faulkner introduces you to this exciting, emerging arena of spirit. She not only gives an accessible and thorough description of the historical goddess, but she explores some of the many avenues available to those who wish to further pursue awareness of the feminine aspect of divinity. Beyond neopaganism and wicca, she charts the Native American and black womanist traditions, the important influences of Jewish thought, and the impact of Celtic religion. And throughout the book, we hear the wisdom of the sages as well, in poignant and evocative passages that give a hint of the breadth and depth of women’s knowledge.

In our August announcement, we showed you the rough draft of Ronnie's part in The Complete Idiot's Guide to Women's Spirituality. Here is the final draft that was sent to the editor. Mary warns that the editing room brings many cuts and that this entire piece may not make the final printing. However, she wanted us to see the final complete version:

Ronnie Angelus: Putting a Face on AIDS Despite the problems she runs into in the Catholic Church, problems that cause her to take periodic "breaks" from it, ultimately Ronnie comes back. This is partially due to the character of her parish, St. Joan of Arc, and also Ronnie’s ability to set personality aside and work from principles-in this case her desire to be of greater service. I met Ronnie recently while I was in Minneapolis. She kindly invited us to come out to her home where we sat around her dining room table and talked. Ronnie greeted us with tall glasses of ice tea, and began our conversation by lighting the large white candle that sits in the center of the table. She commented that "candles make everything thing more wonderful." Bits and Pieces of Faith Ronnie was born Rosalie Moore in New York City, in the Polyclinic Hospital at 52nd and Broadway, right where the Schubert theatre now stands. Her mother was a dancer and her father a politician. Ronnie has combined these personable skills into her own version, which is a vibrant, composed, outgoing woman of action who loves people. When asked to describe spirituality, Ronnie began by saying, "It’s not religion. It’s not legalistic or bound to rules and codes. It is the totality of who you are. It’s how you have internalized the rituals and experiences, how they have become the fabric of your life. Spirituality permeates everything you do, it is how you think, act, live in the world. It is completely inclusive, it’s found in nature, down in the gutter, in temples, churches, and mosques, alike. It’s what illuminates you. It’s all the bits and pieces of faith that get you up when life has knocked you down." She concluded with a laugh and said, "It’s everywhere, nowhere, and somewhere... I don’t have a clue what it is!" If Ronnie doesn’t have a clue, which I doubt, she does have clarity on what she is about these days. A few years ago she had a dream about working with AIDS patients. The dream said that their stories must be told. Ronnie began her career as a writer at 70, and just a few years later her dream became a reality. She started a writing workshop at Grace House, an assisted living facility for people with AIDS, originally sponsored by Joan of Arc Catholic Church in Minneapolis. Telling the Stories Ronnie uses writing exercises suggested in Natalie Goldberg’s book Writing Down the Bones. She has had incredible results, and collects them along with profiles of the residents called "Stories of Grace," for publication on the St. Joan website (www.stjoan.com). Ronnie describes the process as triumphal and joyous. "They are facing the greatest mystery of all--death, and are having the time of their lives. The stories are heroic, painful, and full of loss--a rich mixture of the best and the worst life has to offer. There are also the stories of all the people who come to care for them. I am both filled with gratitude and am humbled by this experience." Ronnie is reminding the world "AIDS has Faces." Grace House opened in 1990, as the result of an AIDS task force at Joan of Arc. Parishioners put their communal shoulder to the wheel and converted it into a facility to serve the needs of people with AIDS. They began with all volunteers, and later added professional staff. Volunteers continue to take a big part in caring for residents. A second home next door to the original was opened in 1994, called Grace House II. A John XXIII Catholic Ronnie has been a member of Joan of Arc "on and off" for thirty years. While this parish embraces the inclusive worldview that she shares, "big" church, or the organizational church often falls short of her ideals. When this happens, she takes a break. "If it wasn’t for Joan of Arc, there wouldn’t be a spiritual home for me." This is a sentiment shared by many who attend there. Ronnie came to Joan of Arc after having a spiritual awakening in a church in Columbus Ohio. She had entered one of those "dark nights of the soul," and felt she had lost everything she held dear. She still recalls entering the church, and being overtaken by "the smell of molded concrete walls imbedded with the molecules from decades of incense." She remembers feeling totally stripped. "I knelt before the altar, my arms stretched out wide, and I completely surrendered. Speaking out loud, I said, it’s over! Then, suddenly, strength flowed into me; I was filled with grace." "In that moment, I realized the sacred exists in the communion of people. The true Eucharist is the trust and respect we give one another." Ronnie was raised in an ecumenical family of German Lutherans, Episcopalians, Greek Episcopalians, Methodists, and Tibetan Buddhists. She chose Catholicism at the age of eleven, and was baptized into the Church. She considers herself a John XXIII Catholic, and wonders what ever happened to the changes that were promised at Vatican II. "It’s like we got all caught up in form, rather than substance. For instance, I can get profoundly offended listening to a long discussion on whether to hold the communion wafer in the right hand and put it in your mouth with the left hand or the other way around, while a nation [Africa] is dying of AIDS." She asks, "What is real communion?" "In those moments, I just shrug my shoulders and say to myself, ‘you [the church] just don’t get it,’ and somehow I am able to hold it all a bit lighter. Life has taught me how little can be transformed beyond myself." Three things that Ronnie holds sacred and that nourish her spirit include: "Talking with my daughter who opens vistas for me and makes me laugh. She is a mentor, teacher, and guru, without her I would still be wearing high heels and an apron. Being in the circle of Divas, my writing group, who shout, ‘go girl’ and give me standing ovations with their smiles and tears. We have fallen in love with one another! And sitting next to Mary and Claude Paradis during Sunday Mass at St. Joan of Arc, which is as close to pure goodness that I will know in this lifetime." Ronnie’s Open Letter Here are excerpts from an open letter Ronnie recently wrote for the Grace House website: I've been thinking that I could write a story with the disease as the main character. Because it takes so many forms and each of the stories of grace at Grace House is affected by it in different ways. Two of the men have serious neurological disorders -- they range from almost total paralysis, to a minor partial recovery, to a daily deterioration, which affects communication in writing, and to some extent in speech in another man. One day there is triumph and then weakness. Theodore, who loves flowers, falls and breaks his hip, in the garden of all places, after his amazing recovery from the back surgery and the hope that the persistent pain would actually cease. People have good days and bad -- some will talk about it and some won't. One man found a deep religious experience with the Jehovah Witnesses and feels saved. His salvation has made it incumbent upon him to renounce who he has been, and maybe is. But he is joyfully getting ready to be baptized in a huge auditorium. He will undergo the rigors of the experience, although some days it’s hard for him to move. The stories of grace have taken on a life of their own. I could write about Michelle. She's a catalyst of the grace some of the residents have found. She's the Director of volunteers, caregivers and God knows what all. She's, also as I've been told, a "world class athlete" whose pictures line the walls of Augsburg College showing her exploits. She's got multi-colored dreadlocks, wears safari shorts and can talk like an MBA who's in charge of a major division of General Electric. She writes with power and grace and has a spirituality that makes even taking out the garbage and rubbish an exercise in love; love of the universe, the environment, and the ritual of recycling back into the earth the gifts it gives us. I could write about each of them. They've been cutting into my soul, these people of Grace House. Patrick and Mary Jo and Nancy, and voices I've heard when I've called, and John whose quiet presence brings confidence and whose description of the disease left the visitors from Guatemala gently informed and humbled and bowed low. And me with them. The volunteers. Many of them have been coming faithfully week after week, since the program began. They have laughed and talked and learned to love so many of the residents. They have sorrowfully buried some of these good souls; applauded and cheered as some grew in strength and went back into unassisted living (if there is any such thing). We're starting a new series of writing groups next week. I need to be back there to be nourished and refreshed. I carry deep in me something someone said about the stories. "I used to think of HIV/AIDS as a separate thing, a terrible disease out there somewhere. But now it has faces--it is William, and Theodore, and Charli, and Clifford." That's a huge thing to think about. It makes my gratitude to them and love for them even deeper. It was their courage that gave the "face" to AIDS. Up Close and Personal: Joan of Arc Joan of Arc is an unusual parish. It combines many ministries and many individuals who often fall between the cracks of more traditional churches. In reading the mission statement, it might appear that its mission isn’t different from any other Christian mission. The difference might be found in the fact that Joan of Arc puts these words into practice in a way that has earned it a national reputation as a cutting edge church community. Mission Statement: St. Joan of Arc is a joyful Christian community, which celebrates the loving Word of God in worship and in action. We transcend traditional boundaries and draw those who seek spiritual growth and social justice. We welcome diverse ideas and encourage reflection on the message of the Gospel. We are committed to the equality of all our members and strive to ensure their full participation through liturgy, education, and service. By these means we seek to empower all who come to grow in wisdom and bring to reality the promise of Christ. "Have I Told You Lately That I Love You?" I arrived at Joan of Arc Catholic Church, not knowing exactly what I was getting into. Over the years it was characterized as a counter-cultural statement of radical Christianity, an anachronistic throwback to the "Dawning of the Age of Aquarius," a warm and loving congregation, and everything in-between. I arrived with my friend Kobbe, entering the school auditorium, which was filled to capacity for the 9:00 AM Father’s Day service. Colorful silk flags waved overhead in the breeze, large screens were suspended from the ceiling, and what looked like the Lake Wobegon town band was on the altar preparing to play. Soon we all stood and sang the opening song, "Have I Told You Lately That I Love You." I was unprepared for the effect that the bridging of the sacred and secular worlds with music would have on me. I was sincerely and totally touched. I’ve written extensively about theology and spirituality and the joining of religion and "real life." Yet, I hadn’t had the experience of connecting them through music. Somehow as we sang these old American classics, the accumulated family gatherings of my childhood, and to the childhood experiences with my three kids, now grown with their own families, and thousands of evenings spent watching sparks from a campfire rise into the night sky while singing these familiar songs all converged in the here and now, and became part of the Mass. A Father’s First Hand Account It was Father’s Day; a young man who told us about what it was like to be a father delivered the homily. He remembered going out into the barn when he was a child to talk with his own dad who was a dairy farmer. How the lessons he learned there carried him a long way into his life. He talked about learning how to change diapers, and the inevitable sprinkling he received that is the particular rite of initiation given by boy children. He told us how the sudden illness of his first son took him past his known limit and made it clear that he would have to go to a greater source that his earthy father for strength to deal with the situation. In his greatest need, he drew on Jesus and his divine father, and the people at Joan of Arc who saw him through it. There is no sermon that can come close to the authenticity of a first hand witness. Near the end of the service we again stood and I took the hand of my friend on one side of me and the hand of a stranger in a wheelchair, I suspect is one of the residents of Grace House, on the other side and we sang another old American classic. So many things that get built up in your mind before you have the actual encounter fail to meet your expectations. This didn’t happen for me that day. For more about Joan of Arc, Grace House, and other ministries, look in the back of the book where their website is listed.

So, Congratulations Ronnie! We all love you, those that know you and those that know your writing.