Women Who Knew God
Write for Us
We’re always looking for more essays! Please tell us about interesting women who left behind records of experiences with and/or views on God or another form of Deity, depending on their religious tradition (all are welcome!). We’re also happy to feature non-binary or trans people.
With these essays, we’re looking for a brief introduction to these women with a combination of biographical information and key theological insights—the most important thing is being rooted in the texts they wrote or the stories we have from them (with citations, of course). We’re hoping to make their ideas and insights a little more accessible with a special focus on how they saw the divine.
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We don’t need ultra-academic, thesis-driven writing (we’d love to see your voice coming through!), but we do want to stay focused on these women rather than entering personal essay territory. If you do have a personal essay about your experience reading a female theologian or visionary’s work, we would love to read it, but that’s separate.
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Length is flexible, but 2-5 double-spaced pages is a good guideline.
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Chicago Notes-Bibliography format is ideal (if that’s new to you, we can help you figure it out).
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Talk to us! We’re more than happy to work with you on brainstorming, drafting, or revision. Click the next tab for the contact form!
Here are a few ideas for women to write about with some resources as a potential jumping-off point. If you know of women you think should be on this list, tell us!
Name | Description | Resources |
|---|---|---|
Akka Mahadevi | A twelfth-century mystic and poet in the Virashaiva Bhakti Movement who considered herself married to Shiva. | |
Anne Catherine Emmerich | A Catholic mystic and Augustinian nun who had frequent visions of Jesus. | http://annecatherineemmerich.com/, https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05406b.htm, The Dolorous Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ by Anna Katherina Emmerich |
Francine R. Bennion | An influential Latter-day Saint thinker and leader who “never wanted to brush off reality and speak only of ideals.” | |
ʿĀʾishah bint Yūsuf al-Bāʿūniyyah | A Sufi master and poet who followed the path of love. | |
Tahirih | A nineteenth-century poet, theologian, and early Bahá’í believer. | https://bahaiteachings.org/tahirih-great-emancipator-middle-eastern-women/ https://ohiobahai.org/tahirih/ A History of Islam in 21 Women by Hossein Kamaly |
Catherine of Siena | A Catholic mystic and saint focused on “truth, virtue, and love.” | |
Ruth F. Brin | A Jewish poet whose work has become omnipresent in Conservative, Reform, and Reconstructionist prayer books. | https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/brin-ruth-f Harvest: Collected Poems And Prayers |
Sant Soyarabai | A Hindu poet and mystic who wrote about caste and religious devotion. | |
Katharina Schütz Zell | An outspoken theologian advocating the Protestant Reformation in 16th-century Strasbourg. | https://www.worldhistory.org/Katharina_Zell/, https://tabletalkmagazine.com/posts/reformation-women-katharina-schutz-zell/ Church Mother: The Writings of a Protestant Reformer in Sixteenth-Century Germany, edited and translated by Elsie McKee |