The Prophetic Vocation of Women and the Order of Love

Abstract

Raphael (1483—rc2o). Study of Madonna and Child. Graphische SammlungAlbertina, Russia. Credit: Alinari/Art Resource, NY. Michele M. Schumacher The Prophetic Vocation of Women and the Order of Love Long hailed as "the apostle of the apostle," Mary Magdalene —a woman—is not merely the first to whom the "Good News" (evangelium) of Christ's resurrection is entrusted; she is also the one in whom are fulfilled the words of the prophet Joel: "I will pour out my spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy. ' With particular attention to the "equality" of men and women expressed in the prophet's words (sons and daughters), John Paul II explains that every vocation has a "prophetic meaning," since "vocation" implies a witness, both in word and deed, ofthe "mighty works of God" (Acts 2 : 1 1 ). The pope nonetheless addresses a "special kind of 'prophetism' thatbelongs to women in their femininity" (MD, 29). The present article is an attempt to expose what John Paul II calls the prophetic vocation of women within the context ofhis Christian anthropology and more specifically within the context ofwhathe calls the "order oflove," a term that has been largely misunderstood by his interpreters. This misunderstanding, moreover, is no small matter because the order of love determines in an essential manner LOGOS 2:2 SPRING 1999 148 LOGOS "the question ofwomen's dignity and subsequently also the question of their vocation" (MD, 29, 30). Since the order of love governs both the natural and supernatural modes ofhuman existence (which I maintain to be interpenetrating), it invites investigation from both psychological and theological perspectives, whereby is apparent its sacramental significance.2 In this way I hope to demonstrate the depth ofthe papal teaching (especially in the apostolic letter Mulieris dignitatem), which is difficult to grasp given his writing style in the form ofa meditation and his subsequent lack ofclear argumentation; moreover this teaching is perhaps too quickly discredited by many feminists whose thinking, as I will demonstrate, accords in many respects with his own. Rather than try to establish a sort ofcommon ground for the purpose of compromise, however, this essay will challenge the reader to recognize in the natural order the call to supernatural elevation as a work ofredemption. After examining other theological interpretations of the "order of love" (Part I), I will provide a justification for my own: the order of love is a mysterious "law" governing human relations, including each one's relationship with God, whereby the human person, far from being him- or herself the author of love, realizes him- or herself and his or her vocation by communicating this love once received (Part II).This understanding will become the basis for the distinction I make between dignity and vocation (Parts III and IV), and for our subsequent examination of woman's particular vocation (Part V). Finally, I will examine her particular suitableness for this mission (PartsVI and VII) as well as the dimensions in which she is challenged by John Paul II to live it (Part VIII), concluding that women are called to exercise their"prophetic" vocation as "sacraments" of God's love (Part IX). /. The Order ofLove:Theological Interpretations It might be noted that the notion "order of love" has been widely interpreted and largely misunderstood. Many commentators read women and the order of love into this term a further subordination of women (despite the revolutionary "mutual subjection" called for by the pope3) rather than a genuine promotion. In her attempt to counter a certain feminist agenda seeking the ordination ofwomen, Mary Rousseau focuses her reading ofthe apostolic letter upon the eucharistie symbolism ofthe bride and bridegroom, seeing male initiative and female receptivity in the marital act as symbolic ofme sacramental giving ofChrist, the divine Bridegroom, to the Church, His Bride, with whom He becomes one flesh in the Eucharist.4 Familiar with such argumentation , many feminists find in the words "order of love" a patriarchal schema characterized by "the polarization between activity/passivity or receptivity, and precedence/equality."5 Itis thought, for example , that in describing a woman's fertility as being dependent upon that of a man, she is presented as essentially receptive (symbolic of the Church...