Across the span of human history, women have participated in world-building and life-sustaining cultural creativity, making enormous contributions to religion and spirituality. In the contemporary period, women have achieved greater equality, with more educational opportunities, female role models in public life, and opportunities for religious expression than ever before. Contemporaneously with this increased visibility, women are actively and energetically engaging with religion for themselves and for their communities.

Drawing on the expertise of a range of scholars, this reference chronicles the religious experiences of women across time and cultures. The book includes sections on major religions as well as on spirituality, African religions, prehistoric religions, and other broad topics. Each section begins with an introduction, followed by reference entries on specialized subjects along with excerpts from primary source documents. The entries provide numerous suggestions for further reading, and the book closes with a detailed bibliography.

Features

• Offers nearly 300 reference articles by international scholars of religion, women, and history
• Provides an overview of the religious experiences of women across time, faiths, and cultures
• Devotes sections to particular religious traditions to provide information about the role of women and the feminine devine within those faiths
• Presents reference information about the experiences of women within religions
• Directs the user to additional resources via suggestions for further reading and an end-of-work bibliography