The Feminine And The Sacred

In November 1996 Catherine Clment and Julia Kristeva began a correspondenceexploring the subject of the sacred. In this collection of those lettersCatherine Clm... » 

In November 1996 Catherine Clment and Julia Kristeva began a correspondenceexploring the subject of the sacred. In this collection of those lettersCatherine Clment approaches the topic from an anthropologists point of viewwhile Julia Kristeva responds from a psychoanalytic perspective. Theircorrespondence leads them to a controversial and fundamental question is thereanything sacred that can at the same time be considered strictly feminine?The two voices of the book work in tandem fleshing out ideas and blendingtogether into a melody of experience. The result is a dialogue that delves intothe mysteries of belief the relationship between faith and sexuality thebody and the senses which Clment and Kristeva argue women feel withspecial intensity.Although their discourse is not necessarily about theology the authorsconsider the role of women and femininity in the religions of the world fromChristianity and Judaism to Confucianism and African animism. They are thefirst to admit that what they have undertaken is as impossible to accomplishas it is fascinating. Nevertheless their wideranging and exhilaratingdialogue succeeds in raising questions that are perhaps more important to askthan to answer. «