Ways of Woman
Embracing Authentic Female Identity, Authority & Wisdom
Background
This is perhaps the most exciting time in history to be a woman on this planet: We stand at a threshold of a new era for humanity, one in which women and feminine qualities are being restored into partnership with men and the masculine. A century ago brave strong women paved the way for what became known as Feminism. These women pioneered great economic, political and social strides, and there are many milestones to be celebrated.
Yet, consider the commercialized and sexually over-excited societies we have created, which liberate neither women nor men. We find ourselves instead tyrannized to conform our bodies, feelings and minds to absurd images and messages from media and advertising. Combined with a cultural lack of mirroring of women’s internal self-experience, the force-fed, illusive ideal of a woman’s outer appearance has subliminally had a detrimental impact on women’s self-concepts. The consequences reverberate throughout the entire Western world.
If we want to stop contributing to the very problems we seek to solve, we must take heed of the psychological law that what we resist will ultimately control us. Recognising that problems cannot be solved at the same level of thinking with which they were created, the next developments inevitably lead us beyond the political. If we want to foster a world not split between inner or outer, male or female, secular or sacred, the call now is to go through psychology and into the realm of alchemy and transformation in order to lay down new and solid foundations for a different worldview. A pivotal starting point for this process is to supersede our current politically correct, yet limiting attitudes with a substantial comprehension of sexuality and gender differences.
After nearly two decades of working and researching in the area of gender, sexuality and relationships, we at the Centre for Gender Psychology are convinced that being rooted in one’s own gender ground is fundamental to how we relate to and express ourselves in the world. Standing firmly in one’s own gender identity ingrains a deep sense of dignity. This in turns fosters a natural respect for the other gender and thus begins to act as an antidote to the crippling effects of our long patriarchal history. We consider this process part of the next evolutionary step in humanity’s story and a prerequisite to cultivate and nurture the full potential for co-creative partnerships between men and women as fully developed human beings.
We invite you to pick up the torch lit by women a century years ago and join us in paving the next section of the way towards genuine respect and equality between the two genders, for yourself, our children and the coming generations.
Facilitators
Helena Løvendal-Duffell: www.genderpsychology.com & www.creativecouplework.com
Christine Arentz Schjetlein: www.transpersonligterapi.no