Lilith's Fire

Abstract

In Lilith's Fire, Grenn-Scott examines why and how modern women are still demonized-identified as "bad" for actions perceived as reasonable for men, through techniques used for thousands of years-and how women have started to reverse this tendency by redefining right and wrong. Demonization, she notes, has been effective: controlling, manipulating and dividing women to keep them powerless, pitting Lilith against Eve, "good girl" against "bad girl"; and as a means of keeping one group, religion or idea dominant over another.

In dismantling this technique, the author shows that portrayals of women as innately evil undermine the self-confidence of all women, and in turn their ability to take risks, assume leadership or claim power, from bedroom to boardroom. She provides strong models for women of a more proud, sensual, confident way of being; along the way, she poses difficult questions, such as: How can women become more aware that they have choice? Do we give our religious and spiritual leaders too much power? How do we make change, in our own lives and in the world? What forms of social action are most effective?

Lilith's Fire opens a dialogue that the author hopes may lead to some answers, as it offers women a transformational tool to help them recognize, appreciate and draw on the strength and creativity of their own lifeforce, the first step in creating positive change.

About the Author

Deborah J. Grenn, Ph.D. is founder and director of The Lilith Institute (1997) and Voice of the Spirit (1998), a San Francisco Bay Area women's spirituality/study circle and lecture series. She is co-director and core faculty in the Women's Spirituality MA Program at Institute of Transpersonal Psychology in Palo Alto, California, and recently published Talking to Goddess, an anthology of original blessings, invocations, prayer-poems and other sacred writings--many of them used daily by 72 women from 25 spiritual traditions (available through talkingtogoddess.com.)

Her work focuses on honoring the Sacred Feminine in women as well as men from all spiritual traditions.