Research
This research begins with an overview of the early and Iron Age Celtic history and an analysis of the roles of Celtic women in the social and personal life. The focus is on the religious beliefs and the societal value placed in goddess. The research highlights the influences by Greeks and Romans and the early adaption of Christianity by the Celtic culture by examining how the patriarchal framework had a profound effect on the religious and social consciousness of the Irish. It explores the decline of matriarchal power in Celtic civilizations, and analyzes its implications for today's women and today's Catholic Church.
The texts used to explore Celtic culture prior to Christianity includes Irish charter documents, consisting of myths, sagas, genealogies, law codes and pseudo-historical accounts of the origins of the Irish or Celtic race. Included here are archaeological findings and linguistic studies. Text from the Hebrew Bible heavily influenced early Celtic Christians and is used to explore the roots of Christian beliefs and doctrines.
Women’s history is almost nonexistent in documentation in early Ireland; feminist historians believe the “subtext” of the existing documents is crucial to providing one of the few sources for women’s history. In the article, Who is the Goddess and Where Does She Get Us?, author Mary Jo Weaver states, “Feminist historians have learned to extract a good deal of information from inscriptions, myths, drawings, and other obscure sources; they have found ways to get behind a given text in order to discover what has been omitted from it” (Weaver, 1998). This research refers to the work of feminist author, Mary Condren whose book, The Serpent and the Goddess, employs the same methodology in her critique of women, religion and power in Celtic Ireland as is employed here. Finally, the work of the ecofeminnist author, Rosemary Redford Ruether in Gaia & God, is an examined here for its unique insight. Both of these scholars believe that the “effect” the text had on women should be examined, not the “intentions” of the author (Condren, 1989).
The texts used to explore Celtic culture prior to Christianity includes Irish charter documents, consisting of myths, sagas, genealogies, law codes and pseudo-historical accounts of the origins of the Irish or Celtic race. Included here are archaeological findings and linguistic studies. Text from the Hebrew Bible heavily influenced early Celtic Christians and is used to explore the roots of Christian beliefs and doctrines.
Women’s history is almost nonexistent in documentation in early Ireland; feminist historians believe the “subtext” of the existing documents is crucial to providing one of the few sources for women’s history. In the article, Who is the Goddess and Where Does She Get Us?, author Mary Jo Weaver states, “Feminist historians have learned to extract a good deal of information from inscriptions, myths, drawings, and other obscure sources; they have found ways to get behind a given text in order to discover what has been omitted from it” (Weaver, 1998). This research refers to the work of feminist author, Mary Condren whose book, The Serpent and the Goddess, employs the same methodology in her critique of women, religion and power in Celtic Ireland as is employed here. Finally, the work of the ecofeminnist author, Rosemary Redford Ruether in Gaia & God, is an examined here for its unique insight. Both of these scholars believe that the “effect” the text had on women should be examined, not the “intentions” of the author (Condren, 1989).