In Brigid’s Footsteps: The Return of the Divine Feminine
by Linda W. McFadden

Celtic goddess and Christian saint Brigid is the focus of this collection of essays on the Divine Feminine and the ongoing evolution of consciousness.

The author traces Brigid as an archetype of the Divine Feminine from her incarnation as goddess of wisdom, craft, and healing to her embodiment as Christian saint who served as midwife to Mary at the birth of Jesus and her evolution into a cultural icon whose all-embracing cloak symbolizes her protection.

Brigid’s omnipresence as representation of the Divine Feminine in Celtic culture throws into relief the contrasting absence of feminine energies in mainstream Western culture and the consequences of living in a strongly masculine-biased civilization.

The book’s final section discusses the relevance of Divine Feminine attributes revealed in Brigid to the shift in consciousness Jung referred to as a “changing of the gods” and speculates on how such a shift in consciousness might impact our masculine-leaning culture.

The book concludes with a consideration of Earth’s entry into a new aeon in which the divine is being relocated from “out there” or “up there” into the souls of individuals, and how Brigid may become an archetype of the Divine Feminine in the new era as the spirit of liminal times and midwife to the Holy.

Endorsements

“The divine feminine has many faces in the great spiritual traditions of humanity. In the Christian world there is none so beautiful and so untameable as Brigid of Kildare. She is returning to us again today because we need her, perhaps like never before. She comes to lead us back into a true dance of the sacred feminine and masculine within us and between us, in our lives and in our world. Only then will we be well.” ~ John Philip Newell, author of Sacred Earth, Sacred Soul: Celtic Wisdom for Reawakening to What Our Souls Know and Healing the World.

“Continuing the legacy and spirit of her Celtic patron saint, St. Brigid of Kildare, Linda McFadden serves as a modern midwife for the divine feminine that continues its insistence birthing. Writing with the passion of a prophet, the curiosity of a historian, and the eye of a depth psychologist, she challenges both women and men to attend the sacred task of incarnating the archetypal feminine. Readers will be entertained, enlightened, and filled with hope for the beleaguered soul in this threshold time. A wonderful and wonder-filled book.” ~ Jerry R. Wright, D.Min., Jungian Analyst, author of A Mystical Path Less Traveled: A Jungian Psychological Perspective.

“Linda McFadden invites readers to imagine ‘the energy of the Divine Feminine leading our masculine-leaning culture forward through these unsettled times.’ She chronicles the re-emergence of Brigid-goddess, saint, healer, and ever-deepening archetype in Celtic spirituality. This synergy of Divine essence can lead to an evolution of consciousness for the 21st century in which violence is replaced by generosity and mercy.” ~ Dian Neu, D.Min., LGSW, psychotherapist and author, co-founder and co-director of WATER, the Women’s Alliance for Theology, Ethics and Ritual.

About the author

From childhood roots steeped in bibliocentric Southern Baptist Churches, her spiritual journey has led to the pursuit of interests in Jungian psychology, mythology, and Celtic spirituality, as well as to theological studies and ordained ministry in the United Church of Christ. Formerly a pastor and teacher of writing, she holds an M.A. from the University of North Carolina and an M.Div. from Pacific School of Religion. She is co-author of More Dumb Things Churches Do (And New Strategies for Avoiding Them). The author met her co-author and husband, Philip Wiehe, while traveling in the Holy Land and the two have since escorted pilgrims to Taize, England, Ireland, Costa Rica, and Iona. They currently lead pilgrimages with PilgrimQuests focused on Celtic spirituality and Jungian psychology and will return on pilgrimages as a group to Iona and Ireland in 2022.