A Letter to the Woman Worried She’s Not Doing This Whole Womanhood Thing Right // Lisa Cotter

Have you ever secretly (or not so secretly) wondered if you’re doing this whole womanhood thing right? Are you tired of the secular rhetoric that tries to tell you how you should act and who you should be? And are you wondering what the church really teaches about Catholic femininity - but also a little worried about diving deeper into what the church says because you’re afraid you won’t measure up? In this episode, I sit down with Lisa Cotter. You may know her from talks that she’s given at Steubenville, NCYC, or SEEK conferences. She’s also the author of a brand new book, “Reveal the Gift: Living the Feminine Genius.” Obviously, we’re going to be talking about the feminine genius in today’s conversation, which is one of our mutual favorite topics. We’re talking about what the feminine genius is, where the idea that there are “four main aspects” of the feminine genius came from and why it falls short when it comes to the beautifully diverse ways the feminine genius can be lived out, and how we can strive for human virtues in a particularly feminine way. If there was a video of this podcast episode, you’d mainly just see me nodding along and mouthing YES for thirty minutes while I listened to Lisa’s thoughts on Catholic femininity, and I’m so excited to share this conversation with you. If you’re ready to explore what it means to be an authentic woman and discover how to be an authentic women, sister, this letter is for you. Topics we talked about in this episode: Lisa’s story as a Catholic woman and how she does not do it all as a wife and mom What inspired Lisa’s new book, “Reveal the Gift: Living the Feminine Genius” Our mutual frustration at Saint Pope John Paul II’s lack of definition of the feminine genius, and a definition from Sister Prudence Allen that helps us understand what the feminine genius is Why “the four aspects of the feminine genius” falls short of what the feminine genius truly is How we live out human virtues particularly as women with a feminine genius Women’s capacity for fidelity Where we can draw inner strength from as women (especially in challenging seasons!) How Lisa lives out the feminine genius by being receptive to grace Resources you should check out after listening to this episode: Reveal the Gift: Living the Feminine Genius by Lisa Cotter The Eternal Woman by Gertrud Von Le Fort How to Be a Spiritual Mother (Whether You Have Kids or Not)—an article I wrote back in 2018 for Aleteia that discusses the beauty of spiritual motherhood  Follow Lisa on Instagram and her website, Made to Magnify  Naptime Notes, a new monthly newsletter from Chloe Order my newest book, Sisterhood: Giving and Receiving the Gift of Friendship  Check out The Little Catholic Box and access the exclusive bonuses for LTW listeners