By Emilie Ng
ANSWERS to the Church’s teachings on women are found in a new resource that explores key aspects of newly canonised St John Paul II’s “genius of womanhood”.
Australian Catholic author and speaker Karen Doyle, who is also co-founder of Catholic businesses ChoicezMedia and BeingCatholic, worked with well-known lay and religious women to create The Genius Project, designed for individuals, parishes, and schools.
The resource draws on two important texts written by the new saint, including his apostolic letter on the dignity and vocation of women, Mulieris Dignitatem, and his Letter to Women.
Mrs Doyle studied these documents at Melbourne’s John Paul II Institute for Marriage and Family, but said both “have been overlooked” or not yet enriched women as deeply as John Paul had hoped.
“Our desire was that we could take these beautiful and transformative documents and bring them into contact with the lives of real women,” she said.
“There is a real hunger for women to find their place in the heart of the Church and serve in ways that bring their unique capacities to life.
“So many women, mothers, religious and single women have been raised to see their femininity as a problem.
“The great good news is that St John Paul and the Church herself sees women and their unique gifts as a solution to so many of the problems being faced by the world.”
She said the resource highlighted the “power of complementarity rather than competition”.
“It’s about discovering the ways we can support, encourage and affirm each other as men and women,” she said.
The Genius Project is available for purchase at beingcatholic.com.au/genius-project.
