I met Nancy at a meeting where I was speaking. She was a delight and was very willing to give me feedback on my presentation. Which I thought was very thoughtful. And I appreciated it. Nancy is a speaker herself, a writer and a new author. I asked Nancy to write a GUEST BLOG. Here it is. Enjoy!
A Call to Women: Redefining Happiness
By Nancy Reece
”Are women really less happy?” is the question asked by Naomi Wolf in the March 2010 edition of More magazine. Having observed that women were “happier” in the 40’s and 50’s when they were focused on the greater good, Wolf comes to three conclusions as to why women today are less satisfied:
1) Women have developed a habit of seeing and talking about what’s wrong because feminism taught women to be discontent.
2) French existentialism in the feminist movement promoted self and personal choice as the source of life’s meaning, and
3) We need to redefine happiness today as using one’s fullest capacities in the service of the larger good.
Unfortunately, Wolf left out of her discussion a key issue – faith. If existentialism teaches that there is no inherent meaning in life and so it’s all up to us, I would expect women to feel less satisfied or happy because they have been convinced “It’s all about me”. This is diametrically opposed to what Christ teaches –that we are here to love and serve our fellow man and woman – putting others first before ourselves. Wolf got it right in one respect – we do need to redefine happiness, but doing so without Christ in the center will only lead to more frustration. There is a better way! “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” Romans 15:13 ESV
Just Nancy’s Thoughts. Yours?
S.
