And Your Daughters Shall Prophesy

Book excerpt: An NPR Best Book of 2017 “Shirk is a generous writer whose penchant for detail and poetic observation will surprise even the staunchest skeptic.” —Juan Vidal, NPR’s “Best Books of 2017” "Shirk writes with sincerity. In these stirring vignettes, she mixes historical accounts, interpretations, and fictionalized encounters to provide insight into her personal journey tracing the steps of American women who have sought out an alternative spirituality."" —Publishers Weekly “Shirk’s first book examines and exalts the often overlooked histories of religious movers and shakers . . . and offers as a timely antidote to our culture’s current schism between fundamentalist conservatism and radical progress . . . Divine.” —Bitch And Your Daughters Shall Prophesy is a powerful, personal exploration of American women and their theologies, weaving connections between Adrian Shirk's own varied spiritual experiences and the prophetesses, feminists, and spiritual icons who have shaped this country. Each woman presents a pathway for Shirk’s own spiritual inquiries: the New Orleans high priestess Marie Laveau, the pop New Age pioneer Linda Goodman, the prophetic vision of intersectionality as preached by Sojourner Truth, “saint” Flannery O’Connor, and so many more. Through her journey, Shirk comes to believe that, as the culture wars flatten religious discourse and shred institutional trust, we should look to the spiritual visions and innovations of women, who, having spent so much time at the margins of religious discourse, illuminate its darkened corners.