Posted on 01/28/2002 12:15:45 PM PST by ELS
The thesis is an analysis of feminist theories in light of the philosophy of Thomas Aquinas. De Solenni, a graduate of Thomas Aquinas College in her native California, expounded on her ideas for ZENIT.
Good news for Thomas Aquinas College. Do you know Pia de Solenni?
The thesis is an analysis of feminist theories in light of the philosophy of Thomas Aquinas.
I thought you two might be interested, for different reasons, in this article.
thanks for the ping.
Richard F.
Yes, quite a breath of fresh air.
Visit the FR bump list register to see all of the topics to which various threads are catalogued.
Pope John Paul II awarded the 2001 Pontifical Academies' Prize to Pia Francesca de Solenni, a 1993 graduate of Thomas Aquinas College.
De Solenni, 29, received the distinguished award - which came with a $30,000 prize - for the defense of her doctoral thesis at the University of the Holy Cross in Rome. The thesis is an analysis of feminist theories in light of St. Thomas Aquinas' philosophy.
Deemed outstanding for its original scientific and cultural contribution rooted in Christian thought, her work underlines the equality of men and women as made in the image and likeness of God. Their basic vocation, she argues, has a strong intellectual component, that of knowing God.
In presenting the award on November 8, Pope John Paul said the annual prize is designed to "encourage the commitment of young scholars, artists and institutions who dedicate their activity to the promotion of Christian humanism."
Miss De Solenni, a native of Crescent City, California, lives in Washington, D.C.
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA NATIVE WINS POPE'S PRIZE.
On November 8, Pope John Paul II awarded the prize of the pontifical academies to former Crescent City resident Doctor Pia de Solenni, 29 "for her work in Thomistic theology." She was awarded for the defense of her doctoral thesis, titled "A Hermeneutic of Aquinas' 'Mens' Through a Sexually Differentiated Epistemology: Towards an Understanding of Woman as 'Imago Dei.'"
At the encouragement of her advisor, de Solenni submitted her thesis and was subsequently chosen from among fifty other applicants. De Solenni was awarded by the pope on behalf of the Coordinating Council of the Pontifical Academies at the University of the Holy Cross in Rome at their annual joint session. There are seven pontifical academies, each devoted to various disciplines such as archaeology, fine arts, and the works of Saint Thomas Aquinas. The award is presented to an individual or institution less than 35 years old. It is given for submitting a published work or a substantial body of research that makes a significant contribution to theology.
According to de Solenni, her thesis was an attempt to underline Saint Thomas' concept of "Imago Dei," the teaching of mankind's' creation in God's image and likeness, and to emphasize women's' role in this concept. "To Aquinas, the soul of man and woman are the same; the only real difference is the body," said de Solenni.
Expanding on this, de Solenni continued, "What I was posing ... is that perhaps women have a specific 'way', a specific knowledge insofar as perhaps women sense things differently than men do ... and that the complimentarity between men and women is not just in the biological sense, but that men come to know through women and women come to know through men."
The former Crescent City resident is a graduate of Thomas Aquinas College and now lives in Washington, D.C. With the nearly $30,000 research grant that accompanies the award, de Solenni has many bold plans for her future. "I'd like to work in developing a new feminism, but I'm also toying with the idea of going into bioethics. I'd really like to be working in the pro life movement," she said.
She explained that one of her goals working for pro-life causes is to "take the abstract and apply it to practical life, making [it] concrete." She said, "We've been preaching to the choir long enough. It's time to put it in the language of the other side so that we can start communicating with them. I want to convert the other side."
She draws her inspiration and direction from the example of the Holy Father himself in the success he has enjoyed in engaging the world from the world's perspective. She points out one of these successes, World Youth Day, as a prime example. "The pope had over two million young people come to him at World Youth Day. No other figure in the world attracts people like that. He's gotten through somewhere, entering their language and dialoguing with them," she explains, "He takes a lot of flak for it, but that's why he's been successful affecting so many different people all over the world, because he takes the time to ask, 'What's important to you?'"
I have a very clear picture of what God intends to be a woman's primary role. I also have VERY strong feelings about the role of Pastor being a God ordained male role. These beliefs, I believe, I carry with me from my RC upbringing.
I consider myself an independant and competent woman ,but I know the lines and where God draws them.I try to stay between the lines at all times:>))
Wow, a Women's Studies program that's wholesome!
Sounds like a cheesecake pictoral of zaftig ladies. <G>
Amen! I knew you were a wise woman.
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