COMPANIONS

A Roman Catholic discussion examines the male and female natures in the Christian faith.

The inspiration for the title of this book by Catholic Spiritual Directors Spruce and Southers is Genesis 2:18, when God saw that the man he created had no mate. The Lord then decided to create a woman to act as the man’s companion and partner. The bulk of this brief work explores the nature of that relationship, between men and women and between men, women, and God. “When we believe that God loves us unconditionally and we believe that we want to…try to love Him in response,” the authors write, “then it follows that we are now in the frame of being able to love others as Christ has loved us.” In order to study things in general terms, the authors use overarching patterns. For certain aspects (positive and negative) of the male psyche and nature, they use the term “the Brutus Persona,” and for the female personality, they invoke the Virgin Mary. The book’s sections are introduced by bits of dialogue between the two authors as they expand on these ideas. “The Brutus male persona has serviced us well, if but brutally at times,” Spruce contends, for instance. “Man cannot be as close to God as the woman because she is more like God than the male and is able to surrender, love, etc. to the man Jesus,” asserts Southers at another point. This dialogue format often yields the work’s most captivating sections. Many readers will wish there had been more dialogue and fewer digressions. At one point, Spruce maintains that “a man knows that a woman is different, but we don’t really understand why. Sometimes women are too mysterious. We want women to be equal, but we don’t want them to be men,” to which Southers responds: “Good point.” The authors take turns beginning these exchanges. This lively dynamic keeps the book moving forward.

A charged and intriguing exploration of gender differences through a Christian prism.