By Elizabeth Felicetti and Ann Boyd

Elizabeth Felicetti: Unexpected Abundance

“There is hope and there is fruit and there is life, whether or not we one day have children. And I hope that in looking at these 25 women, that people might be encouraged and inspired and realize what abundance there is out there.” — Rev. Elizabeth Felicetti

Episcopal priest and author Elizabeth Felicetti talks with us about living a rich and generative life as a woman without children and the twenty-five women who have inspired her.

What does it look like to live a rich and generative life as a woman without children? The Reverend Elizabeth Felicetti joined us on the podcast to explore this question and talk about some of the twenty-five women she has written about in her book Unexpected Abundance: The Fruitful Lives of Women Without Children. Elizabeth shares from her own personal experience of life as a barren woman — a term which you’ll hear her reclaim in a beautifully positive way. She weaves her own story, including an ongoing fight against cancer, into the book as she highlights strong and refreshing examples of childless women throughout Scripture, history, and our present day. I especially loved Elizabeth’s emphasis on the partnership of women and her urging that women support one another regardless of maternal status. It’s a delightful conversation, and if you listen to the end, I’ve included an excerpt in which Elizabeth reveals a bit more about her journey through cancer treatments while she was completing her MFA. 

So jump right in! We're so glad you're here.

You can listen on iTunes or at The Women Scholars and Professionals Podcast. We hope you enjoy this conversation as much as we did.

Further resources for this interview:

Flower Photo by Macro Mama on StockSnap

About the Author

Elizabeth Felicetti is an Episcopal priest and the rector of St. David's Episcopal Church in Richmond, Virginia.  She earned a Master of Fine Arts in Writing from Spalding University in Louisville, Kentucky where she studied creative nonfiction and poetry. Elizabeth also holds a Master of Divinity from Virginia Theological Seminary where she loved studying Old Testament and Biblical Hebrew and spent part of one summer in Sudan teaching Hebrew to Episcopal priests. Her writing has appeared in The Atlantic, Christian Century, and numerous other magazines. When not actively serving St. David’s or writing, Elizabeth loves birding and playing the ukulele.

Ann is the Women Scholars and Professionals Podcast host and the interim editor for The Well. She has worked for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship since 1997, exploring her interests in community, spiritual formation, and writing. Ann has a BM in Music Education from Northwestern University and lives in Chicago, Illinois with one husband, two spunky teenage daughters, and three snuggly cats. You’ll often find Ann baking sweet treats in the kitchen while listening to a podcast or audiobook.

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