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The Black Madonna, Icon of Resistance, Mother of Chaos & More By Matthew Fox 3/02/2026 |
I love the book, which is so needed in this time of resistance and chaos. It has been a secret dream all my life to see the Black community take this icon and run with it, which this book does with panache. The author has wrestled in depth with this wonderful figure and archetype. Several years
ago, I was asked to lecture at Morehouse University, where Howard Thurman is buried, on the Black Madonna. I was struck that so few of the 200 or so staff and faculty in attendance, all of whom were Black, had known about the Black Madonna. But this book brings her alive and lights a |
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fire that, I am sure, will not burn out. Here is my blurb: This is a moving, passionate, personal and well
researched study of the Black Madonna born of the author’s pilgrimages by foot to obscure Black Madonna shrines in France and elsewhere as well as substantive academic research. The author identifies the Black Madonna as ‘the Icon of Resistance,’ ‘the Container of the God whom nothing can contain,’ ‘Mother of Chaos,’ ‘the perfect portal to our diasporic spiritual origins,’ and more. |
“Black Madonna” Postal Stamp, Haiti. Image by jovike is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0 | The author offers a banquet of insight and meaning to many (but not all 450+) Black Madonna images and stories from Cuba to South Africa, from the Philippines to Czechoslovakia, from Haiti to France, from Africa to Belgium, Spain, Italy, and Switzerland. In doing so, she invites us to renew our imaginations and prayer and |
spirituality–especially in critical times like we face today. She offers practices along the way that render the book practical as well as aspirational. I count this among the most important, substantive, and insightful books ever written on the Black Madonna. It represents a new stage
in Marian theology, and appropriately, it comes from the pen of a Black woman who is eager to move beyond a stale, flat, exclusively white and patriarchal version of God. Like Meister Eckhart, she “prays God to rid us of God.” The Black Madonna, in choosing Christena to relay her story, has chosen wisely and
astutely. Christena is a first-class storyteller, and the Black Madonna has many powerful stories to tell. Read this book and be prepared to welcome the divine feminine into your soul, body, spirit, and into humanity’s collective history once again. A truly revolutionary book! |
I wrote about the Black Madonna in my book, The Hidden Spirituality of Men, and we have celebrated several Cosmic Masses in her honor. Alessandra Belloni hails from southern Italy, where the Black Madonna tradition in Europe was first born. Recently, she wrote a very important
book, Healing Journeys with the Black Madonna: Chants, Music, and the Sacred Practices of the Great Goddess. I was honored to write the Foreword to it. She has led retreats
for decades to Black Madonna shrines in Southern Italy. She and |
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Christena are sisters, one from the African American tradition and one from the Italian tradition, called by the Black Madonna to make herself known in these disturbing times, calling for immense death and also creativity. While examining the Black Madonna around the world, Christena also offers
deep insights on the tradition of the labyrinth, a practice that Episcopal priest Lauren Artress of Grace Cathedral in San Francisco has brought to life in our times. |
Queries for Contemplation Do you relate to the Black Madonna as an Icon of Resistance and apt for our
times of chaos and struggle? |
Responses are welcomed. To add your comment, or read other comments and enter into dialogue, please click HERE to go to our website and scroll down to the Comments field. Books and More by Matthew and Friends! Be sure to check out Matthew's new store at MatthewFox.org, now offering books, recorded courses old and new, and special events... and don't miss our growing collection of books endorsed by Matthew on Bookshop.org! CREATION SPIRITUALITY CONVERSATIONS |
Matthew Fox offers a keynote at the Unity Earth Symposium V on The Future of
Interspirituality: From Awareness to Action, exploring the maturation of interspirituality and how shared spiritual awareness becomes structured, embodied action in the world. |
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UPCOMING EVENTS See Matthew Fox's full calendar HERE |
Matthew Fox joins Unity Inspired Living to give an inspirational message,"Roots Before Wings: The Foundational Role of Science in Supporting Spirituality," at Sunday morning worship, also livestreamed on Facebook Live, March 8, 10:00am PT. Learn more HERE. |
Join Matthew Fox and Carolyn Myss in a 3-session event: "Darkness, Love and Advancing Consciousness in These Times." March 11, 18, 25, 2026 (Wednesdays) Virtual / Live Zoom Event. The Sophia Institute, 3pm PT. Learn more HERE. |
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Matthew Fox joins David Abram, Lynn Twist, and Randy Woodley as Cameron Trimble of Convergence CoLab hosts “Vision for the Common Good,” a four-session Conversation Series. Tuesdays, March 17, 24, 31, and April 7, 4:00pm-5:30pm PT Register HERE. |
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MONTHLY: Join Matthew Fox and Skylar Wilson of the Order of the Sacred Earth in a free virtual meeting for connection and networking with other mystic warriors. Last Tuesday of every month, 4:00-5:00pm PT.
Join Zoom Meeting HERE, Meeting ID: 886 6530 2478 Learn more at www.orderofthesacredearth.org |
Join Matthew Fox for a Lecture, Discussion, and Q&A on “Julian of Norwich: Wisdom in a Time of Pandemic—And Beyond, ” an Our Lady of the Prairie Retreat, Thursday, March 19, 2026, 4:00pm-5:30pm PT. Register HERE. |
Matthew Fox offers a lecture, “A Christianity for All Creation” as part of “For All Creation: A Day with Matthew Fox, Kelly Sherman-Conroy and Will Allen,” an On-site and Virtual Event presented by the Center for Ecological Regeneration, Hennepin Ave. UMC, and Garrett
Evangelical Theological Seminary in Minneapolis, MN. Saturday, April 18, 9:00am – 3:00pm Register HERE. |
Awakening the Divine Human: An Immersion in the Living Wisdom of Creation Spirituality …a week-long retreat in Sardinia, Italy, May
25-30, 2026 Join us on the sacred island of Sardinia for a deeply immersive 6-day retreat rooted in the teachings of Matthew Fox, C.G. Jung, and the ancient wisdom of the land. Set along the turquoise shores and among the Neolithic sites of this timeless Mediterranean island, this retreat invites you into a transformative journey of reconnection—with Earth, Self,
Gender, and the Divine. Learn more HERE. |
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