We are so grateful to Aspen Moore, Rebecca Young, and Carol Robins for providing an inclusive version of the Book of Mormon. Here are some resources they shared during the interview and their Instagram information:

Heavenly Parents: An Inclusive Book of Mormon Reading

The easiest way to read it is on your phone through the Medium app or on your computer @ Medium.com

Those interested can download the Medium app on their phones which has a black background with a white capital M and 1/2 of a lowercase e.

They can also create a free account (scroll down to the bottom of the registration page to find the free option)

and follow Heavenly Parents Project which houses Heavenly Parents: An Inclusive Book of Mormon Reading

Additionally, here are a couple links to resources that have more information about Heavenly Mother from the LDS Church that we used during our discussion.

A Mother There - BYU Studies Article

A Mother in Heaven - Gospel Topics Essay

The Heavenly Parents Book of Mormon instagram page is @heavenly.parents.bom

Rebecca's instagram page is @our.heavenly.parents

Aspen's instagram page is @seeking.her.wisdom

Continuing the conversation from the last episode #123, Jessica Woodbury interviews artists turned curators and art exhibition co-founders Laura Erekson and Nicole Woodbury. They have been putting on the Certain Women Art show in Utah for the past 5 years. In today's half of the conversation, Laura and Nicole share how they came to the themes for the more recent Certain Women installment. They discuss their own pieces from the current show and share their journeys with coming to know Heavenly Mother for themselves. Each of their powerful witnesses of Her comes through their artwork and their words here in this podcast.

The current Certain Women exhibition can be seen until June 7th at the JKR gallery in Provo, Utah. The theme is "The Measure of Her Creation".

The artwork from the 2021 exhibit "Reflections on a Mother in Heaven" has been published in this beautiful book: https://a.co/d/5qNRBsC

In this episode, Martin Pulido shares about his experience researching, publishing, and presenting his findings on the historical teachings on Heavenly Mother in the BYU Studies Article "A Mother There", referenced in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' Gospel Topics Essay "Mother in Heaven". He shares how he came to know his Heavenly Mother intellectually and on a personal, relational level. Martin discusses how he thinks boys and men benefit from gaining a knowledge of and relationship with their Mother God. He describes his work co-authoring A Boy's Guide to Heavenly Mother, and shares ways we can all better acknowledge and treasure the feminine half of deity. 

A Boy's Guide to Heavenly Mother: https://deseretbook.com/p/boys-guide-to-heavenly-mother?queryID=bfb943f3325eae24d6bf4aad78fe2617&variant_id=194660-hardcover

"A Mother There: A Survey of Historical Teachings about Mother in Heaven": https://byustudies.byu.edu/article/a-mother-there-a-survey-of-historical-teachings-about-mother-in-heaven/

Jess interviews her husband, Seth Burdette, on what it's like being married to someone on a Divine Feminine journey. Seth shares analogies he has used to encourage Jess at different points along her path. They discuss what the process of implementing more dialogue around Heavenly Mother has looked like in their ward. As a member of their bishopric, Seth has had unique opportunities to help the ward better include and listen to women's voices and start to shift the perception of God to include the Mother. He shares some ideas of how to go about inspiring change in a positive way. 

In this episode, Jess and Kate interview psychotherapist Dr. Julie Hanks! Doctor Hanks discusses her personal mission helping women step into their power and changing the current structure to better embrace women's power and authority. She gives a glimpse into how the inclusion of Heavenly Mother in our dialogue as church members plays a role in that two-part mission. Doctor Hanks suggests ways to talk to church leaders about Heavenly Mother, and what to do when faced with rejection. She relates what she has done when personal and general revelation conflict. She inspires a desire to step into one's own power, and articulates why claiming our power is such an important part of life in the long run.

Dr. Hanks' programs, podcast, and blog can be found at her website: https://www.drjuliehanks.com. 

Julie read some of the lyrics from her song, Mother Where Art Thou, as the anchor for this episode. 

The song can be found on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/6Mxw1s6l7PD0tjzO01BIMt

or on Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/mother-where-art-thou/1291730037?i=1291730042

Other resources: 

A Girl's Guide to Heavenly Mother: https://deseretbook.com/p/girls-guide-to-heavenly-mother?queryID=1cb3df66c81409044e4ea2936691a311&variant_id=194661-hardcover

A Boy's Guide to Heavenly Mother: https://deseretbook.com/p/boys-guide-to-heavenly-mother?queryID=1cb3df66c81409044e4ea2936691a311&variant_id=194660-hardcover

Jess welcomes her new co-host, Kate, to the podcast!  Kate discusses her passion for Women's health, body literacy and what it means to live in harmony with your cycles and recognize how you were literally created in God's image. Kate shares how her appreciation for her body preceded her search for Mother God and how the two met in the middle. She explains balancing the Divine Masculine and Divine Feminine energies in all of us and in the world.  Whether you are a man or woman, whether you are currently menstruating or not, we can all follow the divine patterns our Heavenly Parents have given us such as multiplying and replenishing (not just about having kids), and spiritual and physical creation.

For more from Kate you can follow @daughterofmother_earth on Instagram and you can listen to episode 19 of In Her Image.

Other References:

Period Repair Manual  (Book)
Taking Charge of Your Fertility (Book)

In this episode, Sara talks about her journey to becoming involved in birth work, and the way it connects her with Mother God. Jess and Sara discuss how Heavenly Mother invites all of us to birth new life, whether it's our own new lives or children or other creations. The episode ends with an important announcement from Sara.

With Thanksgiving and Christmas coming up, we'll be taking a break from publishing new episodes of In Her Image until January 2022. Take this time to go back and listen to episodes you missed or re-listen to your favorites! If you have ideas for podcast episodes or would like to be a guest on the podcast, send us an email to inherimagepodcast@gmail.com! Happy Holidays!

Today’s episode is with Bethany Brady Spalding, co-author of the bestselling Girls Who Choose God series and the Guide Books to Heavenly Mother. In this episode, she tells Sara how each of her children’s books came to be. Originally inspired by an inquisitive 3 year old, these books portray a healthy balance in the male and female divine. The purposeful order and progression of the books, culminating in the Girl’s and Boy’s Guides to Heavenly Mother, is absolutely fascinating to hear spelled out. Bethany shares her wisdom with fellow pioneers blazing the trail in uncovering Heavenly Mother, inspiring persistence and faith in positive changes to come.

As we mentioned in episode 28 with Bethany’s co-author McArthur Krishna, A GIrl’s Guide for Heavenly Mother and A Boy’s Guide to Heavenly Mother are now being sold through Deseret Book! If you, like us, appreciate these books being carried by a church-owned bookstore, please send an email to Deseret Book retailbuying@deseretbook.com letting them know.

Unfortunately, the article Bethany mentions that she wrote for Exponent II about her daughter's entrance into young womanhood is not accessible without a subscription, but we hope the ideas she shares here help spark your own meaningful rituals and traditions.

Bethany's children's books can be found at Deseret Book through the following links:

A Girl's Guide to Heavenly Mother

https://deseretbook.com/p/girls-guide-to-heavenly-mother?queryID=4044744900145169cc4429b8b0864511&variant_id=194661-hardcover

A Boy's Guide to Heavenly Mother

https://deseretbook.com/p/boys-guide-to-heavenly-mother?queryID=4044744900145169cc4429b8b0864511&variant_id=194660-hardcover

Our Earthly Family, Our Heavenly Families

https://deseretbook.com/p/our-heavenly-family-our-earthly-families?query=earthly%2520family%2520Heav&variant_id=135731-hardcover

Girls Who Choose God

https://deseretbook.com/p/girls-who-choose-god-mcarthur-krishna-92526?queryID=b6c17c97bc556b69abb82724a7e24b65&variant_id=3041-hardcover

Sara is on Instagram as @my.mother.is.the.queen, and her co-host Jess is @her.scriptures.

Carol Lynn Pearson has been a pioneer in finding Mother God and inspiring others to do so for decades. In this episode, Sara asks about her journey writing and performing her one-woman play Mother Wove the Morning in the late 80’s and 90’s, and about her more recent publication, Finding Mother God, a book of poetry published in 2020. Carol Lynn recites some of her favorite poems from that book with all the eloquence and bravado of a stage performer, yet the sincerity and humility of a true seeker. She offers encouragement for others hoping to find and share about Heavenly Mother, urging us not to be afraid to use our voices and step outside the lines to make our desires known for greater church-wide recognition of the female half of God.

Visit https://carollynnpearson.com to find Carol Lynn's works, including Mother Wove the Morning in video format and Finding Mother God (autographed!) 

Sara is on Instagram as @my.mother.is.the.queen, and her co-host Jess is on Instagram as @her.scriptures.

Singer/songwriter McCall Char joins Jess for this episode. McCall shares her song "Oh Mother Mother" and discusses how the inspiration for the song came. They talk about the range of feelings that can accompany a journey to the Goddess, and what those feelings may be trying to communicate. McCall relates how seeking Heavenly Mother has affected her relationship with the Father, and lets us in on personal revelation she has received when feelings of doubt and darkness start to creep in around her desire to learn more of Her. McCall's vulnerability and down-to-earth yet free spirit inspire hope and persistence in a journey that can seem daunting and unyielding at times.

In the episode, some wonderful resources were mentioned:

Sharing Heavenly Mother Panel Discussion part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugEJs-bFMAE

Sharing Heavenly Mother Panel Discussion part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnST3HPbxkQ

Sharing Heavenly Mother Panel Discussion part 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGz3f0j78yY

Valerie Hudson on "The Two Trees" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1f1M_JVbZw

Daniel C. Peterson on "A Divine Mother in the Book of Mormon?" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_CYqCti5rQM

In this episode, Jess and Sara interview McArthur Krishna, co-author of "A Girl's Guide to Heavenly Mother" and "A Boy's Guide to Heavenly Mother." These books are now for sale through Deseret Book. If you're looking for Christmas gifts for the young women or young men or primary groups in your wards, or for your family, stock up on these books from Deseret Book! Then they'll get the signal that this kind of content is something that people are interested in and want more of! This opens the door to more books about Heavenly Mother being published by Deseret Book in the future!

In the episode, McArthur discusses how the doctrine of Heavenly Mother is essential to our existence and salvation and has been cherished and promoted throughout church history. She debunks the cultural misunderstanding that we shouldn't speak about our Mother in Heaven, quoting a flood of church leaders who have taught about her. She tells the stories of several women of different ages who have shared with her the importance of this doctrine and talks about the importance of soul development. Knowing that Mother God and Father God stand beside each other as equals changes everything.

Art can be such a powerful tool in sharing important messages and teaching in a deeper, more powerful way. In this episode, Jessica Woodbury interviews artists turned curators and art exhibition co-founders Laura Erekson and Nicole Woodbury. They have been putting on the Certain Women Art show in Utah for the past 5 years. They share how they came to choose the 2021 theme, Reflections on a Mother in Heaven and what that particular show was like. All of the art from the 2021 exhibit has been published in this beautiful book: https://a.co/d/5qNRBsC

Kayla (@k_thought_nuggets on Instagram) shares how she has found Heavenly Mother in singing, in the stars, and even in spiders. She relates her journey coming to hunger for more knowledge about the Queen of Heaven, remembering back to her childhood fascination with ancient goddesses in mythology, a study she has since reignited. 

In this episode, we refer to a few different resources that have been illuminating for Kayla (and Jess): 

Valerie Hudson's Two Trees article https://latterdaysaintmag.com/article-1-12563/

Sharing Heavenly Mother Panel Discussions on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=sharing+heavenly+mother

Jess also mentions Faith Matters' podcast episode 82. The Future of Women at Church, which Sara and Jess highly recommend. 

In Her Image co-hosts Jess and Sara are on Instagram as @her.scriptures (Jess) and @my.mother.is.the.queen (Sara).

Ashtaroth (Ashli) Carnicelli shares the story of her personal walk with Heavenly Mother, Heavenly Father, and Jesus Christ. From her adoption as an infant to her reconnection with her biological father as an adult, Ashli sees the hand of both Father and Mother God in her life. She shares personal answers she's received to questions like, "is it okay that I'm hanging artwork of Heavenly Mother in my home?" and "What is She like?" Listen and be uplifted by Ashli's faith and enthusiasm!

Writer and poet Rachel Hunt Steenblik joins Sara and Jess from the other side of the globe to discuss her journey seeking the feminine divine. Rachel relates her experience doing research for the BYU Studies article "A Mother There: A Survey of Historical Teachings about Mother in Heaven". She describes how she became a poet and came to write the books Mother's Milk: Poems in search of Heavenly Mother and I Gave Her a Name, how she managed to write in the midst of raising tiny children, and what her hopes for the continued unveiling of the divine Mother look like. The introduction of Mother's Milk articulates her desire for all of us to add our voices, stating, "These are the poems that I could write with my questions, my hurt, my hope, and my reaching. Others could write other poems with theirs. I hope that they will. We need them all." 

Rachel's books can be purchased at https://qnoor.com/collections/books-and-art.

She is on Twitter as @rachelsteenblik and Instagram as @rachelelizahunt.

Podcast co-host Sara is on Instagram as @my.mother.is.the.queen, and Jess can be found at @her.scriptures.

In this episode, Sara interviews Ariel Finlinson, host of Ladies Talking Love. Ariel's passion is helping women find joy and fulfillment in sex... and her journey to hosting a podcast on the topic started when the young women she taught asked questions about Heavenly Mother! Ariel walks us through her journey of coming to understand her place in gathering Israel, and how that is intimately tied up in understanding women's priesthood power, coming to know Heavenly Mother, and teaching women about their sexuality.

Jess and Sara recorded this episode right after General Conference in April 2021, when these thoughts were fresh on our minds, and are sharing it with you now as we prepare for another General Conference.

Seeking and celebrating Heavenly Mother can be hard to do while listening to General Conference. She's rarely mentioned over the pulpit, and that has left us feeling bitter or upset at times. But those feelings--while valid and warranted--don't help solve the problem! In this episode, we discuss ways that we've invited Heavenly Mother into our General Conference weekends, and how you can do the same!

As an ally researcher with a graduate degree from Colombia University in psychology, and the person running the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion program for her company, Anne Katherine (who goes by Kate) gives us this invaluable conversation around inclusivity at the level of divinity. She shares "The Architect," a short story she wrote for @OurMotherInHeaven on Instagram. Her words inspire us to expand our vision of what godhood for God our Mother might look like. She urges us to find the divinity inside each one of Her children, reminding us that we're all part of the body of Christ... or the elephant in the room. 

Kate is on Instagram as @kate.toronto. She has been interviewed for her LGBTQ research on the Lift + Love podcast, as well as on Listen, Learn, & Love, episode 132. 

Precia delves into why she seeks the Mother, and what kind of impact seeking Her on a wider level would make. From deleting Instagram for fear of going astray, to receiving dreams from Her, Precia's journey seeking the Goddess is captivating and inspiring. May we each create our own path to the Mother following Precia's example, and by so doing become a people more prepared for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.

In this episode, Jess and Sara have a conversation about things they've learned since seeking Heavenly Mother. A uniting theme among all of their learnings is abundance. They discuss how the Mother invites them to feel all of their feelings, to love all of Her children, to see the vastness of the role of motherhood, to care for all creation, and more!

Kate shares about her experience as a Trailwalker for the ANASAZI Foundation as a college student. She relates lessons she learned about Mother Nature and how they might enhance our understanding of Heavenly Mother. Looking back, she sees how the Mother was with her and the other walkers in the Arizona wilderness during their hardest times, from being caught in monsoons to struggling to make fire.

Kate can be found on Instagram as @daughterofmother_earth, where she shares ways of recognizing the Divine Feminine in nature and our bodies, along with tips on sustainable living and affirming our cycles and birth giving. 

Rachel Hunt Steenblik's Mother's Milk, along with Kevin L. Barney's article from Dialogue and a blog post by Whitney Call, former member of Studio C,  were influential in Kate's early seeking. Each of these works is linked below. Kate also references the books The Seven Paths: Changing One's Way of Walking in the World and The Anatomy of Peace during the interview. These can be found on Amazon or at many bookstores. 

Mother's Milk: https://qnoor.com/products/mothers-milk

Kevin L. Barney's article: https://www.dialoguejournal.com/articles/how-to-worship-our-mother-in-heaven-without-getting-excommunicated/

Whitney Call's blog post: http://callmewhit.blogspot.com/2020/02/a-clumsy-pondering-on-asherah-wisdom-mom.html

This week, Sara and Jess interview artist Emily Shay about her work, "Rest in Me," an artistic depiction of Heavenly Mother with one of Her daughters, who rests her head in Her Mother's lap. Emily tells how she was inspired to create this work by the Black Lives Matter movement and the COVID-19 pandemic and the intense need for rest. She finds a unique sense of simultaneous gentleness and strength from Heavenly Mother and offers that feeling to viewers of this piece of artwork.  She also teaches about how the doctrine of Heavenly Mother isn't new, but is a restoration of the ancient worship of the Heavenly Family. We discuss how knowing our Heavenly Mother fills in gaps in our worship and invites wholeness.

Amanda Lynn Blair joins Jessica Woodbury to discuss how the divine feminine has helped her rethink embodiment, sexuality, the connection between the sacred and profane and the concept of partnership as opposed to patriarchy. 

Becky shares six ways she has connected with Heavenly Mother personally and gives examples within each. Her approach is accessible, simple, and sweet. Using the litmus test of trying the fruits of each category to see how it feels, Becky suggests:

1. Using Her name

2. Creating and enjoying art

3. Communing with nature

4. Imagination and visualization

5. Nurturing 

6. Personal revelation & writing a heaven letter 

Becky's love for Heavenly Mother and relationship with Her are inspiring. Pick a method she shares and put it to the test yourself, and see your own relationship with your divine Mother grow!

Becky Edwards can be found on Instagram as @purposedrivenmentoring and on her blog at purposedrivenmotherhood.blogspot.com

Sara interviews her friend Carly Beesley about her evolving relationship with Heavenly Mother. Starting from a book club discussion with friends, Carly dug deeper into her relationship with Heavenly Mother. Carly loves seeing Heavenly Mother in nature and connecting with Her in a variety of ways, and acts on President Nelson's invitation to seek personal revelation by learning about Heavenly Mother. We discuss how our doctrine of Heavenly Mother isn't a fringe doctrine, but mainstream and critical to our theology. Carly rejoices in the healing doctrine of Heavenly Mother that honors the divinity of femininity and how the doctrine of a Mother God makes her so excited to share the gospel!

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In this episode, Jess interviews Meagan Bigger about her experiences connecting with and sharing Heavenly Mother with her daughters and at church. Meagan's enthusiasm for speaking about Heavenly Mother is infectious. She inspires us to discuss more freely our divine feminine deity, and to continue shouldering the "beautiful burden" of bringing Her more into the light. 

Sara asks Katie Garner about her painting, "Mother to Mother." Katie tells about what inspired her to create the painting and describes the process of staging the photograph on which she based the painting. She discusses how creating "Mother to Mother" has influenced how she sees the world and others, and how it has shaped her view of herself in her motherhood. She also shares details about an exciting art show coming up this fall in Salt Lake City, with the theme, "Reflections on a Mother in Heaven."

Jess asks Amy how she accesses the power of God in her life as a woman, and what that looks like in her home and family. Amy shares tools for shifting our mindset to believe we have access to God's power, and how to go about tapping into it. She emphasizes having a personal relationship with God and shares how she came to rely on her Heavenly Parents more fully through an unexpected trial in her marriage. Amy can be found on Instagram at @amy.elysse, where she helps women overcome betrayal trauma and find healing. 

In this episode, Sara and Jess discuss how worshipping and adoring our Heavenly Mother enhances our relationship with both of our Heavenly Parents and our spiritual siblings.

Kathryn enlightens Jess on what led her to study landscape design and writing, and how a growing awareness of the feminine divine merged those two passions inspiring her poetry collection, The Tree at the Center. She describes some of the fruits of taking a more feminine path, and bestows words of wisdom for others just beginning, or anywhere along that path. Kathryn shares a few of her poems, and gives a glimpse into what her forthcoming book will be about.

Emily Baker talks with Sara about her journey of being found by Heavenly Mother. She tells her story of following God's plan for her life, even though it was very different than what she'd intended, and coming to better know her Heavenly Parents and Savior along the way.

In this episode, Sara interviews historian Patrick Mason, author of Restoration: God's Call to the 21st-Century World. They discuss the personal and cultural shifts towards talking more openly about Heavenly Mother and our partnered Heavenly Parents. They talk about leaning into our questions, and about how those of other faiths might view the doctrine of Heavenly Mother.

Sara and Jess met as BYU students embarking on an internship overseas to serve motherless children. Now, 10 years later, they reflect on the precious truths they learned from those experiences; and how those lessons can be applied when we find ourselves feeling "Motherless" as well. 

The sacrament meeting talk you wish you heard today: another Mother's Day talk about Heavenly Mother!

Jessica Woodbury interviews Lauren Robinson about her talk and two poems she's written with the Divine Feminine in mind.

Happy Heavenly Mother's Day!

Angie shares the behind-the-scenes of writing and producing her song "A Mother There". She articulates how the song was inspired, what the lyrics mean to her, and her vision behind creating the music video. The art piece referenced near the end of the episode is "In Her Image" by Amber Eldredge. It can be found at https://thecoloramber.me. Subscribe to Angie Killian on YouTube for more of her beautiful music, and visit https://www.angiekillian.com to purchase her songs and sheet music!

In this episode, Sara interviews Sarai Lambert Pixton, who wrote her undergraduate philosophy capstone paper about Heavenly Mother and the importance of our language reflecting our belief in Her Divinity.

REFERENCES:

Paulsen, D. L., & Pulido, M. (2011). " A Mother There": A Survey of Historical Teachings about Mother in Heaven. BYU Studies Quarterly, 50(1), 7. https://byustudies.byu.edu/article/a-mother-there-a-survey-of-historical-teachings-about-mother-in-heaven/

Steenblik, R. H. (2017). "What Rosemary Taught Me," in Mother's Milk. By Common Consent.

Natalie describes her journey creating artwork of Heavenly Mother and how she was lead to depict Her. She shares her poem "Peeking Through Her Veil", the artist statement she wrote to go along with her corresponding painting. Natalie and Jess discuss the symbolism of veils. Natalie shares another powerful poem, yet unnamed, describing her experience being loved and nourished by our Mother. Natalie's artwork can be found at https://www.nataliejeanneart.com and on Intagram @nataliejeanneart. 

Alynne takes us on her journey discovering the Divine Feminine in the story of Eve, the temple, ancient symbolism, and scholarly works. She identifies references to Heavenly Mother in various symbols found in the Bible, including particular types of trees, the menorah, and the phrase "Lord God Almighty". Alynne is on Instagram as @our_mother_eve, where she shares her research, writings, and poetry centered around Eve and Heavenly Mother.

Sara talks with Ashley Workman about her poetry and how it reflects her journey in seeking after Heavenly Mother. Ashley reads a few of her poems, focusing on how our Heavenly Parents feel about each other and us, what Heavenly Mother's personality might be like, and why we should seek after Her.

In this episode, Sara and Jess introduce how and why the In Her Image podcast came to be. We discuss Sara's "I Am a Goddess" mantra, why we each began searching for Heavenly Mother, and ways to help Her be seen in our families and communities. 

Jess and Sara discuss the children's book favorite Are You My Mother? and compare the journey of a baby bird searching for his mother to their personal journeys searching for Heavenly Mother.

We are thrilled to be on this journey seeking Heavenly Mother with you! Join Sara and Jess each Sunday as we seek and celebrate our Mother God in scripture, scholarship, meditation, the arts, and everyday life. Coming Mother's Day 2021.

Happy Mother's Day!

The sacrament meeting talk you wish you heard on Mother's Day.

Kelli Dougal is on Instagram as pocketfulofkelli and her poetry book can be found at https://amzn.to/4aeHIC5

Today McArthur Krishna joins Jessica Woodbury as the first interviewee in the new series on sharing experiences and testimonies of Heavenly Mother. McArthur's background of curating art shows, co-authoring books, and giving firesides celebrating the doctrine of Mother in Heaven make her the perfect candidate to share the ups and downs of spreading the knowledge of Her relationship with us. McArthur shares what it's been like gathering witnesses of the Divine Mother for her latest contribution, Cherish Volume 2: The Love of Our Mother in Heaven. She relates the joy that can be found when we share our love and knowledge of the Mother, holding our light on a candlestick rather than burying it under a bushel.

Purchase Cherish 2 here: https://a.co/d/aPEXR53

Today Jess introduces the show's new guest co-host, Jessica Woodbury. Jessica W. shares her decade-long journey of seeking the feminine face of God. She recounts the experience that initially woke her up to what she had been missing her whole life; the lack of a relationship with God the Mother. Her experience receiving a personal call from the Divine is inspiring, and we're grateful it's brought her here to help us spread the love of Heavenly Mother through this podcast. The next several episodes to air will contain interviews Jessica W. will do with individuals about their personal encounters and journeys seeking the Feminine Divine. We look forward to having her as part of the In Her Image team! BYU Studies article "A Mother There": https://byustudies.byu.edu/article/a-mother-there-a-survey-of-historical-teachings-about-mother-in-heaven/ If you would like to share an experience on the podcast, please send us an email at inherimagepodcast@gmail.com or a message on Instagram to @inherimagepodcast.

In this episode, Jess offers readings from The Tree at the Center by Kathryn Knight Sonntag, Restoration: God's Call to the 21st Century World by Patrick Q. Mason, Cherish: The Joy of Our Mother in Heaven curated by Ashli Carnicelli, Trina Caudle, and McArthur Krishna, and Mother's Milk: Poems in search of Heavenly Mother by Rachel Hunt Steenblik. The selections of prose and poetry dip into themes of restoration, our work in its unfolding, and God the Mother's all-encompassing love.

In this episode Jess leads a short guided meditation to help you reconnect with your core; your essence. Relax and enjoy.

Inspired by Esther's courage and the voices of so many LDS women on the internet over the last few weeks, Jess gets vulnerable and shares some of the poetry she's written over the past couple of years. Some heartbreaking, some fiery, some tender, her poems will likely connect with those traversing the terrain of deconstruction, seeking Heavenly Mother/the Divine Feminine, and/or craving inclusion at the institutional level.

“For me, I learned about the existence of Heavenly Mother at a relatively young age through experiencing the death of my older brother, Landon. This was a pivotal moment in my life and I actually didn't even know that I was seeking Her out. But ever since then, I've known I have not only a Heavenly Father, but a Heavenly Mother too. That conviction has stayed firm ever since.” - Regan Stewart