In 1994 (Letter to Families) and 1995 (Letter to Women), Saint John Paul II published two Apostolic Letters, along with Mulieris Dignitatem (1988), that constitute his mariology on women and the family from a pastoral perspective. The Letter to Women, in particular, written for the Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijing, September 4-15, 1995), is historically significant.

**Pope:** Saint John Paul II

**Documents:** Letter to Families (February 2, 1994) | Letter to Women (June 29, 1995)

**Context:** Family Year 1994, UN Conference on Women 1995 (Beijing)

## Letter to Families (February 2, 1994)

Published on the feast of the Presentation of the Lord, a Marian liturgical event par excellence, the Letter to Families includes a final section on the Holy Family of Nazareth as a model for contemporary Christian families:

> **”Nazareth is the ‘school’ that all parents and children Christians must attend. There let us learn how family love is reverence for the mystery of another’s person. Mary and Joseph taught their Son Jesus, but at the same time they themselves learned from him, indeed, they also became his disciples.”**

## Letter to Women (June 29, 1995)

The Letter to Women was written in the run-up to the Fourth World Conference on Women of the United Nations (Beijing, September 1995). John Paul II wanted the Catholic Church to send a clear message about women’s dignity to this conference, and he did so through this letter.

The central figure is Mary. Chapter 11 is explicitly dedicated to Mary as the ultimate model of feminine dignity:

> **”Maximum of all women is the Blessed Virgin Mary. She, in whom the perfect dignity of God as a mother of human flesh was manifested, is the supreme example of woman. In Mary we believe that our ‘pristine matrimoniality’ is noble and exalted above any human faculty. Mary teaches us that a woman is not inferior but singular and essential.”**

## “Female Genius” and Mary

The Letter to Women develops an original idea in John Paul II’s mariology: the “female genius” (genius femineus). Mary is the perfect manifestation of this genius:

## Maria’s Capacities:

– **Receptive Capacity:** Mary listens and receives the Word (Luke 1:38)
– **Meditative Capacity:** Mary keeps all things in her heart (Luke 2:19)
– **Offerings Capacity:** Mary offers the Son to the Temple, then to Calvary.
– **Uniting Capacity:** Mary joins apostles and Church (Acts 1:14)

## The Apology to Women (Letter to Women No. 3)

One of the most striking passages in the Letter is Pope John Paul II’s apology to women for historical offenses committed by the Church against them:

> “…if there have been offenses suffered by women at the hands of the very Church, we too ask for mercy for them in the name of the Lord.”

This apology, later reaffirmed during the Year 2000 Jubilee, exemplifies a Marian magisterium that is not apologetic but self-critical, remembering, and dialogical.

## Synthesis: The Trinity of Mary – Woman – Family

The three major documents on women by John Paul II – *Mulieris Dignitatem* (1988), *Letter to Families* (1994), *Letter to Women* (1995) – along with the Marian encyclicals (*Redemptoris Mater* 1987, *Rosarium Virginis Mariae* 2002), constitute the most developed Marian-feminine teaching in papal history.

## Suggested Reading:

– *Mulieris Dignitatem* | *Redemptoris Mater* | *Rosarium Virginis Mariae* | *Familiaris Consortio* | *John Paul II’s 1987-1988 Marian Year*