The Archetype of Dionysus, Prince Caspian, and the Feminine Hero's Journey (part 3)

When I read that the feminine hero ends up wedded to the archetype Dionysus I thought that that was an odd place to end up, maybe even trite, with the god of wine and parties. But I've learned that when something makes me go "huh?" I'm probably being faced with something worth investigating. Digging a little deeper, I learned that Dionysus is actually quite an old figure, likely pre-dating Greek culture, and is more fairly described as a god of fertility, inspiration, and transformation. Most notably he is credited with transforming grape juice into wine, sobriety into ecstasy, routine into celebration and art, death into life, pain into joy, joy into rage and back again, scarcity into abundance, and domesticity into ferocity. At the end of the feminine hero's journey, the heroine ends up the wife of transformation. If you would like to read more, Wikipedia's article about Dionysus is great. 

I also learned that when Dionysus was adapted and adopted by the Romans that he was called not only Bacchus but also Liber meaning "free one." Liber was a god of the common people of Rome, also associated with wine, fertility, and freedom. Joining these two figures together also tied together the ideas of transformation and liberation. Transformation creates the conditions for freedom. In the ancient world, freedom meant that you were a valued member of your community, that you had belonging. (More on history of the word "freedom" here.) The feminine hero ends up wedded to transformation and freedom.

The culmination of the feminine hero's journey is to be the bearer of transformation to a world that expected her to be nothing more than accommodating. 

It seemed like God did not want me to miss the opportunity to wrestle with the archetype of Dionysus and its significance, because after I finished reading Falling Upward, The Dance of the Dissident Daughter, and Wintering, I had starting reading Prince Caspian with my children and look who showed up again - Bacchus. Not only did he show up, but he showed up alongside Aslan and the queens as they brought the feminine side of jubilee to the people of Narnia. I enjoyed this article that Matt Mikalatos wrote exploring Susan and Lucy's romp. 

It seems significant to me that Bacchus's parade stops at the home of Prince Caspian's exiled nurse. There she is healed by Aslan and nourished by Bacchus. (Can we take a moment to appreciate Lewis' description of the wine? - "red as red-currant jelly, smooth as oil, strong as beef, warming as tea, cooling as dew." Yes, please, I'll take a glass!) She is carried away by Aslan to be restored as Caspian's beloved grand/mother figure. She is reunited with Caspian at the moment of victory, and they embrace.  Their embrace shows the world that Caspian's is no blunt and brutal military victory, but ushers in a time of transformation, healing, and restoration. It is her long-held hope for Caspian that will prevail.

Good learning leads to more questions. Now I am wondering how Dionysian energy shows up in the lives of those on feminine journeys, particularly among clergy. What does a feminine journey look like for a congregation? If this is a likely place for femme clergy to end up, how can they be better guided there? What does it look like for congregations to receive the gifts of transformation?

Bacchus frees a river-god.