The Black Woman As Healer: A call for Evolution
by Glenda Springer

This is 1997 and the dawn of the new century is less than two years away. Many of us do not consciously realize that we are experiencing a historical acceleration in our personal lives and the overall society. The Black woman is very much a part of this phenomenon.  At this time, the Black Woman is experiencing a duality. We have the most of everything and the least of everything. For although we have made great "gains" in career and education, we have suffered great "losses" in the core of our souls. Black women are not in tune with their Divine potential.  In a way, the so called "liberation" of women has enslaved us, it has taken our time and focus away from fulfilling our role as nurturer, educator and the divine expression of life itself. The crisis that we see in our neighborhoods, in our health and our children reflect the fact that the Black woman is out of balance with her true and powerful spiritual self.

Black women are the beginning of life. The oldest skeleton found in the world was that of a Black woman. "Lucy" is what archaeologists named her but she is the Mother of Civilization. She was found in East Africa and her remains are proof that Black Women gave birth to the world. She was found in the womb of the richest and wealthiest earth in this world, Africa and she lays as testament to us that we have a greater purpose than what we are fulfilling.

Black Women were once recognized as the great spiritual healers and beings.  In an essay written by Sonia Sanchez entitled Nefertiti: Queen to A Sacred Mission, we are made aware of the fact that the Black Woman's spiritual magnificence has been involved with one of the greatest civilizations that ever existed on this planet.

"The fact that women as spiritual beings were considered full partners in civilization-building was reflected historically in Egyptian society by records kept on women-pharaohs and indicated a widespread belief that women housed the Divine."

Women often are the ones who have the healing hands, who have the prophetic dreams, who have the visions, the intuitive feelings.  We are the comforters, the mediators, the menders, etc. These roles that we so naturally find ourselves in are only mere hints of the vastness of our spiritual healing abilities. Sonia Sanchez more fully describes our true level of spiritual expression as follows:

"...women were the repositories of civilization, the keepers of the secrets of society, the mothers of gods, the manifestations of a universal "feminine" principle which saw the universe, the earth and subconscious as a "womb" for the expression of Divine will"

The Black Woman's womb is not only located in her reproductive organs but is in her mind and soul.  We have the potential to "create" so much more than we think we can. If we were to begin to understand that we can give "birth" to our thoughts at will and thereby reconnect our spirits with our inherent ability to create worlds, create reality, then we would be able to create a difference in our men, create excellence in our children and create peace in our communities.

So what must we do to reclaim our true spiritual essence and power?  Very simple, we must get silent and go within. For it is within the depths of us that lies the core of our power.  How do we get there?  We must follow our breath, find the place within us that connects our breath to that force that created us and all of life.  Whether you call that force God, Allah, the Creator, you must find it, it is a place of darkness leading to immense light, it is a place that we must find without words and we must find it alone. We must begin to make time to become reacquainted with ourselves, the world is crying out for us to do it.  The turmoil and desperation in our communities are urging us to rise to evolve to find that power that we have allowed to be buried out of the realm of our awareness. In order to find this place, we must embark on a journey within.  To all Black Women who read this essay, consider this as your call to action your invitation to evolve to your true nature.

Glenda Springer is a Personal Empowerment Consultant, Healer, African Dancer and Writer in NYC. She is available for lectures, workshops and one-on-one sessions. You may contact her by phone:
 718-778-3073 or e-mail: fushiag@aol.com