Pederson writes a gift of faith.

What's Missing? Inspiration for Women Seeking Faith and Joy in Their Lives

BY RENA PEDERSON

Hardcover, 305 pp. ISBN 0399528555 Perigee $25.95

Rena Pederson, editor at large for the Dallas Morning News, has been president of NCEW, editorial page editor of the Dallas Morning News, and a source of wisdom for this organization for years. Most recently, she's poured her thoughts and energy into writing books. What's Missing? Inspiration for Women Seeking Faith and Joy in Their Lives (Perigee, March 2003) is a book about how Christian, Jewish, and Muslim women integrate their religious values in their daily lives. It's not just inspirational. The book is substantive, incorporating dozens of interviews. Its discussion ranges to such issues as the part women play in various religions and the roles of prayer and faith in such topics as celebration, working, listening, griving, giving, and doing. It is a follow up to Rena's previous book, What's Next? Women Redefining their Dreams in the Prime of Life.

I didn't know that Rena moonlighted as an author until I received a review copy of What's Missing? I first opened it on a snowy February day while waiting for a Boston-bound train. The train was late, and I was grateful, for it gave me the rare gift of uninterrupted time to read a really good book.

The book is packed with insights and interviews from Christians such as First Lady Laura Bush, singer Judy Collins, and author Karen Armstrong. It tells the stories of Rula Bibi, a Muslim woman who helped organize an interfaith group for mutual understanding after the September 11 attacks, and Phyllis Glazer, a wealthy Jewish woman who led a crusade against a chemical plant's disposal of hazardous waste near a rural town, many of whose residents were poor.

As I read, I thought about how often I had talked to my friend Rena at a half-dozen NCEW conventions. Yet never once had we broached the subject of faith--something that is at the very core of my life, and hers also.

Journalists, whether men or women, rarely openly discuss their personal journeys of faith, and perhaps there is an unspoken feeling that we shouldn't. Yet, why? What holds us back?

"People usually don't put their church activities on their resumes. Since I've done this book, it is amazing to me the number of people who have come up to me and said they are in a prayer group," Rena said. "It's private, but in our society, it's not a real cool thing to do."

Early on, Rena wanted to include stories of Buddhist and Hindu women, but she wasn't certain she'd ever get the book done unless she limited the scope to the three great monotheistic faiths. Then the September 11 attacks occurred, lending more urgency to her inter views.

Along the way, she learned about women's faith heritage, writing about historical figures such as Lydia and Phoebe. Rena hopes more attention is paid to women relegated to the margins of Bible study, such as Hagar, who bore Ishmael for Abraham because Abraham's wife, Sarah, was barren. Conflict erupted between the two women, and Hagar was sent to the desert, where, the book of Genesis says, "God saw her" For Rena, who has had a high-profile career, the story was particularly evocative. "What I've come to realize is that so many women don't feel seen," Rena said. "They don't feel honored or respected. Women have made lots of strides, but too often, women are still made to feel less than men, and that their lives don't count" she said. At midlife, she said, many women are hungry for a feeling of being centered--and for deeper relationships with other women.

This is a book that is Rends gift to women. But it speaks to an issue that men and women share--the meaning of life, the meaning of faith, and where its place is in our professional and personal lives.

Maura Casey is associate editorial page editor of The Day in New London, Connecticut. She co-edited the NCEW book, Beyond Argument: A Handbook for Editorial Writers. E-mail [e-mail]