ALTARED STATES - LESBIAN ALTARMAKING AND THE TRANSFORMATION OF SELF

Despite the changes in women's social and economic roles which are alt ering the way many women view themselves and the world in which they l ive, American society and popular culture provide few models and accep table symbols from which women can gain energy and power. Phyllis Ches ler (1989) says, ''For women to imagine and honor a female deity is a sign of mental health'' (p. xx). This paper investigates the choices o f symbols employed on lesbians' home altars and the uses to which the altars are put. By selecting symbols intelligible to themselves, inves ting those symbols with import and intent, and using them on a home al tar, these women are taking crucial steps in the transformation of Sel f.