I recently had the privilege of reviewing the magazine ‘Radiant’, a publication that describes itself as “covering traditional topics of the Catholic Church and applying them to the modern lives of young, Catholic women who are searching, learning and living out their unique calling with style, elegance, beauty and grace.”
I am twenty-four and like many other young women around my age I am suffering the fatigue of approximately a decade‘s worth of mixed messages from popular culture. The average magazine for my age and gender is like a bad friend, on the surface supportive and encouraging, wanting only the best for me, when underneath, the truth is different. I am lied to, made to feel never good enough, dragged down to a judgemental and competitive level and reduced to something purely to give pleasure to men. All this is done under the guise of being a ‘strong woman’ yet the message is so all over the place that it is remarkable that anyone can cobble together a strong woman from that.
Radiant is refreshingly different. My first impression was the high quality look of the magazine. I’ve always been a firm believer that if we are going to embark on something that is a counter-cultural response to something attractive but negative, we need to be as attractive with our truths. Thankfully, Radiant does this beautifully. In fact, it looks damn classy! Every page looks professional, sleek and glossy.
Aesthetics aside, Radiant has a lot of substance to it. Not only did the editorial piece feel warm, friendly and genuine, there was a strong ethos of love and encouragement throughout, inspiring women of my age not just to higher ideals, but an atmosphere of mutual support. It is a magazine that builds women up, rather than tearing them down. I was also impressed by the relevance of the articles. They cover a wide range of subjects but the broadness of the topics didn’t skimp on the quality of the individual articles.
More light-hearted topics are covered as well. There are recipes, beauty tips and fashion. I was relieved to see that the fashion pages were very normal! I was fearing ultra-modest, no fun modelling, but the outfits were attractive, inspiring and whilst modest, cleverly so. They felt real and they were items I would certainly wear.
I also enjoyed the length of the magazine – it took me an enjoyable hour to carefully read everything. The magazine was strong on linking to other incentives, websites, authors and speakers, so it didn’t feel introspective. It would be a useful tool for exploring your own faith and helping you find other helpful sources of support and understanding. Neither did it patronize at any time. It is a magazine for women but it didn’t treat men like another species, rather reflecting the complementary of the different sexes in its articles written by men and about men.
Prayers and Pope quotes rounded off the issue nicely. I didn’t know what to expect initially, but to my pleasant surprise, it was a thoroughly edifying, enjoyable and uplifting read.
Coming out 9.1.17: Radiant and Valiant Magazines for young women and men. Showing the Beauty and Strength of Christ and His Church lived out by peers in their daily lives. Top Musicians, Bloggers, Artists, Athletes and more–all living out their vocations with courage and love. Subscribe now!
Subscribe now! www.be-radiant.com
