Emmalee Wagner

World Religions

Religions 2300

April 24, 2019

Position: Religions are not unfair to women
Many cultures are patriarchal, and while religion is a representation of culture, it can

evolve just as cultural practices and expectations can. Going to the first religious texts, or the

bases of religions, it would be difficult to find explicit statements regarding women’s inferiority.

In most cases, it seems small statements in religious texts have been misconstrued or their

meaningfulness exacerbated by male religious leaders. I can see how people may argue religion

is unfair to women, as I would usually agree with that statement over “religions are not unfair to

women”. But I was surprised by the role of women in the religious texts throughout the textbook

and in everyday practice. This led me to the realization that it is not religions that are unfair to

women, but the interpretation of religious texts by men. Social systems that are heavily based on

the importance of men and the patriarchy are not easy for women to be a part of. Yet human’s

have been able to grow and develop culture away from patriarchy and represent the value women

have to humanity and culture. Aspects of living in Patriarchal societies do not make “living”

unfair to women, it just means there is an issue that can be changed by men and women to make

society reflect the importance of women. Former United States President Jimmy Carter said in a

speech “ The truth is that male religious leaders have had – and still have – an option to interpret

holy teachings either to exalt or subjugate women. They have, for their own selfish ends,

overwhelmingly chosen the latter.” This is why I would argue religion does not discriminate

towards women, but religious leaders, and that has been changing in the 20th century.

Abrahamic Religions
In Islam, God is a neutral being, having both male and female attributes. A passage in the

Qur’an states Men and women come from the same spirit, they are equally made, and equal in
life. The Prophet Muhammed was a great proponent of female equality and the Qur’an was the

first religious text that specifically outlined equal rights for women. People unfamiliar with Islam

may think women dressing in hijabs or niqabs is specifically part of Islamic religions, but it is

not. The modesty of women and men is written in the Qur’an, but the means by which a pious

Muslim would dress is not specifically stated in the Qur’an. It seems people point to hijab and

niqab as a way women are mistreated in Islam, yet they must forget Christian nuns also dress

very modestly, with covered hair, as do many Orthodox Christians and even traditional

Protestants during service. In recent years, women have led co-ed prayers at Mosques or public

Islamic events and there are even female imams. Women are incredibly important in the stories

of Islam, equals to the important men in the Qur’an. Mary, mother of Jesus, Miriam, wife of

Moses, and Fatima, daughter of Muhammed and other women are held with reverence and given

important tasks in spreading the word of God and being pious.

Similarly to Islam, the Hebrew Bible is also filled with stories of strong and important

women. Sarah, Rebeccah, Rachel, and Leah, the Hebrew Matriarchs, Miriam and Huldah, the

prophetesses and Abigail, wife of King David, are pivotal to the stories of Abraham, Isaac,

Jacob, and David (Fishelov). There were five other prophetesses, including Esther, Abigail,

Deborah, Hannah and Rebecca (Fishelov). By having a connection to God, and preaching what is

said to them by God, the prophetesses were well respected in their community. Jewish women

are said to have greater Bina than men, which is ones “superior inherent spiritual wisdom”.

Women are often excused from practicing specific rituals like tefillin, the commandment of

wearing scrolls of the Torah in small boxes, because women have stronger spiritual wisdom, they

did not need to participate in as many rituals to maintain a connection with God. This may also

explain the proletariat amount of highly respected women in the Hebrew Bible who contributed
to the religious community. In 1935, Regina Jonas was ordained as the first female rabbi and in

1975 Sally Priesand was ordained as the first female American rabbi (Jewish Women’s Archive).

Since then, in Reform, Renewal, Reconstructionist, Conservative, and Humanist Judaism,

women have been ordained as rabbis (Jewish Women’s Archive).

In the New Testament, men and women are equal in God’s eye judgment. Jesus’s mother,

Mary, is a fundamental part of every Abrahamic religion, but notably almost equal to Jesus in

terms of importance in Catholicism and Eastern Orthodox religions. Jesus confided his teachings

and wisdom in women close to him, some things he did not tell his male followers, and promoted

their position in society, notably Mary Magdelene. His teaching of being kind and respectful to

their neighbors extended to female neighbors too. In Protestant faiths, like the Church of

England, women can be ordained into ministry positions.

Eastern Religions
Religions that originated in India and eastward seem to lack the overbearing sexist

connotations. In Hinduism men and women are regarded as equals (Fisher, 97). Women are

essential to cosmic dharma because men need women to be level and vice versa and to guide

their family spirituality. There are many female saints and mystics who are part of mainstream

Hinduism, as well as, Akka Mahadevi a mystic poet, and Anandamayi Ma, a guru who lived in

the 20th century (Fisher 107,108).

Female equality is incredibly important in Sikhism and women should not be treated

differently or subordinately (Fisher, 438). Women can lead any prayer or ceremony because they

are not in danger of a guru because there are no gurus anymore. Only the book, Guru Granth

Sahib is Guru. The establishment of the Granth Sahib to be the guru allowed women to
participate in an incredibly important role in any faith. Both men and women are encouraged to

participate in the community, religion, school, and military.

Men and women who practice Buddhism are seen as equals in regard to reaching spiritual

enlightenment. Women can even reach the highest levels of enlightenment to men. Buddha also

allowed women into the monastic orders.

Opposing Views
As previously stated, women are separated from men at the mosque, which is seen as

degrading toward women, lessening their importance in the Islamic faith. In Hinduism, the time

during a women’s menstruation is seen as unclean and women are not supposed to participate in

religious activities (Fisher, 101). I could not find a convincing argument for either of these

beliefs, except that the Prophet Muhammed believed it would be safer for women to pray in their

house instead of going to the mosque. Which could be a reasonable explanation but I do not

think it is a valid reason today. .

The Old and New Testament often refer to women as property of their fathers’, brothers’,

husbands, etc. I concede this is an awful way to perceive women, but that was a construct of the

culture contemporary to the Bible, and it has since changed. There are also stories of rape in both

Bibles, which many people find disturbing and unnecessary, with the “moral” focusing on the

appropriate punishment for the assaulter.

Mary Robinson, the former president of Ireland and United Nations high commissioner

for human rights stated, “We all recognized that if there’s one overarching issue for women it’s

the way that religion can be manipulated to subjugate women.” I do not disagree that religion can

be twisted to exclude or hurt women, but I think religion can be equally empowering to women.
God or gods, the promise of a new life, afterlife, or enlightenment can give women strength,

hope, purpose, and community.

Conclusion

A majority of this paper is explaining the ability in each religion for women to participate

and their importance in the religious texts. If religion was unfair to women, it would exclude

them completely from narratives and participation. At the core belief of all religions, I believe

women are truly seen as equal to men and important in religion. Women are in countless creation

stories, myths of good and evil, and those who raise their children in their own faith. Simply, or

not so simply, it is the overwhelming amount of male religious leaders that have convoluted or

firmly upheld the meaning of old spiritual texts. The reasoning for not allowing women in

leadership are purely cultural or theological. So it is not that religion itself is unfair to women,

but the many patriarchic men interpreting religious texts to suit their world views. Religion is a

mirror of society, and as human culture globally become more progressive towards complete

women’s rights and acknowledgment, I think religions will continue to follow slowly and surely.

Works Cited

Carter, Jimmy. Speech by Jimmy Carter to the Parliament of the World's Religions, 2

December 2009, Melbourne Australia.

Fishelov, David. “Biblical Women in World and Hebrew Literature”. Jewish Women’s Archive.

https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/biblical-women-in-world-and-hebrew-literature

Fisher, Mary Pat. Living Religions, 10th edition. Lawerence King Publishing. 2017.

Kristof, Nicholas. “Religion and Women”. New York Times. 09 Jan, 2010.

https://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/10/opinion/10kristof.html
Jewish Women's Archive. “Timeline of Women in the Rabbinate.”

https://jwa.org/rabbis/timeline