"Men speak. That is their role in the church. The women have a different role. They are to help and encourage others. It's not a matter of equality as much as just each gender has a different job."
I logged onto Facebook the other day to be welcomed by this gem. I had been discussing the merits of taking the Bible literally when "Eve" dropped this bomb. I was floored – utterly floored and speechless. How does one respond to blatant, self-loathing sexism?
This discussion, and a few others I'll mention later, got me thinking about equality and religion's fight against it. My intention isn't to bash religion, but rather, those holding misogynistic views under the guise of religious doctrine. Many don't even seem to realize they're doing it.
This problem is far from isolated. The past decade we've seen the rise of a rebranded fundamentalist Christianity, spearheaded by leaders such as Mark Driscoll. Described by the New York Times as having the "coolest style and foulest mouth of any preacher you've ever seen," Driscoll grew his Seattle congregation to more than 7,600 weekly visitors. His "Act 29" project has begun planting similar churches throughout the country.
Despite his "hip" style, Driscoll's views border on patriarchy. Modern Christianity, he says, has been taken over by "chicks and some chickified dudes with limp wrists." Jesus has been turned into "a Richard Simmons, hippie, queer Christ."
Driscoll is an advocate of 1 Timothy 2:12 which states "I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she must be silent." Women in his church cannot hold leadership roles and are required to submit to their husbands.
Terrifyingly enough, his views are spreading. Even in Cedar Falls, at least one local church is a part of the Acts 29 movement. In a recent sermon, their pastor spoke of how men are the head of a household and women aren't to take leadership roles in the church. God created different roles for the sexes, claimed the pastor.
"Women have lost the battle of trying to get their way with their husbands." Women need to accept their role, he concludes.
It is, of course, absurd to not acknowledge the differences between the sexes. Last year, MastersofHealthCare.com compiled a list of the "10 Big Differences between Men's and Women's Brains" from a collection of psychological journals, books and government entities. (Although the site itself is suspect, the studies it cites are not). Women communicate more effectively, men process better in the left hemisphere of their brains; women handle stress better, men have stronger spatial abilities.
However, the important qualifier on all of these is "on average." There are, no doubt, women who are great at math and parallel parking but are terrible at communication. Likewise some men – this author included – can't parallel park to save their lives.
While we can speak about the typical man and woman, it is patently sexist to shove all men and women into respective boxes.
Oftentimes this sexism appears innocent enough. The local pastor from the church I mentioned earlier has this to say when discussing the roles of men and women:
"[M]en are lazy, indulgent, and do not care to take care of a woman…Women are self starters due many times to the laziness of men…Men in general have a low view of women, and this is shown by their desire to pay money for cheap sex and live-ins without commitment and a taker lifestyle. Commit! Have children!"
This is great, right? NO! Not all men are lazy, indulgent and don't care of women. Not all women are self-starters. Not all men have a low view of women and want cheap sex. Some women don't want commitment and not all women want children. This is obviously, blatantly sexist – yet this man of God clearly though he was anything but.
When the women's suffrage movement first took off, it embraced the slogan "No Gods and No Masters." Women called for independence; they wanted the final say over their own bodies and minds. Yet, here we are, a century later with a teenage girl who won't speak in her own church. Oh how far we have come.
No Gods, no masters
Published: Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Updated: Thursday, February 18, 2010 10:02
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benevolent sexism reinforces the 'positive' attitudes towards women in traditional roles such as: protective paternalism, idealization of women, and desire for intimate relations.You have miraculously, however, managed to also highlight ideas of hostile sexism. Now, I realize this is equality 101 for you so let me go ahead and define that for you as well...Hostile sexism refers to the negative equivalents on each dimension: dominative paternalism, derogatory beliefs, and heterosexual hostility.Now, why is this bad? The basis of sexism is rooted deeply within the establishment of discrimination based upon assumptions. You do ASSUME there is a god. You assume it is better for women to be quiet and docile on the basis of what other men have written years and years ago, you assume men know what is best for women based upon what men have said years and years ago, you assume men obtain most of the hard, laborious and often painful jobs (have you ever heard of childbirth? I mean isn't it CALLED labor?). Your fundamental beliefs are all based upon ASSUMPTIONS.
Elizabeth Blackwell
Indira Gandhi
Hillary Clinton
Margaret Thatcher
Madeleine Albright
Janet Reno
Rosa Parks
Marie Curie
Mary Wollstonecraft
Joan of Arch
Betty Friedan
Gloria Steinem
Mother Teresa
Emma Goldmann
Jane Addams
Clara Barton
Eleanor Roosevelt
Georgia O'Keefe
Harriet Beecher Stowe
Harriet Tubman
Sojourner TruthImagine, for one moment, if these women were lifted of their burden of thought. What impact would this have on society; if half the population of intelligent beings were simply dismissed upon the basis of 'protection and love'. You sir are the epitome of patriarchy and have highlighted so eloquently the dangers of such. What you have so established in your response is the ideology of benevolent sexism. For a man who doesn't understand what sexism is and how dangerous it is, let me define it for you. I understand, being the lowly woman I am, this will indeed be very burdensome for me...but I'll give it a shot anyway.
"Submissiveness is a bad thing. This, like many things, has been taken to the extreme and that extreme is then made to be the norm. It is having a slave's freedom and being forced to let your husband/father/elders force decisions and command spiritually. This again is a bad thing and sexism. This is a burden put upon women to own them and belittle them." I took the liberty of correcting part of the above comment. Sexism is discrimination. It may be a fairly recent idea compared to the oppression of the church, but I believe that you should at least give people the chance to show their equality. Give women a chance and I guarantee you will be surprised how not fragile and how capable they really are. IT'S ALMOST LIKE THEY'RE HUMAN!
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