Sexism In Religion

Is Religion Inherently Sexist?

Alba K. Marcano

INTRODUCTION

The Oxford Dictionary defines sexism as “Prejudice, stereotyping, or discrimination, typically against women, on the basis of sex”. While sexism has been present in most aspects of human life both today and in the past, religion remains one of the oldest sources and justifications of this behaviour. However, two religions, Christianity and Islam, present two views of the topic. Both the sexist and non-sexist aspects will be examined and compared in this text in order to prove whether or not these religions are inherently sexist. 85

OVERVIEW 1 – Christianity

Sexism in Christianity has been present from the beginning. In the story of the world’s creation, in Genesis, the woman, Eve,

is said to have come from man: “‘Woman’ is her name because she was taken out of man” (Genesis 2:23). Eve is then blamed for all of woman’s woes after she eats from the forbidden fruit. Even today, these beliefs are perpetuated, especially in religious education. Sarah Stitzlein, author of Private Interests, Public Necessity: Responding to Sexism in Christian Schools, sustains that girls in those institutions are taught to be submissive to their husbands, as per the teaching in the New Testament, such as 1 Timothy 2:11-12: “A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man; she must be quiet”. This is a verse taught in many schools, and contributes to the sexism in the schools by not encouraging women to believe they are unfit to express their opinion (Stitzlein 2008). 167
However, some Christians believe that men and women are presented as equal in the Bible, like in Galatians 3:28: “So there is no difference between […] men and women; you are all one in union with Christ Jesus”.

This is a belief echoed several times in the Gospel by Jesus Christ, according to B. A. Robinson, author of the article Women's roles in the Bible: The status of women in the Christian Gospels. Another example of gender equality in Christianity the ordination of female bishops and priests by the Anglican Church. Michael Adie, the Bishop of Guildford in 1992, states: “the ordination of women is a reasoned development, consonant with Scripture, required by tradition”. Many countries agree with this opinion, and have in fact already ordained women (House of Bishops 2004).

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OVERVIEW 2 – Islam
Misogyny in Islam is especially visible when it comes to the legal rights of women. In fact, examples of this injustice can be found in Iran, where the legal system is based on the Sharia law (Abrahamian, 1999). More specifically, the Qesas Law, which allows the victim’s family to ask for capital punishment for the murderer (Law Regarding Murder, n.d.), shows undoubted favouritism towards men. This law is a modern-day talion law, yet the life of a man is more important than a woman’s (Abrahamian, 1999). This concept is echoed in other parts of the legal system in Muslim countries. Sohail Hamsi, author of The Rights of Muslim Women: A Comment on Irene Oh's The Rights of God, explains: “women are granted half the share of men in inheritance, [and] the testimony of two female witnesses is required when that of a single man suffices”. These beliefs are based on the Qu’ran and the Hadith (Hamsi 2010), further accentuating the role of Islam in sexism. 182
Nevertheless, many feminists believe Islam is not entirely misogynistic. Women are given the right to study religious texts, as stated in the Hadith: “The seeking of knowledge is obligatory for every Muslim” (Al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 74). In modern-day, women’s right to education goes even further, with the foundation of schools and universities throughout the Arabian Peninsula, with the all-female University Princess Nora bint Abdul Rahman in Riyadh being the first one, founded in 1973 (Nicolau 2015). Also, in some cases, Muslim women are free to express their religion through their vestimentary choices. Contrary to popular belief, some Muslim countries (Turkey, Lebanon, and Tunisia) have a large portion of their population (about half) that believe that women should decide how they dress (Poushter, 2014), proving that hijabs are not a sign of oppression, but rather a sign of women’s rights. 138
COMPARISON 1 – Similarities
Both Islam and Christianity present similarities in their treatment and opinion of women.

In fact, in both religions, women are thought to be inferior to men. This is a belief backed by religious texts in both religions: in the Bible, Eve is told: “you will be subject to him [your husband]” (Genesis 3:16), while in the Qu’ran, a man is said to be worth two women, in terms of inheritance, bearing witness, etc.: “The male shall have the equal of the portion of two females” (Qu’ran 4:11). This way of thinking is the base for modern-day misogyny in both religions. 100

Yet, both religions are slowly beginning to accept women as something more than wives and mothers. Recently, Christians and Muslims have begun accepting women in the role of religious leaders, in Christianity as bishops, and in Islam, as imams. While women have been able to lead religious prayer in Islam under strict circumstances, such as when the congregation is composed uniquely of women or of close family members, in 2005, Dr. Amina Wadud was one of the first women to lead a mixed-gender congregation in prayer (Elewa and Silvers, 2010). One the other hand, Christian women were not able to be religious leaders until recently because the Scripture was against it: women were specifically prohibited from officiating a mass (1 Corinthians 14:34). Nonetheless, certain branches of Christianity, such as Anglicanism now allow women in positions of power, as mentioned in Overview 1.

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COMPARISON 2 – Differences
Differences in the point of view of the two religions include divorce. In Christianity, divorce is generally considered unacceptable for both men and women: “a wife must not leave her husband […] and a husband must not divorce his wife” (1 Corinthians 7:10-11), giving them an equal status in marriage; in Islam, a man can divorce his wife with great ease. According to the Sharia Law, he can divorce simply by repeating the word “talaq” (divorce) three times. However, a woman must go to a judge to obtain a divorce (Three Consecutive Declarations, 2015). 88
Conversely, in Christianity, women are more likely to be blamed for the world’s evils, and to be considered inherently evil, based on quotes from the Bible, such as: “Any evil is small when compared to a woman's evil” (Sirach 25:19), and “Sin began with a woman” (Sirach 25:24), while the Qu’ran doesn’t share that belief and states that women go to paradise (Qu’ran 43:70). 60
CONCLUSION
Both religions have very divergent opinions on the topic of sexism, and it is clear that sexism affects many aspects of women’s religious and social life. In countries where religious law is used in the legal system women also face a fair amount of discrimination. Nonetheless, both Christianity and Islam have given women equal rights on certain aspects, such as religious leadership and the right to education, even if said education has certain misogynistic aspects. 75