By Rojina Kandel
Women have been taking the lead role since the beginning of human civilization in many sectors of society; be it inside the family, organizations, etc. The main reason behind the rise of this topic that women should be brought in the front row of religious places is such that, in most of the religions women are the super active participants and the practitioners of many rituals related to that religion. But the shadow behind this fact is that; when it comes to leading any religious organizations, or religious places (like temples, churches, monasteries, or mosques) women are kept aside and most of the time men are brought in the front row of religious places. For instance; according to “The New York Times” published on March 23, 2024, “Does the Mormon Church Empower Women?” estates about the Mormon Church’s restrictions and says that its discussion of empowering women is essentially hollow; it also says that “You go to Church and all you see are male leaders.”
International Missions Board’s Foundations document identifies twelve characteristics of a healthy church: evangelism, discipleship, leadership, preaching and teaching, membership, ordinances, worship, fellowship, prayer, accountability and discipline, giving & mission. The church not just the local church but truly the church universal – would be transformed if its women grasped the inestimable role they play in healthy church formation. Women reflect the character of God’s powerful help to his people when they support and build up the church.
Whereas, in Muslim countries, mosques that designate areas for women’s prayer rarely allow women to line up directly behind men in the same hall, as was the practice in the prophet’s mosque during his lifetime. In many Arab countries, it is common to separate men’s prayer places from women’s, particularly in smaller mosques. The distance between the two prayer areas varies from one mosque to another. The majority of mosques in Muslim countries have specified places of prayer for women, which take the shape of small rooms in the basement, on the ground floor, on a closed balcony or in a small building attached to the mosque.
Hence, the condition of women in religion across the globe often appears bleak. Religious systems foster and promote the power and voices of men at the expense of the women who make up the majority of adherents. No major religion has ever allowed women to remain agents of their spiritual destiny – each has eventually shuttered women out of its leadership and practices, leaving them subservient to men within official structures of the faith. Yet women do make up the majority of practitioners in every religion. And, that leads us to ask why women continue to participate in religions that sideline or subordinate them. As we know, there are no simple solutions when it comes to women and religions but it’s also a fact that women are resilient and strong. They have carved lives out of deserts of despair and rocks of indifference. The voice and practice of one woman can change an entire generation.
Even then, over time, women became excluded from leadership and lost both voice and identity in their religions even though they practised and taught it in the home. Nuns and monks were common to Buddhism, but Buddha, compelled by his lascivious youth, feared women’s sexuality and confined the privileges of nuns within boundaries strictly controlled by local monks. While women served as leaders in early Christianity, their leadership was limited and obscured as the church became institutionalized.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect People’s Review’s editorial stance.
Login to add a comment