What Feminism Has to Offer

In the past few weeks, I have heard and even participated in different conversations about women, and their roles in society. These conversations stem from many different places, concepts, and beliefs, of which I will try to address. Some words that we use have a negative connotation, like the word "feminism," which has come to mean something totally different than it was ever intended to mean. According to dictionary.com, feminism actually means "Belief in the social, political, and economic equality of the sexes." Feminism, like the civil rights movements of the 60's, is about equality, not one sex dominating another, which is usually what thoughts arise when that term is used today.

There are women out there that believe that because men dominated women for so long, that now was time for a change, where women dominated over men. That concept is part of what is called radical feminism. Unfortunately this view is why the term feminism has become such a negative term in our world today.

I would consider myself to be a feminist in the original meaning of the word. This does raise some questions however, some of which I will address today, but there are many more views and questions that have been raised by countless others, of which most of them I will not address today.

I would consider myself a follower of God, and as such, I believe that what the church has done to women is terrible! We, the men of the church, myself included, have told women what they can and cannot do based on how we interpret the bible. We believe and have made women believe that a woman should not and cannot be a president, or even worse a pastor (along with all the other terms for that position). Passages like 1 Corinthians 14 where it talks about women's roles in the church service, or 1 Corinthians 11 where it talks about the man being the head of woman, or Ephesians 5 where it talks about women submitting to their husbands in everything.

Unfortunately pretty much sense those passages were written, men thought that they had the right to dominate women because they took those passages out of context. If God is a God of peace and justice, then why do women, especially in the church, not have the same rights as the men? The bible never says that women cannot be president or even a pastor, so why do so many women think that they cannot? The concept of not having women in leading roles was designed to ensure that men, particularly white men, would have control over women, and thus continue to be the dominant sex.

Before we overreact about what is being said, take a moment to think about where that concept of a male only leadership style came about and why you may or may not believe the same thing. Also remember that when interpreting what the bible has to say it is important to put it in the context that it was originally meant to be heard in (people, place, circumstance, beliefs at the time, values, etc.) I hope that we can learn to overcome this issue and allow women and men to be on the same playing field.