Women in World Religions
Women in all parts of the world play an active part in their culture and society. They are mothers, professionals and in some cases even spiritual leaders. Often dictating the avenues available to women is the religion to which they belong.
“Religion tends to reflect what’s going on socially,” said Richley Crapo, professor of sociology and anthropology at Utah State University.
Much of the modern focus on women regarding subjects like religious ordination and suffrage has been brought about by the number of women employed for income, Crapo said.
There are two main religious categories, Crapo said.
“In the simplest of societies, religion isn’t organized around a beaurocracy, but religious specialists, or ‘shamans,'” Crapo said.
Regions without much industrial status tend toward this type of religion, Crapo said. Australian aboriginal and many African tribal societies support shamanistic religions, Crapo said.
The other category of religion employs a religious hierarchy, complete with priests who must “study and be approved of by other priests,” Crapo said.
In a shamanistic religion, religious leaders are as often women as men. Though individual tribal practices differ widely, some Native American tribes, such as the Iraquois, were matriarchal, or governed by women, said Margaret Lubke, an adviser to the USU Native American Student Council.
Other tribes, like the Menominee, do not even include women in many spiritual rituals because it is believed women have a natural closeness to spiritual things, said Joe Delabrue, a member of the USU Native American Student Council.
Of the 88 Navajo tribal representatives, five are women, said J.R. Capitan, an adviser to the USU Native American Student Council.
“Our tradition is to let the male lead,” Capitan said. However, a woman has individual prerogative to serve where she feels she is needed.
Women of the Hindu faith also have the right to seek a career. In addition, they can become “female monks,” a practice that is 5,000 to 10,000 years old, said Sudha Rajamani, who conducts the monthly prayer service known as “puju” in the Sri Ganesh Hindu Temple in Salt Lake City. Women may perform spiritual rituals like family prayer chants, but usually only when a qualified male isn’t around, Rajamani said.
Nevertheless, one of the earliest disciplines of Hinduism was matriarchal, said Neel Neelameggham, a founding trustee of the Sri Ganesh Temple. There are also instances of polyandi, or women with more than one husband, as well as polygamy in Hindu mythology. In addition, each Hindu god has a female goddess consort, Neelameggham said.
The Hindu are proud of their former prime minister of India, Indira Gandhi, who was one of the first female prime ministers.
Another female prime minister was a Jewish woman, Golda Meir, who governed the nation of Israel. Modern Jewish women are being granted more authority within Judaism, said Tina Ranney, a Rabbi’s assistant at the Kol Ami congregation in Salt Lake City. Jewish women of the Reconstructionist or Conservative sects may become ordained to offices like rabbi – a Jewish congregational head – or a cantor – who leads songs and prayer chants at worship services.
The duties of a Jewish laywoman include educating her children in Jewish tradition and ensuring these traditions are practiced within the home, especially if she belongs to the orthodox sect, Ranney said. Another practice of Orthodox Judaism is gender-segregated congregations within a synagogue.
Ruth Eller, rector of the St. John’s Anglican parish in Logan, not only leads worship services, but heads the affairs of the Episcopalian (Anglican) Church in Cache Valley. The bishop, who in the Episcopal Church oversees the entire state of Utah, is also a woman, Eller said.
The Anglican Church was one of the first modern religions to ordain women to the priesthood.
“There is Biblical evidence of women as apostles in the early Christian church,” Eller said.
Specifically, Eller mentioned Mary Magdalene of the Bible’s New Testament and Lydia of the book of Acts as leaders in the early church.
Only now are religions gaining an understanding of the privileges granted to women by the scriptures, Eller said.
“Christ paid a lot of attention to women,” Eller said.
Rather than a mis-interpretation of scripture, the recent ordination of women reflects their new status in society, Crapo said. Women occupy 48 percent of our nation’s managerial positions and are becoming a force to be reckoned with, Crapo said.
“Religion is starting to ratify what is already happening in society,” Crapo said.
Some religions continue to support traditional gender roles. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints states in its “Proclamation to the World” regarding the family that “gender is an essential characteristic of the individual, pre-mortal and eternal identity and purpose … By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life … for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children.”
While the roles of men and women are separate, “fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners,” according to the proclamation.
Another religion that supports traditional gender roles is Islam. Though there have in the past been negative reports in Western media regarding the treatment of Muslim women, Islam holds women in high respect, said David Tuncer of the Logan Islamic center.
“At the time of [Muhammed], women achieved the highest regard in religious history,” said Lila Fahlman, founding president of the World Council of Muslim Religion, on her Web page, www.interfaithvoices.org.
For example, Muslim women receive a dowry from their husbands at the time of marriage and can function as imams, or prayer leaders (provided the congregation is entirely made up of women), said author Huston Smith in his book “The World’s Religions.”
“Koranic reforms improved [Arabian] women’s status incalculably,” Smith said.
Outsiders should seek authentic information about Islam by themselves to understand it, Tuncer said.
Though the role of women in religion differs substantially from sect to sect, women are becoming aware of their value as human beings and of the power they have to contribute to the world around them.
Pope John XXIII said in 1963, “Since women are becoming ever more conscious of their human dignity, they will not tolerate being treated as mere material instruments, but demand rights befitting a human person both in domestic and in public life.”
Though not all seek formal ordination or careers, the goal of women and the religions they participate in is to reach their full potential as human beings, and as children of their creator, Eller said. The goal of a woman’s mortal life is “the same as any other human,” Eller said.
Summing up the ideal philosophy for woman’s role in religion and in mortal life, Sister Marylin of the Catholic church in Logan said, “Live the best life you can, and use all the gifts God gave you.”