St. Paul, an early founder of the traditional Christian church had some very misogynistic takes on women, dictating a subservient role for women, not only in the church, but in their personal relationships outside of the church. However, some Christian denominations are very supportive of women's rights, particularly some modern protestant denominations. Islam has gotten a reputation as a very misogynistic religion, but that reputation is more linked to cultural practices than religious dictates. For example, "Muhammad declared that a woman's consent had to be obtained before a marriage and that she be paid the brideprice instead of her father" (Renzetti et al., 2012, p.353).
3. What is "feminist spirituality" and why is it important?
Feminist spirituality is viewed as something new, but it actually is not new. Instead, many feminists have revived or developed women-centered spiritual traditions as part of official religious observations. There is no single form of feminist spirituality; instead it is often expressed in ways that allow...
However, feminist spirituality can also relate to more traditional forms of woman-centered religious practices, such as witchcraft and goddess worship. Feminist spirituality is very important. As question two makes clear, the three major world religions have all been used to excuse some very misogynistic practices. In this way, religion has often been perverted as a means of controlling women, particularly female sexuality. The transformation of the three major world religions by some of their practitioners into strong feminist traditions is a significant movement that indicates not only the female desire for equality, but also the fact that women are experiencing some greater freedoms that allow them to approach spirituality in this way.
References
Renzetti, C., Curran, D.J., Maier, S. (2012). Women, Men, and Society, 6th Ed. Pearson
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