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Atheist feminism is a movement that advocates the equality of the sexes within atheism.[1] Atheist feminists also oppose religion as a main source of female oppression and inequality, believing that the majority of the religions are sexist and oppressive to women.[2]

Contents

History

Ernestine Rose

Waist high portrait of woman in her forties, wearing a dark dress, with hair in ringlets
Ernestine Rose was a feminist and was an atheist, well before the label "atheist feminist" existed.

The first known feminist who was also an atheist was Ernestine Rose, born in Poland on January 13, 1810.[3] Her open confession of disbelief in Judaism when she was a teenager brought her into conflict with her father (who was a rabbi) and an unpleasant relationship developed.[3] In order to force her into the obligations of the Jewish faith, her father, without her consent, betrothed her to a friend and fellow Jew when she was sixteen.[3] Instead of arguing her case in a Jewish court (since her father was the local rabbi who ruled on such matters), she went to a secular court, pled her own case, and won.[3] In 1829 she went to England, and in 1835 she was one of the founders of the British atheist organization Association of All Classes of All Nations, which "called for human rights for all people, regardless of sex, class, color, or national origin."[3] She lectured in England and America (moving to America in May 1836) and was described by Samuel P. Putnam 3 as "one of the best lecturers of her time." He wrote that "no orthodox [meaning religious] man could meet her in debate."[3]

In the winter of 1836, Judge Thomas Hertell, a radical and freethinker, submitted a married women's property act in the legislature of the state of New York to investigate ways of improving the civil and property rights of married women, and to permit them to hold real estate in their own name, which they were not then permitted to do in New York. Upon hearing of the resolution, Ernestine Rose drew up a petition and began the soliciting of names to support the resolution in the state legislature, sending the petition to the legislature in 1838.[3] This was the first petition drive done by a woman in New York.[3] Ernestine continued to increase both the number of the petitions and the names until such rights were finally won in 1848, with the passing of the Married Women's Property Act.[4] Others who participated in the work for the bill included Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucretia Mott and Frances Wright, who were all anti-religious.[3] Later when Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton analyzed the influences which led to the Seneca Falls Convention on women's rights in 1848, they identified three causes, the first two being the radical ideas of Frances Wright and Ernestine Rose on religion and democracy, and the initial reforms in women's property law in the 1830s and 1840s.

Ernestine later joined a group of freethinkers who had organized a Society for Moral Philanthropists, at which she often lectured.[3] In 1837, she took part in a debate that continued for thirteen weeks, where her topics included the advocacy of abolition of slavery, women's rights, equal opportunities for education, and civil rights.[3] In 1845 she was in attendance at the first national convention of infidels [meaning atheists].[3] Ernestine Rose also introduced "the agitation on the subject of women's suffrage" in Michigan in 1846.[3] In a lecture in Worchester, Massachusetts in 1851, she opposed calling upon the Bible to underwrite the rights of women, claiming that human rights and freedom of women were predicated upon "the laws of humanity" and that women, therefore, did not require the written authority of either Paul or Moses, because "those laws and our claim are prior" to both.[3]

She attended the Women's Rights Convention in the Tabernacle, New York City, on September 10, 1853, and spoke at the Hartford Bible Convention in 1854.[3] It was in March of that year, also, that she took off with Susan B. Anthony on a speaking tour to Washington, D.C.[3] Susan B. Anthony arranged the meetings and Ernestine Rose did all of the speaking; after this successful tour, Susan B. Anthony embarked on her own first lecture tour.[3]

Later, in October 1854, Ernestine Rose was elected president of the National Women's Rights Convention at Philadelphia, overcoming the objection that she was unsuitable because of her atheism.[3] Susan B. Anthony supported her in this fight, declaring that every religion — and none — should have an equal right on the platform.[3] In 1856 she spoke at the Seventh National Woman's [Rights] Convention saying in part, "And when your minister asks you for money for missionary purposes, tell him there are higher, and holier, and nobler missions to be performed at home. When he asks for colleges to educate ministers, tell him you must educate woman, that she may do away with the necessity of ministers, so that they may be able to go to some useful employment."[5]

She appeared again in Albany, New York, for the State Women's Rights Convention in early February 1861, the last one to be held until the end of the Civil War.[3] On May 14, 1863, she shared the podium with Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, Lucy Stone, and Antoinette Blackwell when the first Women's National Loyal League met to call for equal rights for women, and to support the government in the Civil War "in so far as it makes a war for freedom".[3]

She was in attendance at the American Equal Rights Association meeting in which there was a schism and on May 15, 1869, she joined with Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, and Lucy Stone to form a new organization, the National Woman Suffrage Association, which fought for both male and female suffrage, taking a position on the executive committee.[3] She died at Brighton, England, on August 4, 1892, at age eighty-two.[3]

Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Matilda Joslyn Gage

Shoulder high portrait of an old woman with white hair
Elizabeth Cady Stanton in her later years
Chest high portrait of a middle aged woman wearing a dark dress and white shirt, hair up in a bun
A portrait of Matilda Gage

The most prominent other people to publicly advocate for feminism as well as atheism in the 1800s were Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Matilda Joslyn Gage.[6][7][8] In 1885 Elizabeth wrote an essay entitled "Has Christianity Benefited Woman?" arguing that it had in fact hurt women's rights, and stating, "All religions thus far have taught the headship and superiority of man, [and] the inferiority and subordination of woman. Whatever new dignity, honor, and self-respect the changing theologies may have brought to man, they have all alike brought to woman but another form of humiliation".[9] In 1893 Matilda Joslyn Gage wrote the book for which she is best known, "Woman, Church, and State," which was one of the first books to draw the conclusion that Christianity is a primary impediment to the progress of women, as well as civilization.[8] In 1895 Elizabeth Cady Stanton wrote The Woman's Bible, revised and continued with another book of the same name in 1898, in which she criticized religion and stated "the Bible in its teachings degrades women from Genesis to Revelation."[10][11] She died in 1902.[6] The right to vote was won for American women in 1920, and after that feminism of all types in America largely lay dormant until the 1960s.[12]

Today

Atheist feminist Ayaan Hirsi Ali[13]

Atheist feminist Annie Laurie Gaylor cofounded the Freedom From Religion Foundation in 1976,[14] and was also editor of Freethought Today from 1984 to 2009, when she became executive editor.[14] Aside from promoting atheism in general, her atheist feminist activities include writing the book "Woe To The Women: The Bible Tells Me So", first published in 1981, which is now in its 4th printing.[14] This book exposes and discusses sexism in the Bible.[15][16] Furthermore, her 1997 book, "Women Without Superstition: 'No Gods, No Masters,' was the first collection of the writings of historic and contemporary female freethinkers.[14] She has also written several articles on religion's harm to women.[16]

Other notable atheist feminists active today include Ayaan Hirsi Ali,[17] Ophelia Benson,[18][19] Amanda Marcotte,[20][21] and Taslima Nasrin.[22]

Criticisms of faiths

Bahá'í faith

Atheist feminists object to the fact that women are not eligible to be members of the Universal House of Justice, which is the supreme governing institution of the Bahá'í Faith.[23]

Buddhism

Atheist feminists oppose the Eight Garudhammas, also known as the Eight Heavy Rules, which are rules for Buddhist nuns which require them to be subordinate to Buddhist monks, and which are still in force in many Buddhist nunneries today.[24] Atheist feminists note that, "In one passage from the Theravada Buddhist tradition, the Buddha's own aunt, Prajapati, shaves her hair and walks barefoot for many miles to meet with the Buddha and entreat him to permit women to join the sangha, the Buddhist monastic community. The Buddha at first refuses her plea outright, and only relents when his disciple Ananda persuades him to change his mind; however... in some variants, [he] warns that the sangha will only last for five hundred years due to the presence of women, when it would otherwise have lasted for a thousand"[25] Furthermore, as the atheist feminist Rosalind Miles points out, Buddha is believed to have said on his deathbed to his disciple Ananda, "Women are full of passion, Ananda; women are envious, Ananda; women are stupid, Ananda. That is the reason, Ananda, that is the cause, why women have no place in public assemblies, do not carry on business, and do not earn their living by any profession."[26] Atheist feminists also note that in most Buddhist lineages women are denied full ordination[24] and that "the Theravadan Buddhists claim a woman could never become a Buddha [and] a popular belief in Buddhist countries is that negative karma results in a man being reborn as a woman."[27] Atheist feminists also note that fully ordained Buddhist monks and nuns abide by 253 and 364 precepts (rules) respectively, with the nuns having to abide by 111 more precepts than the monks.[28] Atheist feminists also oppose the fact that a Tibetan Buddhist ordination ceremony declares that even the most senior nun has to sit behind the most novice monk because, although her ordination is superior, the basis of that ordination, her body, is inferior.[29] Atheist feminists also denounce the story of Buddha's virgin birth,[27] saying that it teaches "a woman's body is a dirty, sinful thing" not fit for a great religious leader to emerge from.[27] Furthermore, atheist feminists oppose the fact that Buddhism considers menstruation to be unclean and that for that reason women were forbidden to come into contact with Buddhist sacred texts, and today are often forbidden from performing the religious ritual of walking around a stupa (a mound-like structure containing Buddhist relics, typically the remains of a Buddha or saint, used by Buddhists as a place of worship), or the main hall of a wat (a monastery temple in Cambodia, Thailand, or Laos).[30] Atheist feminists also oppose the fact that traditional Buddhism rejects abortion and regards life as starting at conception,[31] and that some Buddhists believe women are incapable of attaining the highest and most powerful forms of rebirth, namely rebirth as a Brahma god, the god Sakra, the tempter Maara, a Wheel-turning king or a Buddha.[32]

Christianity

A list of verses from the Bible that atheist feminists consider sexist is available at the Skeptic's Annotated Bible, an atheist website; atheist feminists also denounce the fact that most Christians consider God to be male.[33]

Atheist feminists also note the sexism of "several of the most prominent and influential doctors and theologians of the early [Christian] church, including Tertullian (who wrote about women, 'You are the port and gate of the devil. You are the first transgressor of God's law'), Augustine (who wrote that women who seek power should be 'repressed and bridled'), Jerome ('Adam was deceived by Eve, and not Eve by Adam, and therefore it is just, that woman receive and acknowledge him for governor whom she called to sin, lest that again she slide and fall by womanly facility'), Ambrose ('Woman ought not only to have simple arrayment, but all authority is to be denied unto her. For she must be in subjection to man...as well in habit as in service'), and John Chrysostom, whose name literally means 'golden-mouthed' and who, according to the New Advent Catholic encyclopedia, was 'the greatest preacher ever heard in a Christian pulpit.' This famous preacher wrote that women 'ought at all times to have the punishment which was given to Eve sounding in [their] ears' and that 'in the nature of all women lurks such vices as in good governors are not tolerable.'"[34]

Atheist feminists also denounce the story of Jesus's virgin birth,[27] saying that it teaches "a woman's body is a dirty, sinful thing" not fit for a great religious leader to emerge from.[27]

Catholicism

The Catholic Church is one of many Christian denominations that do not ordain women, and in fact any woman who attempts to be ordained is automatically excommunicated.[35][36] Specifically, in 2007, the Vatican issued a decree saying that the attempted ordination of women would result in automatic excommunication for the woman and the priest trying to ordain her,[37] and in 2010, the Vatican stated that the priest could also be defrocked, and that ordination of women is a "grave crime."[37] Furthermore, the Catholic Church opposes all birth control besides natural family planning, and requires that natural family planning only be used when a couple have grave reasons for avoiding the woman getting pregnant, not simply because the woman does not want to be pregnant.[38] The Catholic Church is also against all abortion, even when done to save a woman's life.[39] Furthermore, the Catholic Church is also against all divorce and remarriage after divorce, believing that the Bible does not allow divorce on any grounds.[40] However, if it can be proven that a valid marriage had never taken place, then the Church may issue an annulment and may permit a remarriage.[40] Atheist feminists think these are sexist ideas and oppose them.[36][41][42]

Protestantism

Many Protestant churches do not ordain women, and some advocate that family decision making power be concentrated in husbands[43] and/or that wives should submit to their husbands.[44] Some Protestant churches do not allow divorce and/or remarriage,[40] and some allow them only in cases of adultery and/or desertion, but not for any other causes (such as spousal abuse).[40] Notable Protestant minister Rick Warren has stated that spousal abuse is not an acceptable reason for divorce, instead advocating church counseling and a temporary separation in such situations,[45][46] despite the fact that regardless of how many times the abuser apologizes and promises never to do it again, experts agree: the cycle of domestic abuse doesn’t end until the victim leaves and doesn’t come back to the relationship.[47] Atheist feminists strongly denounce these attitudes.[46] They also denounce the fact that Rick Warren believes wives should be subservient to their husbands.[48] Furthermore, some Protestant churches advocate that women (but not men) must dress modestly, which atheist feminists reject because they argue it implies that women are sex objects and men are not.[49] Some Protestants, particularly those in the Quiverfull movement, oppose abortion, birth control, natural family planning, and/or sterilization, and some even oppose medical assistance during childbirth.[50][51] Atheist feminists denounce all this as sexist.[52]

Mormonism

 This section may contain original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding references. Statements consisting only of original research may be removed. More details may be available on the talk page. (November 2011)

A list of verses from the Book of Mormon that atheist feminists[who?] consider sexist is available at the Skeptic's Annotated Bible, an atheist website.[53] Atheist feminists[who?] opposed Mormonism for allowing plural marriage,[citation needed] which the LDS Church does not currently allow, but has not denounced, saying it was suitable for the time in which it was practiced.[citation needed] Brigham Young once said that those who do not support polygamy will be damned to hell and that a man with only one wife will be forced to be single in Heaven.[54] Today atheist feminists[who?] also oppose the Mormon doctrine[citation needed] that men must have multiple wives to enter the highest degree of the Mormon heaven,[55] and that women have to "hearken to the counsel of her husband" (previously having to obey their husband's law) while husbands obey God,[55] as well as Mormon women being excommunicated for discussing a Heavenly Mother, even though belief in her is a Mormon belief.[55] Mormon belief also holds that a woman cannot access Heaven alone, and that only through marriage can a woman be saved – by her husband, who will 'pull her through' to the other side upon her death.[56] Atheist feminists[who?] note[where?] that when Mormon men and women choose to become missionaries, the men serve for two years while the women only serve for a year and a half, and men are eligible to serve between the ages of 19 and 27, while women usually only serve between the ages of 21 and 24.[57] Atheist feminists[who?] also note[where?] that the LDS Church does not ordain women[58] and that "any policy decisions that are made at a local or general level usually are going to be made by the men, often without any consultation [with] the women."[58] Furthermore, atheist feminists[who?] point out[where?] that "the LDS [Mormon] Church actively and very effectively mobilized Mormons to vote as a bloc against ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment (despite a fact that a poll published in the church-owned Deseret News in 1974 showed that 63 percent of Utahans approved of the ERA.)[citation needed] Most political analysts[who?] believe that had the LDS Church not taken such an aggressive position against the ERA, it would easily have been ratified by the required thirty-eight states, and would now be part of the U.S. Constitution".[25] Atheist feminists[who?] also denounce the fact that many feminists have been excommunicated or disfellowshipped from the LDS Church simply for being feminists,[citation needed] and that the LDS church opposes abortion in most circumstances.[59]

Atheist feminists[who?] also oppose all religions which do practice polygamy today, including American fundamentalist offshoots from the Latter Day Saint movement.[60] They point out[where?] that polygamy provides for men to have as many wives as they want, but expects women to be content sharing one man with many other wives, and that polygamy is illegal in all 50 American states,[61] Atheist feminists[who?] also oppose the fact that the Fundamentalist Latter Day Saints give teenagers to old men in arranged marriages and tell the teenagers they must completely submit to their husbands' wishes, although this is against the law.[62]

Hinduism

Atheist feminists deplore the plight of Hindu widows, who are "traditionally shunned as bad luck and forced to live in destitution on the edge of society. Her husband's death is considered her fault, and she has to shave her head, shun hot food and sweets and never remarry. In the pre-independence India of the 1930s, the tradition applied even to child brides of 5 or 6 who had been betrothed for the future by their families but had never laid eyes on their husbands...".[63][64] They oppose sati, a Hindu religious practice illegal since 1829,[65] yet occasionally still occurring,[66][67] where Hindu widows burn themselves alive on their husbands' funeral pyres.[65] Atheist feminists believe this to be wrong and sexist and point out it is often forced against the woman's will.[25][67] They also denounce the idea that women should be subservient to men, as advocated in this quote from a Hindu sacred text, "By a girl, by a young woman, or even by an aged one, nothing must be done independently, even in her own house. In childhood a female must be subject to her father, in youth to her husband, when her lord is dead to her sons; a woman must never be independent," (Laws of Manu, V, 147-8).[27]

Atheist feminists also oppose the Hindu religious practice of devadasi, in which girls are "married" and dedicated to a deity (deva or devi) or temple.[68] The marriage usually occurs before the girl reaches puberty and always requires the girl to become a prostitute for upper-caste community members.[68][69] The practice of devadasi was outlawed in all of India in 1988, yet some still practice illegally.[69]

Atheist feminists also denounce the fact that most Hindus consider the supreme deity to be male.[70] They further denounce the fact that Hinduism is generally opposed to abortion except where it is necessary to save the mother's life, and that classical Hindu texts are strongly opposed to abortion; one text compares abortion to the killing of a priest, another text considers abortion a worse sin than killing one's parents, and another text says that a woman who aborts her child will lose her caste.[71] Atheist feminists also denounce the fact that traditional Hinduism and many modern Hindus also see abortion as a breach of the duty to produce children in order to continue the family and produce new members of society, and that many Hindus regard the production of offspring as a public duty, not simply a personal choice.[71] Furthermore, atheist feminists denounce the fact that Hindu extremists have attacked women (and men) for dancing in the nude and taking drugs, claiming that women ought to have the status of mother in Indian culture, and that they themselves are the custodians of Indian culture.[72]

Islam

A list of verses from the Quran that atheist feminists consider sexist is available at the Skeptic's Annotated Bible, an atheist website; atheist feminists also denounce the fact that most Muslims consider God to be male.[73]

Atheist feminists oppose the idea that women are made unclean by menstruation and must be under special restrictions during it, which is present in many religions including Islam.[74] Furthermore, atheist feminists oppose sharia law (the sacred law of Islam) declaring it to be sexist and cruel to women.[75] For example, atheist feminists oppose the fact that in many Muslim countries women (but not men) are forced by law to wear the veil, chador and/or other restrictive clothes, and can be punished by morality police if they do not comply.[76][77] This is done because the Quran commands women to be modest (Sura 24:30–31), and even where it is not required by law, Muslim women (but not men) are required by their religion to wear headscarves and cover all of their bodies except their faces and hands,[78] lest men lust after them, which atheist feminists reject because they argue it implies that women are sex objects and men are not.[79] In Saudi Arabia in 2002, during a fire at a girls' school, "morality police forced girls to stay inside the burning building because they were not wearing the head scarves and black cloaks known as abayas that women must wear in public in that kingdom" because it is considered sinful and immodest not to wear them; fifteen girls died as a result.[80] Furthermore, "In Zamfara State in northern Nigeria [where sharia law is in effect], a pregnant 13-year-old girl called Bariya Ibrahim received 180 lashes of the cane in 2001 after being pimped by her father. The state’s attorney general said: 'It is the law of Allah, so we don’t have anything to worry about,'"[2] Atheist feminists oppose female genital mutilation and honor killings, which they believe are often caused by Islamic beliefs.[81] For example, those who commit honor killings often try to justify them by saying the victim was refusing to wear Islamic clothing (such as hijab) or dating non-Muslim men,[82] or otherwise not being a proper Muslim woman. Those who commit female genital mutilation also often try to justify it by saying it is required by Islam.[83] Although female genital mutilation is not mentioned in the Quran, "it has, however, become a 'law by custom'...The practice has become important to Islam because it is associated with female sexual purity."[83] Furthermore the practice "is often associated with the religion of Islam, and is most often performed in Middle Eastern and North African countries."[83] Atheist feminists oppose the Islamic idea of divorce, where a man can often divorce his wife simply by repeating three times "I divorce you," while women often find it extremely difficult to get a divorce, or if they do get one, to retain custody of their children.[81][84] They oppose the Islamic ideas that a woman's testimony is only worth half that of a man (Sura 2:282), that her inheritance should be worth half of his (Sura 4:11), and that men are superior to women and a woman's husband can beat her (Sura 4:34).[25] Furthermore, due to the testimony of women not being considered as valuable as men's in the Quran (Sura 2:282), many Muslim countries, such as Saudi Arabia, have declared that a man can only be convicted of rape if he confesses or if four male eyewitnesses testify that the sex occurred and was forced, as is required under sharia law[85] and if this standard is not met the woman bringing the charge of rape may be found guilty of fornication or adultery and forced to endure 100 lashes,[86] a punishment required for fornicators by the Quran (Sura 24:1–3.) If found guilty of adultery, sharia law allows her to be stoned to death, and this is still done in some Muslim countries, for example Saudi Arabia.[87]

Atheist feminists also condemn the fact that Muhammad, according to the "Hadith (the sayings and traditions of the Prophet)... married a prepubescent child [his wife Aisha bint Abu Bakr], and that when he was given two slave girls he gave the ugly one away to a friend and kept the beautiful one, Maryam, to use sexually[2]" as a concubine. Indeed, the age of consent to marriage is set very low in many Muslim countries, which look to Muhammad as their guide in such matters, "There are some that argue the Prophet married Aisha bint Abu Bakr, at the age of 9 and therefore deduct that child marriage is permissible,."[88] Furthermore "a 2009 Yemeni Ministry of Social Affairs report found that a quarter of all females in Yemen marry before the age of 15. In Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, personal status law is not passed and none of these countries have signed the CEDAW, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. Often new bills are passed in parliaments in several Muslim-majority countries to set the minimum age of marriage to 17 or 18, but then are rejected and found to be ‘unIslamic’".[88] Furthermore polygamy, which atheist feminists see as sexist since it provides for each man to have more than one wife, but expects each woman to be content sharing one man with many other wives, is legal in many Muslim countries and condoned by Islam.[89][90] Furthermore, in Iran, because Muslim religious law declares it illegal to execute a virgin, the guards arrange a "wedding" ceremony and rape the prisoner once it is over, then later execute her.[62] Atheist feminists strongly denounce all this and see Islam as the cause.[91]

Atheist feminists also note that "all Islamic schools 'agree that women do not lead men in (performing) religious duties,'"[92] although recently some Muslim women have tried to challenge this.[92][93]

Atheist feminists also oppose the sexist idea, believed by many Muslims (yet considered a misinterpretation of Islam by others) that in the afterlife all male Muslim martyrs (or in some interpretations all male Muslims in general) will get 72 virgin women called houris to sleep with who do not menstruate, have children, have bad vaginal odors, or have menopause, while nothing similar is promised for women.[94]

Jainism

Atheist feminists denounce the beliefs of the Digambara sect of Jainism that a woman "cannot achieve liberation without first being reborn as a man" and that "women are intrinsically harmful," noting that the belief that women are intrinsically harmful comes partly from the idea that menstrual blood kills microorganisms living in the female body, which makes the female body more inherently violent than the male body, even though that idea has no scientific evidence behind it.[27][95][96] They also denounce the Digambara beliefs that women cannot participate in the public nakedness which is supposedly essential to religious liberation because women's nakedness would arouse men (while there is no restriction on men's nakedness for women's sake), because women would be ashamed of being naked in public (but men are considered above such petty concerns), and because women walking around naked would be disruptive (but it is considered fine for men to do so).[95] Atheist feminists also denounce the fact that some Jain texts say that menstrual blood is a sign of impurity, and that Jains believe that women's nature is to care for children and other dependents, and therefore women find it much more difficult to break free from these earthly attachments and achieve religious liberation than men do.[95]

Judaism

A list of verses from the Bible, including the Jewish Bible, that atheist feminists consider sexist is available at the Skeptic's Annotated Bible, an atheist website; atheist feminists also denounce the fact that Orthodox Jews consider God to be male.[33]

Atheist feminists oppose the Talmudic idea that women are made unclean by menstruation and must be under special restrictions during it.[25][74] They oppose the fact that when the First Temple and Second Temple existed in Jerusalem and priests, rather than rabbis, led services, only Aaron and his male descendants could be priests. This would be the case if a temple were to be rebuilt (as some branches of Orthodox Judaism hope it will be), and even today only these male descendants can bless the congregation on the High Holidays and are traditionally given the first and second aliyah.[97] Atheist feminists and Jewish feminists oppose the prayer of male Orthodox Jews "Blessed is He that did not make me a woman," and the attitude, held by some Orthodox Jews, that women should not be educated or work outside the home.[25] They also oppose the fact that in Israel "...ultra-Orthodox Jews have set up 'modesty police' who terrorise young women who talk to men or show ordinary parts of their bodies. They break into their homes if they are seen with men; they force them to sit at the back of the bus, away from the men; and they even, in one recent instance, sprayed acid in the face of a 14-year-old girl.[2] Atheist and Jewish feminists also deplore the plight of the agunot, Orthodox and Conservative Jewish women whose husbands refuse to grant them a get (Jewish divorce certificate) which according to Jewish law a woman must obtain from her husband or else she cannot be considered divorced from him in Jewish law. This leaves her with no possibility of remarriage within Orthodox or Conservative Judaism, because Orthodox and Conservative Judaism refuse to recognize a woman's right to initiate a divorce.[98][99][100] Atheist and Jewish feminists note that Orthodox Judaism (unlike all other types of Judaism) does not ordain women as rabbis and cantors, and forbids them from signing marriage and divorce certificates, scribing certain Jewish objects such as Torah scrolls, presiding over conversions, and being counted as members of a minyan.[101][102] Furthermore, in Orthodox Judaism women are required to sit separate from the men in the synagogue and at some religious celebrations, often at the back of the synagogue or in an upper floor balcony, and always separated from the men's section by a wall called a mechitza.[103][104] This makes it more difficult for women than men to see and participate in the prayer services and celebrations, and is done so that men will not be distracted by the beauty of women,[103] while no provision is made for women who are distracted by the beauty of men, which atheist feminists argue implies that women are sex objects and men are not. Furthermore, Orthodox Jewish women are not allowed to recite prayers or blessings or read from the Tanakh in front of the congregation unless it is an all-female congregation, and even then they are not allowed to recite certain prayers that only men are allowed to lead, or prayers which require a minyan.[105] This is so even in Orthodox Bat Mitzvah ceremonies.[105] Furthermore, Orthodox Jewish women (but not men) are expected to wear head coverings and wigs after they get married, lest men other than their husband lust after them, and always to dress modestly,[78] which atheist feminists reject because they argue it implies that women are sex objects and men are not.[49] At the Kotel, a central Jewish holy site, part of the retaining wall of the Temple Mount on which the Second Temple stood before the Romans destroyed it in 70 CE, Israeli women (but not men) are banned from praying as a group, reading from a Torah scroll, or wearing tallit, and those who do so anyway are subject to a fine and up to six months in jail.[106] This has been done to placate Orthodox Jews; indeed, women who violate this ban have been subject to verbal and physical abuse from some Orthodox Jews.[107] Atheist and Jewish feminists denounce all this as sexist.[25] Atheist and Jewish feminists also denounce the fact that some Orthodox Jewish authorities are opposed to abortion, and that according to ultra-Orthodox branches of Judaism the decision of whether or not to get an abortion and whether or not to use birth control (and what kind) should be decided by a rabbi rather than the woman herself, as in Orthodox Judaism all women are expected to marry and have children whether they want to or not.[108][109]

Taoism

Atheist feminists object to the fact that one of Taoism's goals for women is the end of menstruation.[110] They also object to the fact that Taoism claims there is a masculine and a feminine energy mode, called yang and yin respectively, and that these are opposites, and that the masculine energy mode is associated with activity, warmth, aggression, control, heaven, light, and good spirits, while the feminine energy mode is associated with passivity, coldness, receptivity, yielding, hell, darkness, and evil spirits.[111][112]

Zoroastrianism

Atheist feminists denounce the fact that Zoroastrian priests are required to be male, and that the Zoroastrian god is considered to be male.[113]

Religious feminism

While atheist feminism considers religion to be innately oppressive to women,[27] religious feminism sees women's oppression in religion as caused by distortion or misinterpretation of the true and feminist teachings of religion, and religious feminists try to remove sexism from religion.[114][115] Such attempts include feminist theology, drawing attention to female deities, focusing on the important roles taken by women in religious life, and advocating for women's ordination.[116][117][118][119] Wicca, Neopaganism, worship of goddesses, and other forms of feminine-based spirituality have also been associated with religious feminism, as have devotions to the Virgin Mary, Fatima, the Sophia, and the Shekinah.[120] Specific types of religious feminism include Christian feminism,[121] Islamic feminism,[122][123] and Jewish feminism.[124][125]

See also

Portal icon Atheism portal
Portal icon Feminism portal

References

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