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ARE YOU A FEMINIST? compiled by Megan Greulich The following is a collection of quotes taken from a survey on clarifying feminism. Pastors, church leaders, authors, and academicians responded to questions on definitions of feminism, personal experiences with feminism, and whether or not they find the term useful to the Church. Thank you to all who shared thoughts with us.
Feminism and its definitions…
I consider myself a Christian
feminist though I am cautious about the contexts in which I share
that. Not because I am ashamed of the label, but because I don’t
want it to be a stumbling block to dialogue. Of course some people
think a feminist is one of those crazy radical women who think
they are better than men, but I think of myself as a feminist in
that I want to affirm in my marriage, my parenting, my teaching
and my counseling the equal value and functions of all men and
women.
I define a feminist as anyone who
intentionally works to remove the barriers placed on women by
patriarchical social structures. Since I do work to this end, I
consider myself a feminist. Of course, this is easy for me, as a
male. I recognize that there are many women who hold my position
who would be at significant risk if they embraced feminism as
boldly as I do. Those in the evangelical church are often most
brutal on women who embrace feminism.
I am indeed a feminist, in this
basic sense: someone who champions the dignity, rights,
responsibilities, and glories of women as equal in importance to
those of men, and who therefore refuses discrimination against
women. I recognize that the word means many other things to other
people, but this is what I mean by it, and what I think it means
most fundamentally.
I have considered myself a feminist
when I worked in secular society to make sure I had the same pay
for the same job and had all opportunities that my male colleagues
had. In the Church, I'm just part of God's Body—we do not need to
have a label to survive.
After years of resisting the label,
I have learned to value it. Yes, I am a feminist because women are
created in the image of God and yet women have been physically,
verbally and financially battered and sexually assaulted for
centuries, often by men who profess to be Christians and who guide
church policy and interpret Scripture. I define feminism as being
aware of women's experience in the world and choosing to stand
with other women.
I am very committed to biblical
equality for both women and men made in the image of God. I have
found the Scriptures, the thoughtful understanding and application
of the Scriptures through many good books and the godly example of
many men and women to all help shape and confirm my convictions
about Biblical equality. Although I understand the historical
development and importance of the term “feminism” in both the
secular and Christian contexts, I do not find the term helpful in
many Christian settings today. It has too much political baggage
associated with it that is off-putting to too many people that
otherwise might be open to better understand biblical equality.
I do believe in equality for women;
however, I think the word feminism is offensive to many people,
including Christian woman. Equality is a word that defines my
beliefs and tends to offend less. If we want to share and spread
this vision, I prefer that word.
I am not a feminist. The goal of
feminism is to press for equal rights and equal power. The New
Testament mandate for all Christians, men and women--husband and
wife--lay people and clergy, is to practice mutual submission and
reciprocal servanthood, exactly the opposite of the feminist
agenda. Feminism as a secular movement was badly needed to resolve
societal issues of flagrant inequality. However, the biblical
mandate for the church is not to contend for equality but to
create the community of oneness that images on earth the community
of oneness in heaven. The preeminent hallmarks of authentically
biblical community are fair treatment and equal access to
opportunities to serve. Non-legislated equality is unattainable
without the prior quest for community. Whenever the pursuit of
community is genuinely Bible-based, it will automatically generate
equality.
I don’t run from the term
“feminist.” And I would rather be considered a feminist than not
one. A lot of good for women has been done by people functioning
under the label of “feminist.” But, over time, that term has been
applied to increasingly diverse groups, who often are not in
agreement with one another. So, I prefer the term “egalitarian.” I
define a feminist as a person who supports the equal value of
women and equal opportunity for women in every area of life.
Yes, I consider myself a feminist,
because I believe in and work for the complete equality of women
in society and home, which is also the way I define feminism—any
movement that works for the complete equality of women in society
and home. However, I think it's important to distinguish different
types of feminism--since for some critics, all feminism is
"radical." Not all Christianities are the same, and we should not
expect all feminisms to be the same. One type of feminism grows
out of the Enlightenment emphasis on individual autonomy,
extending that autonomy to women as well as men. Another type
develops from analyses of economics and power, giving close
attention to the way social and economic institutions have kept
men in power and women subordinated. Biblical feminism is a third
type, whose origins lie in the theology of equality found in the
Bible.
I accepted the label rather
reluctantly at first—wanting to be known only as a Christian. But
because I agree with the analysis that finds systemic historic
oppression of women, and identifies this oppression as a social
ill that needs to be dealt with, I felt that I needed to "stand up
and be counted."
Yes, I am a feminist; that is, I
believe that men and women are created to have equal abilities and
responsibilities in life. This is not an obliteration of sexual
differentia, but an equality of worth, value, opportunity,
commitments, ministry and all else that justice and equity present
to us in our society.
The word feminism has been used in
so many different contexts that it is almost useless. Secular
feminism, radical feminism, evangelical feminism (which a friend
once called an oxymoron) are too misunderstood to be effective
outside academic circles. That said, for the purpose of this
response, I am defining evangelical feminism as egalitarianism
which is the belief that the Bible teaches the fundamental
equality of men and women and encourages the use of all spiritual
gifts regardless of gender and mutual authority in the home,
church and society. I believe this with all my mind and heart. Personal experiences with feminism…
I think I first seriously
encountered feminist ideas when I read Betty Friedan's The
Feminine Mystique. I saw so much of my own experience in that
book that it started me on a journey to understand why the
feminists were so vilified and how I could understand my Christian
perspective in the light of women's experiences. This led me to
egalitarian theology, but it was not my starting point at first.
My first experience of gender
discrimination was in sixth grade, when I was told I could no
longer engage in “mixed bathing” (swimming), although my boy
classmates could. Then I became incensed over church prohibitions
against teenage girls – namely, myself – having the same
opportunities for leadership as teenage boys. This was long before
I heard of “feminism.” My indignation arose from an innate sense
of my equal dignity and equal ability as a human being. Virtually
all of my interest in feminism comes from personal experience.
I came to this self-description
early in my young adulthood, influenced by a preacher grandmother,
a competent, talented sister, and a pastor/father who championed
the role of women in ministry within a conservative denomination.
How could I deny the giftedness of significant women in my life,
and their unique ministry in my own life and spiritual
development? Along the way, Scripture continued to support my
developing feminist thinking as I saw within the biblical
narrative many examples of affirmation of women and foundational
theological principles of equality.
My interest in feminism grew out of
my theological study as to the nature of the kingdom of God. It
started as I read The Politics of Jesus by John Howard
Yoder. The more I saw Jesus’ political relevance the more I was
pushed to understand the relationship between the power structures
and the kingdom of God. The more I learned about power relations
the more I became convinced that I had to be a feminist.
Both Jesus and Paul were culturally
"out of place" with the liberty they gave to women. One tends to
forget how oppressive the cultural context of women was 2000 years
ago. They treated women as persons in their own right with a
significant place in God's history, possessing gifts of the Spirit
to be lived out that were not contingent upon gender. This
counter-cultural support of women is actually "radical biblical
feminism," though I would not tend to use the term as it is often
misconstrued.
I strongly believe that my feminism
grows out of my faith in Christ and my reading of Scripture, the
Gospels in particular. Fifteen years ago in a doctoral course on
feminist theology, I came to understand that the starting point
for most feminist theorizing is women's experience; for me as an
evangelical my starting point must be Scripture. It was exciting
to discover that Jesus was very concerned about human rights for
women in his time and place, and that it is legitimate for me to
have those same concerns.
I couldn’t be a feminist until I
could understand it in the light of my faith in Christ and reading
of Scripture. The earliest feminist literature has always stressed
the surprising equality of Gal 3:28, for example. So my faith
gives me hope that the gender disruption is not God’s intention,
and will in the end be healed and overturned. I like to point out
that the earliest feminists were evangelical Christians. Like many
other people in society, we work for justice and a fuller life for
women, but as a Christian I do this “in Christ,” and expect that
everything I do will be completed and perfected in Christ. As a
Christian, I see parts of the feminist movement as
Spirit-inspired. I am a feminist working within the narrative
story given by the Scriptures concerning Christ. Within this story
there are always mysteries and surprises on the journey ahead.
There is a depth in this story that is not found elsewhere. I
particularly like, for example, Miroslav Volf’s chapter on gender
in light of the trinity in Exclusion and Embrace.
It is because my understanding of
feminism comes from Scripture and is so beautifully exemplified in
Christ that I am passionate about it. I appreciate those who have
summarized biblical feminism as the belief that women and men are
“equally created, equally fallen, equally saved, equally called,
and equally gifted” to serve in the Kingdom of God.
Living faithfully to Jesus Christ
is the most important thing I think we are called to do. Although
I know that many are feminists for a variety of different reasons,
my commitment to feminism grows directly out of my commitment to
follow the call of Christ in today's world. Scripture provides not
only the most certain rationale for my position but also the
inspiration for these same impulses in our larger culture. Reconciling feminism and faith…
True Christian feminism should also
be freeing, rather than prescriptive. Some women at some periods
of their lives want to stay and home and look after children and
do not mind a level of dependence upon their spouse. This is all
good and freeing as long as neither this nor anything else becomes
the norm for being a woman. I would also oppose
constructionist-only approaches to gender; there is “givenness” as
well as social constructedness in the mystery of being gendered.
Most of the concerns I have heard
raised about feminism are simply attempts to marginalize the
movement. I admire those in the feminist movements who have
sacrificed so much and worked so hard for so long. Though no one
can agree with every voice in such a broad movement, there are no
aspects of the movement itself that cause me concern with my
faith.
Many things are believed or
practiced under the rubric of feminism that may not be biblical.
We must remember that the concept of feminism has emerged from
sociology, not theology. Like any other sociological trend, we
must allow it to intersect with our understanding of Scripture
without compromising our exegetical integrity. My advice to young
people: be slow and thorough in forming conclusions, try to
understand authors you disagree with, be prayerful and humbly seek
God’s guidance. Radicalism, whether in feminism or theology, has
never been attractively effective.
Equality between women and men
within the body of Christ is not about pushing an agenda or making
political points in a debate, which are hardly useful. It is about
allowing the life and teachings of Christ to take you beyond the
prevailing culture of the day and treating others as Jesus treated
them while he walked on Earth.
I am so thankful for groups like
CBE which show that it is possible to be a strong, orthodox
Christian who really loves Jesus and wants to serve Him, and still
be a feminist. In fact, serving Christ really means bringing true
liberation to everyone! As one of my friends puts it, "It is true
that the Bible speaks out of patriarchy, but the Bible does not
speak patriarchy."
When I wrote my book, Child
Sexual Abuse: Hope for Healing, with Karen Burton Mains, I was
shocked to learn the degree to which the feminist movement was a
response to issues like incest, rape, and family violence. The
church should have been at the front of the wave, listening,
clarifying scripture, and teaching the gospel in its full
emancipatory power—rather than resisting, reacting, and
reinforcing systems of male privilege.
When I listen to young adult
college students, I am surprised and saddened that for many, their
views on gender relations are dictated more by cultural
assumptions than by a sound exegesis of the whole sweep of
Scripture. There is much work to be done. A whole generation has
grown up since I first received this good news.
Many of the issues around feminism
in ordinary every day life are social ones. Women will not be able
to share parenting, embrace a life calling, and be attentive to
community and to self, without the backing of the community. There
are huge structural changes needed in society as well as in
individual lives to help women and girls make this journey towards
fulfillment, and honoring all aspects of their lives in Christ. We
can’t do it by ourselves, or by changing the minds of a few people
around us. |
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