By Mary
Feminism has been on my mind a lot lately. Now, put aside
the secular, man-hating, anything-you-can-do-I-can-do-better type of feminism.
The concept that’s been kicking around inside my head has been whether or not
Christians should be on board with feminism, with the simplest definition for
feminism in this instance being the pursuit of “gender equality”.
I’ve read
some very well written words on the subject, words that have made me go back
and evaluate my beliefs about men and women and the foundations of those
beliefs. And in the end there are two particular points that seem to be core
beliefs among those who pursue gender equality and with which I disagree.
The first
is that if limits or boundaries are placed on you because you are a woman (or
man), it automatically follows that you are devalued. The second is that
femininity and masculinity are basically just culturally manufactured concepts.
My goal
for writing this is not to provide some kind of detailed viewpoint of Biblical
roles for men and women. But I would
like to address in particular those two points and challenge the idea that
“equal” automatically means “the same”. Or that gender roles of any kind are a
sexist perversion of the proper way of things, instead of God’s well-designed order
from the beginning.
I agree wholeheartedly with the concept that men and women
deserve the same amount of respect and that their minds, hearts, bodies, and
souls are of equal worth and value. It has nothing to do with our abilities or
our IQs, it doesn’t come from our achievements or any of the statistics people
may gather. “When God created man, He made him in the likeness of
God. Male and female He created them, and He blessed them and named them
Man when they were created.” I am completely in favor of pursuing equitable and honorable
treatment of all human beings, but a pursuit of gender equality is
unnecessary-God made us all and He made us equal.
So when the Bible says,
“For
man was not made from woman, but woman from
man. Neither was man created for woman, but woman for man”,
it doesn’t mean He created half the
population to be prey to the other half’s vices. When humans were first
created, there was no sin, no vice to mar the relationship between them. But it
does say “Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man
should be alone; I will make him
a helper fit for[e] him.”“ It
seems that many times those words are read negatively and I’m not sure why. In
the business world, we’re honored to be considered qualified by an employer for
the job opening we’ve been aiming for. How much more of an honor to be designed
perfectly qualified, and suited for a position from our God to partner in the
stewardship of all the rest of His creation, and to enjoy relationship with
Him. That job, that role is for His glory and in accordance to His plan, not
men’s.
My
understanding as a Christian is that women are not made for men’s personal
pleasures, purposes or designs. But neither are we made for our own pursuit of
pleasure, ambition, or self-fulfillment. The same is true of men. None of us
exist purely to do as we please or to benefit ourselves (or anyone else on
earth). As believers in Christ, male and female, we willingly accept God’s
claim to our lives and we place ourselves under His authority, even to the
point of self-denial*. So if God also asked something of us based on whether we
are a male human or female human I don’t really see where the problem arises. I
don’t know how that would take away any of the value He has given to our lives.
The vast
majority of everything written in the Bible outlines the same goals and
purposes for men as for women. He gives His gifts of the Holy Spirit to all, He
uses all, sanctifies all. He tells us
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is
no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” Again, all equal.
Yet He gives guidance on how to utilize the gifts He gives us if we are a man
or woman. For instance; “I do not permit
a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather she is to remain
quiet”. Because of the rest of the content of the Bible, I know this isn’t because
God doesn’t value a woman’s intellect, or doubt her capabilities. It doesn’t
mean He never gives women gifts of teaching, or leading. It merely means He has
other avenues for us in which to use those gifts--and honestly if we think we
are only truly valued if we are able to teach men then what does that say to
the value we place on other women, the importance of their instruction? Or why
should we not be content to guide and teach the next generation in the way that
they should go?
Any
unbalance between the sexes does not come from Biblical, gender based roles
being imposed upon them but rather by the abuse or neglect of those roles by
men or women due to the sin nature we all inherit.
I also
believe it is harmful to attempt to minimize the differences between men and
women. We are all created in His image but He chose two unique subcategories. This
doesn’t mean that any particular sex has a monopoly on any character quality or
physical trait, whether it be emotional intuition, physical strength, patience,
intellect, verbal communication, leadership, problem solving, compassion,
cooking skills, organizational ability, empathy, service, or anything else
under the sun. God makes us each individually unique and our experiences in
life do much to shape us. Perhaps that is why people sometimes try so hard to
avoid having categories of “feminine” and “masculine”. Nobody really fits
completely inside one box or the other. However, I think this is not because
femininity and masculinity are merely artifice but because both come from God. He
is neither man nor woman, nor even the sum of both together and we are too
limited and finite right now to fully understand Him. But the unique
characteristics of our natures, roles and affinities reflect His attributes,
from the macho man to the girly girl and every kind of variance in-between. As
sinners we will always have something to work on, something to grow to
appreciate, or perhaps an area naturally weak or lacking in which God shows us
we need to grow, as well as desires or inclinations that may require restraint.
Even so, I believe it’s better to acknowledge distinction between men and women
as unique creations of God and appreciate the differences between us than to
try to disregard them entirely.
One day we will
see clearly and know fully, both our God and ourselves. “Beloved,
now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be,
but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see
Him as He is.” For now, when we embrace our roles and follow them in the
unique ways God has planned for us, when we grow in our areas of weakness and
utilize our strengths in accordance with His design, we not only stay in the
path He has laid for us but also understand and know Him better here and now. And what calling could be greater than
that? “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
