Are all world religions patriarchal? Substantiate your answer with examples. (UPSC CSE Mains 2019 - Sociology, Paper 1)
- Gender, simply defined, is the social construction of the expectations, behavior, privileges and constraints associated with those identified as male or female. Gender has become significant in the understanding of development and social phenomena especially in developing nations in view of the inequitable participation of men and women in the social organization of society. Gender, religion and patriarchy are foundational social constructs operating at the basis of social organization of society.
- Most feminists argue along similar lines to functionalists and Marxists that religion acts as a conservative force, maintaining the status quo. For feminists, that status quo is a patriarchal society. Simone De Beauvoir (1953) took a very similar view to traditional Marxists, only instead of seeing religion as assisting in the subjugation of the workers, she saw it as exploiting and oppressing women. She argued that religious faiths encouraged women to be meek, to put up with inequality, exploitation and suffering and doing so will bring rewards in the afterlife.
There are several ways in which religion can promote patriarchy:
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- Through religious scripture / teachings
- Through religious ceremonies and practices
- Through the structure and power-relations of religious organisations
Examples of Patriarchy in Religion
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- In several religions, women are presented as temptresses who distract men from the serious business of worship. In the bible, it is the first woman, Eve, who disobeys God and then goes on to tempt Adam and bring about his downfall too.
- Religious texts are full of male Gods, male prophets, male saints and male heroes. The books are written by men and interpreted by men.
- In many religions both menstruation and pregnancy are treated as impure or ungodly. For example, in Islam women who are menstruating are not allowed to touch the Koran. Jean Holm (1994) suggests that these various restrictions on the participation of women contribute to the devaluation of women in many contemporary religions.
- Karen Armstrong (1993) argues that it was the development of monotheistic religions, with their all-powerful male Gods (such as Judaism, Christianity and Islam) which imbued religion with a patriarchal and sexist core. She points out that various goddesses and priestesses were replaced with male prophets.
- In many religious teachings across a wide range of religions, women are given the role of nurturing, caring and giving birth. While these roles are presented positively and as essential, they reinforce the gender norms in society and the patriarchal power structures. If women choose not to conform to gender stereotypes, they are not only deviating from gender norms and family expectations, but deviating from God’s will too.
All world religions are inherently patriarchal. The scriptures offer justification for exploitation and the rituals keep the women subordinate in the structure. But due to secularisation of religions and modernisation, religion is becoming more accommodating.
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