Is Religion Bad for Women's Development and the Pursuit of Gender Equality - Essay Example

?Is Religion Bad for Women's Development and the Pursuit of Gender Equality? Historically, religion was seen as counterproductive to development primarily because religious leaders tended to defend traditional moral standards, romanticize poverty and condemn materialism and wealth. However, since the Second World War, religions have become increasingly involved in developmental projects and in particular have played a significant role in bringing relief to the poor. For example, in 2006, when the UK’s Minister of finance implemented an immunisation programme for raising 2.1 billion pounds for children under 5 globally, the first significant contributors were Pope Benedict XVI, the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Chief Rabbi, the Muslim Council of Britain, the Hindu Forum of Britain and the Network of Sikh Organizations (Clarke & Jennings, 2008). Thus in determining whether or not religion is bad for women’s development and the pursuit of gender equality, it is important to avoid focusing narrowly on extremism and radicalism and to look more closely at the contributions of moderates (Clarke & Jennings, 2008). It is also important to acknowledge that secular approaches to development and the reduction of poverty have proven to be ineffective (Haynes, 2007). For example, despite secular projects in which governments have partnered with non-governmental organizations (NGOs), millions of people around the world, particularly “women and the poor” do not have “adequate healthcare” and/or opportunities for education (Haynes, 2007, p. 9). As a result, there has been a growing belief that secularism and faith-based organizations (FBOs) are both needed to ensure development and poverty reduction. Despite religion’s long and firmly established support of education for women and the poor, some doubt that religion can make a significant contribution to development (Aiken, 2010). Religious organizations and FBOs have persistently lent their support to the poor and destitute. This is especially true for victims in war torn areas and areas suffering the after-effects of natural disasters. Religious organizations and FBOs provide aid in these kinds of circumstances for two reasons: they recognize the “values of charity and mercy” and they adhere to the belief that all human beings have value (Ferris, 2005, p. 313). How can these values and beliefs, particularly when put into practice, be anything but good for women’s development and the pursuit of gender equality? In particular, since secularism has largely failed to achieve developmental objectives, religion was arguably the missing link between achieving development of women and gender equality. Moreover, NGOs have been more productive and effective in promoting equality and development across genders, races, ethnic groups and for providing relief to the poor and the destitute. As Ferris (2005) observes, NGOs have a much greater presence than governments across the globe. Many NGOs are not only operated by religions, but are also supported by religions. For example, in Asia, “thousands of NGOs” are operated by religious groups and “individuals with religious convictions” (Candland, 2000, p. 356). Moreover, Candland (2000) argues that despite the lack of empirical evidence: ...it is quite likely that a higher percentage of family income is contributed to social welfare groups in Buddhist and Muslim Asian societies, despite the absence of tax incentives, than in European and North American Societies. Buddhists and Muslims devote significant amounts of their income to private social welfare organizations (p. 357). Therefore compared to secular states, religious states have a greater awareness of social justice. In this regard, it can be argued that since religious practices, values and beliefs are manifested by a greater awareness of social and welfare justice, religion is not bad for the development of women and the pursuit of gender equality. Claims that religion is bad for the development of women and the pursuit of gender equality typically use Islamic states as an example. In this regard it is argued that Islamic values and beliefs are particularly oppressive to women and this is evidenced by the uneven empowerment of women compared to men. Men in Islamic societies usually hold positions of power and women who are subordinate to men are usually resigned to domestic duties and remain at home undereducated and under-employed. However, a study which analysed the treatment and position of women in a number of Islamic states found that religion was only marginally responsible for the treatment and position of women. Socio-economic factors were the main obstacles to the empowerment of women. Women were found to be primarily concerned with their own health and the health of their children. Moreover, the study found that Islamic values and beliefs as contained in the Holy Koran can be interpreted as permitting the empowerment of women (Bartelink & Buitelaar, 2011, p. 15). Tomalin (2011) also advises that beliefs that religion is bad for gender equality and the development of women are usually informed by socio-political tensions rather than religious contexts. For instance, images of Muslim women heavily veiled in public are immediately perceived by Western observers as oppressive and therefore bad for the development of women and gender equality. However, from the perspective of Muslims, refusal to change the dress code for Muslim women is important for giving expression to the rejection of Western ideology and imperialism. Therefore, Muslim women appearing in public unveiled are a signal to Muslims that they have embraced Western values and rejected traditional values (Tomalin, 2011). Therefore, Tomalin (2011) argues that when assessing the role of religion in the development of women and the pursuit of gender equality, it is important to look at it in context. Tomalin (2011A) demonstrates that even in religious cultures where religion oppresses women, religion can be used to empower women. In this regard, Tomalin (2011A) argues that in Buddhist Thailand, Buddhism as a religion for women is not officially recognized. As a result, girls who aspire to become Buddhist nuns are not accorded the same treatment as boys who aspire to become Buddhist monks. Boys are granted educational and economic support from the state and live in lavish temples. Girls who like their male counterparts, shave their heads, take vows of celibacy and surrender all of their personal possessions are not accorded the same opportunities. As a result girls are vulnerable to sex trafficking, the sex trade and HIV/AIDS. Vulnerability to the sex trade and sex trafficking and in turn HIV/AIDS is further enhanced by the fact that prostitution is perceived as a viable profession, particularly if income from the trade is used to purchase gifts for monks (Tomalin, 2011A). Feminist Buddhists however, have been active in rejecting Thailand’s official legislative banning of the ordination of women as nuns in a way that would make them equal to ordained men. Feminist Thai Buddhists have travelled to Sri Lanka where women can be ordained and have been ordained. Initially, upon returning to Thailand fully ordained and wearing the orange robe which signals that the individual has been ordained, ordained nuns were harassed by police officers and members of society. However, eventually, harassments have ebbed and at least one woman has been officially ordained in Thailand. Feminist Buddhists insist that it is not Buddhism that forbids female ordainment, but rather societal traditions that interpret Buddhism as a means of exploiting women. According to Buddhist feminists, Buddhism both recognizes and permits the equal empowerment of women and men (Tomalin, 2011A). Islam and Catholic religions are also demonstrating support for the empowerment of women despite popular beliefs. According to Bayes and Tohidi (2001) both Islamic and Catholic leaders agreed on universal rights for women demonstrating the potential of religion to foster development of women and gender equality in a post-modern world. The consensus came at the 1995 United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing. The Conference was particularly concerned with the practices attributed to religious conventions including forced marriages, genital mutilation and honour killings. However, as Hayes and Tohidi (2001) argue, these practices are either extremist in nature or borne of historical and cultural conventions rather than religious practices and beliefs. Catholics and Muslims at the Beijing conference advocated for the empowerment of women although they may have agreed on the promotion of beliefs that are seemingly counterproductive to female empowerment. In this regard, Islamic and Catholic leaders at the Beijing Conference advocated against abortion rights and sexual encounters outside of marriage. This was seemingly counterproductive to the empowerment of women as it is a manifestation of religious control of the female body. However, both Islamic and Catholic leaders argued for emphasizing the property rights of women over domestic duties and responsibilities. Moreover, Islamic and Catholic leaders at the Beijing Conference were equally committed to preventing the exploitation and degradation of women by virtue of explicit nudity in the media and through pornographic material (Hayes & Tohidi, 2001). Religion is therefore not bad for women’s development and the pursuit of gender equality. While there may be core religious beliefs and values that seek to control promiscuity and promote sexual morality, there are core religious beliefs that serve to empower women and to protect women from exploitation as evidenced by Catholic and Muslim leaders at the Beijing conference. Hawley (1999) also point out that fundamentalism which is largely linked to the promotion of gender inequality, is not representative of religious beliefs and practices globally. Fundamentalism is more appropriately defined as a movement by Eastern religions opposed to Westernization and a movement by Western religions opposed to modernization. In the case of both Islamic and Christian fundamentalisms, there is a tendency to be nostalgic and to hold on to the past and the values that appear to be eroded by Westernization and modernization respectively (Hawley, 1999). As Hawley (1999) explains, fundamentalism: ...keeps to the fore the sense shared by many militantly conservative religious groups that their cause is a principled one focusing on a restoration of divinely sanctioned core values – fundamentals – that have been attacked, obscured, or overridden by the forces of modernity...(p. 7). According to Hawley (1999), it is important to note that even in the religious fundamentalists’ pleas for a return to values, particularly those that subjugate women, and relegate women to domestic duties, women are particularly vocal among these groups. In other words, women are empowered and have the ability to choose issues and concerns and to articulate those concerns and issues. Moreover, despite the call for women to remain at home and care for the family, these fundamentalist religious groups offer greater protection for women than they have access to in the secular world (Hawley, 1999). It would therefore appear that women are not discriminated against by force, but embrace beliefs and values that necessarily confer specific duties on men and women. Hawley (1999) argues that none of this would be possible without the support of the secular world which emphasizes religious freedom and permits fundamentalists religions to articulate and practice beliefs that seemingly discriminate against women. Although fundamentalism does treat men and women differently, religion as a whole is not bad for women’s development and the pursuit of gender equality. Women are free to disassociate themselves from fundamentalist and conservative religions. Moreover, moderate religions and religious beliefs are demostratively good for gender equality and the development of women. Brusco (1997) uses an example from evangelicalism in Colombia to demonstrate that even fundamentalist religion can be beneficial to women. According to Brusco (1997) in Latin America in particular, women are drawn to Evangelicalism (Christian fundamentalist sects) in larger numbers than men are. In fact, it is the women that typically encourage the men in their families to join the Evangelical sects. Moreover, women in these Latin American Evangelical sects usually hold important positions and are leaders in their respective churches, something that they cannot achieve in Catholic Churches (Brusco, 1997). Informed by the popularity of Evangelicalism among Latin American women, Brusco (1997) conducted a study assessing the experiences of women in Colombian Evangelicalism and its impact on their lives. The study found that for women who had convinced their husbands to convert to Evangelicalism, their family lives were “more stable”, they enjoyed a “higher standard of living” and “improved relations with their spouses” (Brusco, 1997, p. 14). Therefore Brusco (1997) suggest that: Colombian Evangelicalism can be seen as a strategic form of women’s collective action, which, like Western feminism, seeks to transform gender roles to improve women’s position in society (p. 14). Fundamentalism is not as repressive as popularly thought. The Colombian experience demonstrates that Fundamentalism can be a place where women can escape suffering and can gain “some control over their personal lives” (Brusco, 1997). In this regard, even the most conservative religions have been able to empower women and thus cannot be said to be inconsistent with the development of women. While the treatment of women and men might be different in most Fundamentalist sects, gender equality may be compromised to a certain extent. However, as the secular world has proven, gender equality has not yet been fully achieved even in the most advanced and liberal societies. There are practices and rituals which are founded on religious texts and the more conservative or militant interpretation of those texts that are arguably inconsistent with the development of women and the pursuit of gender equality. Of particular concerns are honour killings and genital mutilations. However, these rituals and practices are not intricately tied to religion but can be seen as the exploitation of religious texts. These practices do not originate from official sects and religious leaders have become increasingly amenable to distancing their religions from these practices. For example, Islamic clerics in Somalia implemented an order known as a fatwa, in which the practice of female genital mutilation was condemned (Kroessin & Mohamed, 2008). Feminists have been particularly critical of Islam as a fundamentalist religion that is especially opposed to the development of women and gender equality (Foley, 2004). However, just as there are Fundamentalist Christians and moderate Christians, there are also both moderate and Fundamentalists Muslims. In both cases, religious texts can be interpreted to treat all genders equally and to promote the full development of men and women alike. For example, Malaysia is known as a “softer” Islamic state and women are highly mobile and active in all aspects of social and political life (Foley, 2004, p. 56). The role of religion in the development of women and the pursuit of gender equality has been a controversial subject. As demonstrated in this research paper, arguments that religion is bad for women’s development and the pursuit of gender equality is usually influenced by Fundamentalism which has a tendency to articulate a preference for traditional gender roles that appear to place women under the dominance of men. As a result, the social value and capital of religion in general, particularly that of moderates is usually undervalued. Moderate religion has long been linked to charity and the protection and support of women. In fact, even in Fundamentalist sects women have been able to find empowerment. Many of the degrading practices that tend to subjugate women are attributed to deliberate misinterpretations of religious texts. Religious texts can be interpreted to promote the empowerment of all genders. Although religion has shown that it can be used to prevent the development of women and gender equality, it has also shown that it can be used to empower women. In fact, religion has proven to be more effective for the empowerment of women than the secular world. Bibliography Aiken, A. (June 2010). “Assessing the Impact of Faith: A Methodological Contribution.” Praxis Note No. 55 International NGO Training and Research Centre, 1-12. Bartelink, B. and Buitelaar, M. (2011). “The Challenges of Incorporating Muslim Women’s Views into Development Policy: Analysis of a Dutch Action Research Project in Yemen.” In Tomalin, E. (Ed.).Gender, Faith and Development. Warwickshire, UK: Practical Action Publishing Ltd. Bayes, J. H. and Tohidi, N. (2001). “Introduction”. In Bayes, J. and Tohidi, N. (Eds.). Globalization, Gender, and Religion: The Politics of Women’s Rights in Catholic and Muslim Contexts. New York, NY: Palgrave. Brusco, E. E. 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