The Feminist View of Religion (AQA A Level Sociology): Revision Note

Feminism & religion

• Feminists view religion as a patriarchal institution that supports and reproduces gender inequality, making it a conservative force

• Women are often marginalised by religious teachings, practices, and organisational structures

• Feminists criticise functionalism and Marxism as 'malestream' since both ignore how religion justifies male power and women’s subordination

Religion is patriarchal

• Male-dominated organisations:

  • Women often outnumber men as participants, yet men hold the top positions

    • E.g., women cannot be priests in Catholicism and Orthodox Judaism

• Marginalisation in worship:

  • Women may be excluded from sacred spaces or segregated

    • E.g., menstruating women are barred from temples or from touching the Qur’an in Islam

• Sacred texts:

  • Written and interpreted by men, they feature male gods and prophets

  • Women are often portrayed as sinful or weak

    • E.g., Eve in Genesis, blamed for humanity’s fall

• Religious laws and customs:

  • These often restrict women’s rights in areas such as divorce, marriage, dress codes, and reproductive control

    • E.g., Islam restricts women’s rights in divorce and polygamy; Catholicism bans abortion and contraception

• Daly (1978)

  • She argues that monotheistic religions, e.g. Christianity, replaced goddess traditions with male-dominated structures

  • Christianity erased polytheistic religions (like paganism) that included powerful female deities

Second-class believers

• Beauvoir (1953): Religion tricks women into believing they are equal before God and will be rewarded in the afterlife, encouraging them to accept oppression

• Religion socialises women to worship male gods, reinforcing male superiority

• Holm (2001): Women are often excluded from positions of religious authority or treated as polluting, reinforcing their lower status

• Many faiths emphasise women’s obedience, modesty, and purity, embedding subordination.

The stained glass ceiling

• Armstrong (1993): Women are often excluded from positions of power within mainstream religious institutions

  • E.g., the Church of England only ordained women bishops in 2015, and some traditionalists continue to oppose this change

Cultural institutions

• El Saadawi (1980): Religion is not inherently patriarchal; instead, men in positions of cultural power reshaped religious practices to serve male interests

• Religion became a patriarchal tool in Arab cultures due to male dominance in interpretation, even though the texts themselves are not always oppressive

Religion is not only patriarchal

• Some feminists argue that religion can also be a source of liberation and empowerment, offering women respect, status, and identity

Empowerment through religious practices

• Woodhead (2009): Religion does not always oppress women; it can give them opportunities for status, self-expression, and a sense of identity

• New Age movements: Often celebrate traditionally ‘feminine’ qualities such as

  • intuition

  • healing

  • nurturing

  • spirituality

• Through practices like goddess worship, Mother Earth traditions and women's circles, women can achieve recognition and a positive self-image

Challenging patriarchy through faith

• Gilliat-Ray (2010): For some young British Muslim women, wearing the hijab helps secure parental approval for education/employment and can be experienced as autonomy/empowerment, not merely oppression

• Brusco (2012): In Colombia, Pentecostal women used religion to increase influence at home, challenging male machismo and demanding respect

Ritual authority & symbolism

• In Hinduism, women often lead domestic puja, fasting rituals, and life-cycle ceremonies, giving them moral authority within families

• Goddess traditions, such as the worship of Shakti, symbolically elevate female divine power and challenge male dominance

Alternative roles & traditions

• Catholic nuns can achieve independence from traditional domestic roles, offering women an alternative life of autonomy and service

• Liberal Protestant denominations (e.g., Quakers, Unitarians) actively promote gender equality

  • Around a third of Unitarian ministers are female, reflecting this commitment