By Manis Rayles
January 18, 2012
I am a believer. If I had to name my religion, it would be Judaism-Islam. As the believers of both religions believe in One God, my heart stays indivisible. It is a paradox. I cannot choose between these two religions, the two principals of my family (in which there are also devout but very tolerant Catholics). In recent months I have attended evangelical churches in France, not to convert myself, but to study the Gospel and Scriptures that I know very little about. I accompany my best friend, who is an evangelist.
Hold a Dialogue With Believers
Thus, in recent months my feminist action has taken place with people I meet in evangelical churches. I have learned a lot from them; they are very warm people. I listen and ask them what they think about the low status of women. Women find it normal: woman is a help for man, with gentleness and patience, a woman can get everything from her husband. But I cannot talk openly about feminism if I do, my friend may be removed. So I ask questions, I ask them their opinions. And that makes us think together. Once, a woman I had never talked to said, during a meeting whose subject was How to Avoid Divorce: You men you talk about equality, but these are only words. You never do anything at home, we are your equal when it suits you. The pastor listened, and let this woman speak. An angry man left the room.
Here are some notable phrases Ive heard in evangelical churches: the woman is a gift that was created for man; womens emancipation encroaches on the pride of man; a man waits for a small intelligence from his wife: that she doesnt humiliate him, for instance; the woman has a natural impatience; the woman has the natural temptation to break free of the man, as man has the one to escape its responsibilities, so if everyone stays at ones place, there will be no trouble.
A Matter of Interpretation
In spite of the existence of this patriarchal society that has lasted for thousands of years, I continue to hope. Jews, especially Orthodox Jews, wait for the Messiah. Christians wait for the return of Jesus. In fact, feminism or even Communism is like religion: that is to say, it is a utopia. It is an ideal in which we believe and we hope.
I have experienced horrible things, but I know there is always worse. Some situations are unbearable and then only God can carry us: He is like a rock that I can hang on. When I take this into consideration I see feminism as a weapon that God has given me for my self-defense and to allow me to stand up. Therefore, feminism is my fight and my faith is my strength.
One wonders sometimes, Is God misogynist In fact, God is the greatest feminist because, firstly, He is the largest in all good things; and secondly, according to the Scriptures, the first human being exposed to free will as well as the imperative to make a choice, was a woman.
This post originally appeared at Feminists for Choice and is part of the Intimate Wars Blog Series appearing at Fem2.0 and The Cafe on January 17-18, 2012 in celebration of the anniversary of Roe v. Wade and the release of Merle Hoffmans memoirs, Intimate Wars. You can purchase a copy of her book here. To submit a post for the blog series, please contact Fem2.0, and dont forget to follow us on Twitter using #intimatewars