Gender and religion

• Religion as being patriarchal - religious scriptures

  in most religious scriptures women are subordinate to men

  -De Beauviour - scriptures suggest 'man is master by divine right'
• Religion as being patriarchal - being barred from priesthood

  women are excluded from the priesthood in all major religions
• Religion as being patriarchal - stained glass ceiling

  women face the same obstacles to careers progression in the church as they face in other organisations
• Religion as being patriarchal - patriarchal religious doctrines

  in most religions the ideology emphasises subordination of women and their role as wives and mothers
• Religion as being patriarchal - veiling of women (Albridge)

  hijabs keep women invisible and anonymous
• Religion as being patriarchal - the portrayal of women as sexual predators and corrupters

  sex for reproduction only, and women are out to seduce to men to defer them from their religious duties
• Religion as being patriarchal - women have fewer rights than men

  -islam - men can have multiple wives and women can't have multiple husbands

  -Catholicism- bans contraception, abortion and divorce
• Evaluation of religion being patriarchal-

  ancient polythetic religion- female goddesses were worshipped equally with male Gods in ancient Greece, Rome and Egypt

  changes in monotheistic religions - female bishops from 2015 (Aldridge)

  religion as a resistance to patriarchy- Ahmed, Watson and Woodhead suggest veils are freeing women of male gaze and sexual harassment
• why do more women participate in religion - differential socialisation (Miller and Hoffman)


  -women are taught to be submissive and passive and these characteristics are associated with religion

  -A02- research has shown that less passive and obedient men are less likely to be involved in religion
• Structural location (Bruce)


  -women take more part in religion because of their social roles

  -men are more likely to be the breadwinner, so women have more time for church related activities
• Risk-taking (Miller and Hoffman)


  -men are more likely to take risks than women and not being religious can be seen as taking a risk because could lead to not going to heaven
• Life events and caring roles

  Davie- women feel closer to God because they are involved in life and death

  Greeley- caring and nurturing skills tend to be associated with highly religious outlooks

  Walker and Davie- women feel closer to God due to their involvement in the creation of life
• Eval- poverty and deprivation (Glendinning and Bruce)


  -W/C women tend to support religions

  -M/C women have more experiences in controlling their lives and are attracted to New Age movements
• Aune - eval (decline in womens religious participation)


  1. Feminism- feminist movement has led to women questioning the role of women in society as well as religious organisations
  2. Changing role of women- paid work limits the time they have to religious activities
  3. Changing family relationships- contemp society has growing diversity in family structures which are disapproved by traditional churches