Does the Bible discriminate against women?

[goodlife]

In Asia most parents would prefer boys to girls.
In developing countries women die from pregnancy or childbirth as a result of the lack of basic medical care.
Many cultures follow religious beliefs and practices that justify abuse of women.

[emmie]

is this to do with religion or simply cultural. After all the west's attitude to women has been quite poor, when you consider that women in Britain didn't get the vote to 1928 and has had to fight every step of the way to get any degree of quality. In Asia perhaps males are preferred to females because males are expected to work, bring in wages, girls to marry and beget more children, but also in many societies to look after the elderly parents.

[naomi24]

Yes it does - and so does the Koran.

[Old_Geezer]

That religion was formed in a society where males were becoming the dominant gender (at least outside the home) so one might expect a slant in favour of the male. However I think it to simplistic to then blame the religion for lack of medical care and suchlike.

[NOX]

It's not unique to Asia, it was the same in Europe, in fact still is to some people, Christianity is a patriarchal society when the male is always favoured.

[argorstran]

Goodlife Asia is the one continent where biblical religions are very much in the minority .

[vetuste_ennemi]

Please cut out the middleman (us the "respondents"), Goodlife, and paste in the Watchtower quote you've got prepared.

[LazyGun]

Short answer - Yes, it does.

[naomi24]

//Please cut out the middleman (us the "respondents"), Goodlife, and paste in the Watchtower quote you've got prepared. //

Do I get a sense that you know where this is going, VE? ;o)

[MoonRocker]

The Bible, like all the various books of religious fables, descriminates against humans, full stop. How anyone with any intelligence can believe a word of it never ceases to amaze me.

[atalanta]

The whole point of all male-dominated religions is for men to control women. There is evidence that before male-dominated religions, women were worshipped as goddesses because they could miraculously make new life within themselves. When men started collecting assets, they wanted to be sure that they could bequeathe them all to their real flesh and blood, and not to the sons of other men. So they had to control women ( harems, virtual slavery, etc) to ensure they couldn't commit adultery.

[goodlife]

Many today cite religious texts to legitimize the domination of women.
Take education for example, women & girls make up about 2 thirds of
Of those who have had less than 4 yrs of schooling.
With regard to sexual abuse and harassment marital rape is still not considered a crime in some lands.
Basic medical care is considered unnecessary with regards to childbirth and many women die from pregnancy and complications at birth.
Until recently in the western culture, whatever a woman had became her husband’s on marriage and she was regarded as his “property”.
Even as recently as this week, my wife was not able to conduct business on my behalf (I am out of the country at the moment) because she did not have a written consent from me.
But should this be so? According to the Bible, No.

[naomi24]

Goodlife, //But should this be so? According to the Bible, No. //

It would be helpful if you told us what you're talking about.

[naomi24]

Well, no response, so there's clearly no point to this thread. Perhaps Goodlife just felt like waffling.

[EDDIE51]

goodlife, if you were in a relationship with another man, he would not be able to conduct business on you behalf unless he had a signed consent from you !
It has NOTHING to do with sex, religion or the bible !!.
Your son or daughter could not conduct business on your behalf without your written consent.

[goodlife]

Sorry not to have responded but I am out of the country at the moment, and it is difficult to get access to the internet.

Yes, Eddie I know you have to give written consent for someone to conduct business onmy behalf. But the point I am making is that in the Bible, the woman has the authority to conduct business.
Proverbs Chapter 31 shows the authority a wife has. She not only looks after her household, but she can conduct business and her husband can leave things in her capable hands.
True today, that would not always be a wise thing to do because of divorce, etc. etc. But women are not 2nd rate citizens and the Bible shows that in God's eyes, she has as much right as a man. It is only man himself that has chosen to make the woman insiginificant.

[boxtops]

As naomi says ^^, the Koran also permits this - Mohammed's wife Khadijah was a successful businesswoman in her own right before he married her, and she carried on trading. Modern culture has undermined this. It is sometimes difficult, IMO, for outsiders to distinguish between cultural and religious practices, particularly where interpretation has been put upon religious sayings to make the text fit modern man's ideals.

[boxtops]

PS I've always understood that the Asian preference for boys was because boys work and bring income to the family, girls marry and cost dowries - but this is cultural not religious.

[jake-the-peg]

Really Goodlife?

But women are not 2nd rate citizens and the Bible shows

Do you actually read that book?


1 Corinthians 11:3
But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man

Colossians 3:18
Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord.

Titus 2:4-5
Teach the young women to be ... obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.

1 Timothy 2:11-15
Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.

[RATTER15]

Goodlife, why do you come back on here to spout all this nonsense when all you do is twist words and biblical passages etc. to suit your agenda. You surely know that whatever you write or quote will be destroyed in a few words by folk that know far more about religion and the Bibles than you will ever know.

Give it a rest!!!

[boxtops]

"Until recently in the western culture, whatever a woman had became her husband’s on marriage and she was regarded as his “property”. "

The Married Women's Property Act became legal in the UK in 1882 - is 130 years "recent"?