Religious feminism. Religion & Theology Research Paper.

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Impact of feminism
Over the years, women have fought for their rights and equality in many areas of life –from family settings, workplace, leadership to religion. Despite being the most considerable population globally, women still suffer from uneven access to education, unemployment, poor medical care, religious freedom, pitiable political representation, lack of employment and legal protections, and bodily autonomy. For example, women still hold less than 15% of executive officers and 20% of political positions worldwide (Calais-Haase et al., np). Besides, women still earn lower incomes as compared to men with the same jobs. These challenges are higher for women of color, especially those living in developing countries. In reality, the major religions still hold negative perceptions about women holding positions in the house of worship. In their defense, women have consistently challenged gender inequalities by defying stereotypes in workplaces, leadership, families, and, most importantly, in the house of worship. This study explores the impact of feminism on the American Jews communities and the country at large.
Customary lists of the past most influential religious leaders – among the Muhammad, Jesus, Siddhartha Gautama, Abraham, Moses – tend to be primarily, if not entirely, male. With this in mind, religious groups such as orthodox Jews and Roman Catholics only allow men to the clergy. Other evangelical Protestants have only lifted their restriction in recent decades (Heschel, 218). Yet, it is apparent that women dominate most houses of worship. For example, in the United States, 64% of religious people are women. In actual fact, women have outnumbered men in many United States benches that some clergy have adjusted the songs, décor, and worship styles to lure more men into the congregations (Calais-Haase et al., np). Similar gender inequalities have been recorded in other countries, mainly in Europe.
A hundred years ago, the struggle for women inequalities did not exist, as it was considered inconsequential. Little attention was paid to gender inequalities and their influence on religious teaching and practices (Fishman, 10). In other words, some religions and their scriptures have been considered sound, thus cannot be questioned. In Christianity, more specifically, the Roman Catholic, women are still not allowed to become priests despite the many teachings of Jesus that affirm that all people are equal before their creator (Levenson, 340). That is to say, and most Catholics believe that women cannot be priests, as it is enshrined in the doctrine of the church and cannot be questioned because it is infallible. Likewise, nobody appears to question why the Pope must be male, primarily because the Pope means Father, and perhaps the notion of a woman becoming a Pope is improbable. It seems that the idea of female consecration in catholic is something that will not happen anytime soon.
Historically, the Roman Catholic has maintained that priest ordination cannot be validly conferred on women. Although some unorthodox groups entrusted priestly roles to women, this arrangement was criticized and condemned by Fathers, who argued it was wrong and una...