Introduction

 Previous Issues

Welcome to the Spring, 2008 edition of Web Explorations for Christian Feminists. Here you’ll find links to both textual material and audio/video resources available online. Please remember that the links in Web Explorations take you to sites outside eewc.com and thus EEWC can’t be responsible for their content. Nor does the inclusion of a link mean that it necessarily represents the views of EEWC. The links simply take you to some websites that I have found to be interesting, informational, inspirational, enjoyable, eye-opening, or of concern; and I wanted to share them with you. They are sites that tell us about people, ideas, and events that I think we, as Christian feminists (as well as our sisters and brothers of other faiths), should know about and care about. I’ve listed them in no particular order.

Beliefnet’s Joke of the Day
We all need to relax and have a good laugh now and then.  If you like religion-based humor, check out some of the jokes, bumper stickers, church bulletin bloopers, and other materials on Beliefnet’s “joke of the day” page.

“The world’s greatest untapped alternative resource: women”
Writing in her blog for the National Catholic Reporter, Joan Chittister reports from the international conference of the Women's Global Peace Initiative held in Jaipur, India, March 6-10, 2008.

Women’s History Timeline (text, slide show, and audio)
The BBC’s “Women’s Hour” provides this fascinating and informative summary of women’s history, decade by decade, from 1900 until now.  For each decade, you can watch a slide show with commentary or read a print version, or you can just glance over the highlights of notable women and events.

Obedience and Action (audio)
In this audio interview from the American Public Media program, Speaking of Faith, Sister Joan Chittister tells of her calling to be a nun and how she began questioning certain theological teachings and learned to speak out for social justice from early childhood. You can listen to Speaking of Faith programs online immediately, download them for later listening, or receive them as part of a free Podcast subscription.

Remembering Forward (audio)
In this presentation before a live audience, Krista Tippitt, host of Speaking of Faith, reads from her book of the same title, which includes her own spiritual and intellectual journey and reflections  on her conversations with thoughtful guests from many religious traditions.

Saudi women stage a video protest (text and video)
Activists in Saudi Arabia, chafing under the law that denies women the right to drive, have produced a short video showing a woman at the wheel and have posted it on YouTube. You can also watch the CNN report, which includes part of the video with an English translation of the driver’s words.

The sharia law dispute in the U.K.
What happens when the laws and customs of a religious group differ from those of the country in which large numbers of the group reside? Recent remarks from the Archbishop of Canterbury about sharia law had unintended consequences, igniting a dispute that had already been smoldering among British citizens about how far religious tolerance should go.  Be sure to read the articles in the sidebar with this article, especially the F.A.Q. which provides a primer on sharia law, defined here as “a broad code of conduct governing all aspects of life, from dietary rules to the wearing of the hijab, which Muslims can choose to adopt in varying degrees as a matter of personal conscience.” The varied meanings of sharia law in sharia states are also discussed.

Girls who bully other girls and what to do about it
This article from The Observer shows the serious damage done to girls when bullied by other girls, both in and out of school, and how the tactics of female bullies differ from those used by male bullies.

Same Son, Bigger Sneakers
If you’re a parent, you’ll identify with columnist Connie Schultz’s touching essay about her feelings when her son became a father.

What Lessons Will Girls Take from Hillary?
While not promoting a particular political candidate and aware that feminists have different opinions (“Smart women disagree all the time.”), Connie Schultz remembers how, as an 11-year-old, she and her friends talked about growing up to be president someday. Now that a woman is running for president, she wonders what young girls are learning as they observe the pettiness, stereotyping, misogyny, and downright nastiness (even from other women) that has often reared its ugly head in caricaturing Hillary Clinton. “Even if we can't support her as a candidate,” writes Schultz, “we ought to acknowledge the history that she is making — for us and for our daughters and granddaughters. And we ought to point out to them that making history sure has a downside.”

Everyday Equality.
Remembering the not-so-long-ago, Newsweek columnist Anna Quindlen reminds us why feminism is still needed.  Debunking the old notion that second-wave feminism was a battle against men (still heard in some circles), Quindlen shows us that “the battle was really against waste, the waste of talent, the waste to society, the waste of women who had certain gifts and goals and had to suppress both.”

Feminist Jews Revive Ritual Bath for Women (Text and Audio)
This Web page provides a National Public Radio report on the mikvah, or ritual bath, that observant Jewish women have long practiced after menstruation.  The practice is based on some verses from Leviticus 15.  You can either read or listen to the report, which points out that “for several generations, the practice has been dismissed by liberal Jews as primitive and demeaning. But in recent years, the mikvah has been making something of a comeback, as even the most feminist Jews are reinventing the ritual for the 21st century.”  On this same Web page, you can also listen to a brief audio commentary by novelist Anita Diamant, who tells of the progress toward female and male equality in Judaism and why she believes that “feminism is actually a profound expression of Judaism’s mission.”

Fashion Police in Tehran
A BBC report on the clash of ideas about how women should dress in Iran.

“To be safe, call the bride by her first name”
The continuing question about surnames after marriage.

Lesbian couple’s tragedy results in domestic partnership law (Text and video)
Kate Fleming and Charlene Strong were a devoted couple who had been together for 10 years. Since same-sex couples could not be legally married or have even domestic partnership privileges in the state of Washington, they had declared their vows in a commitment ceremony, publicly symbolizing their love for each other.  Then in December 2006, Kate tragically lost her life when a flash flood trapped her in their basement and destroyed the couple’s Seattle home. She was still alive when an ambulance rushed her to the hospital. But hospital rules required Charlene to lose precious time because she had to seek permission from Kate’s legally recognized next of kin before she was allowed to go to her dying partner’s bedside.  The tragic injustice of it all, and Charlene’s efforts to persuade the legislature to enact a law to prevent such treatment of other same-sex couples, resulted in passage of Domestic Partnership legislation in her home state.

Changing ideas about baby girls in South Korea
According to this New York Times report, “In South Korea, once one of Asia’s most rigidly patriarchal societies, a centuries-old preference for baby boys is fast receding. And that has led to what seems to be a decrease in the number of abortions performed after ultrasounds that reveal the sex of a fetus.”

That’s all for this edition of “Web Explorations for Christian Feminists.” Hope you enjoy these new discoveries from my ongoing travels on the World Wide Web. Be sure to check out the archives, too.

Your Web Explorations Guide
Letha Dawson Scanzoni