January-March 2004 • Web Explorations • EEWC-Christian Feminism Today

Introduction

Resources for Christian Living: Why female images for God matter, women in early Christianity, and an index of religion websites from Rutgers University.
Special Topic: Religious influences in silencing women's voices in music and art over history.
Current Issues: News items of interest to feminists.

Introduction

Greetings as we begin another year of "Web Explorations for Christian Feminists." I've been thinking about making some changes in format over the months to come; but for now, the only change will be a discontinuance of the feature called, "The World Wide Web and You." The site will now consist of only three sections: resources for Christian living and learning, a special topic, and current events.

Since the links under these headings will take you to sites outside eewc.com, please keep in mind that the Evangelical and Ecumenical Women's Caucus cannot be responsible for their content. Nor does the inclusion of a link mean that this represents an official position of EEWC. Rather, the links will simply direct you to sites that I think you'll find interesting, informative, challenging, and/or inspiring. I hope you'll enjoy exploring them.

Resources for Christian Living and Learning

Images of God
Here is an excellent summary of some of the female images of God found in scripture. This site from The Lutheran, November 2001, a publication of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, helps us see that each biblical image of God provides another glimpse of what God is like. But at the same time, we are reminded that none of the many images of God in Scripture is complete in itself. The author, Elna Solvang, is an assistant professor of religion at Concordia College, Moorhead, Minnesota.

Why God Is Often "She"
In this article from Beliefnet.com, Elizabeth Johnson, author of She Who Is, provides further evidence of female imagery for God in Scripture. She tells why it is important, in our seeking to learn more about the nature of God, that we do not neglect evidence of God's maternal relationship to the world.

Women in early Christianity
Ancient texts discovered in recent years provide a new view of women's leadership roles in early Christianity. Karen L. King, Professor of New Testament Studies and the History of Ancient Christianity at Harvard University Divinity School, prepared this overview as a supplement to PBS's Frontline series, "From Jesus to Christ: The First Christians."

Virtual Religion Index from Rutgers University
Here you can find information about virtually any topic related to religion (in the broadest sense of the word). It contains an impressive array of links and is an excellent resource for research.

Special Topic

Silencing women's voices in music and art

The BBC reported in January that for the first time since 1992, a woman was seen singing on television in Afghanistan. This angered the deputy chief justice of Afghanistan's Supreme Court, who called the public singing of women "un-Islamic" and demanded such broadcasts be stopped. At first, executives of the state run television station reconsidered their decision about allowing women to sing on TV, thinking that perhaps the country was not yet ready for such broadcasts. They were ready to discontinue the practice. But Culture Minister Sayed Makhdoom Raheen stepped in and reminded the executives that this was a new day in Afghanistan and that the new constitution included equal rights for women. So the singing continued.

However, more evidence of a sharp division over the practice soon showed up in media reports. Some religious and political leaders vehemently protested the appearance of women and said such broadcasts must cease. These leaders claimed that to prohibit women's singing on TV would not deny women their rights but that women's rights would more honorably be served if women fulfilled their "natural role in society." That role included being veiled (something the singers did not do) as well as remaining quietly behind the scenes. The religious and political leaders who wanted to silence women's voices believed that Islamic law, as they interpreted it, has actually been embedded in the new constitution and must be followed. At this writing, the controversy was continuing.

As I read those reports, I thought about how women's voices have been silenced again and again throughout history in the name of religion. Western culture is no exception. There was a time in Christian history when 1 Corinthians 14:34 ("Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak.") was used not only to prohibit women's speaking in church but also to keep women from singing in church choirs.

And such attitudes spilled over into areas outside of institutionalized religion as well, with women's musical talents stifled or left unrecognized as a result. One of the most egregious examples of the lengths to which the church went to keep women's voices silenced in public worship was the period when choirs employed men known as castrati singers. To produce powerful voices with upper registers, many boys were castrated to prevent their voices from deepening as they grew into adulthood . That way, choirs (and opera) could be assured of having high voices available without the necessity of using female singers. In 2001, human rights groups and historians in Italy called upon the Pope to apologize for the Church's historical condoning of such practices (even though officially forbidden). The practice was said to have been tolerated into the 20th century.

In an excerpt from her book, Eunuchs for the Kingdom of Heaven: Women, Sexuality, and the Catholic Church, Uta Ranke-Heinemann, a Roman Catholic feminist theologian in Germany, refers to the general prohibition of women's singing in church. She shows that it is but one item on a long list of ways the Church instituted repression of women as it moved away from the teachings and practices of Jesus and the early believers. You can read more about the prohibitions of women's ministry over history, including proscriptions against women's singing at Women Priests.org.

Of course, Christianity, whether in its Roman Catholic expression or in the myriad of Protestant denominations, is by no means the only religious faith in which a patriarchal takeover has kept women from exercising their God-given gifts. Karen Armstrong, whose book The Battle for God has received widespread acclaim, wrote an article entitled "The Eve of Destruction" in the January 14, 2004 issue of the British newspaper, The Guardian, in which she tells of ways women have been devalued and discriminated against in all the major world faiths. What prompted her to write the article was the renewed efforts of a group opposed to women priests in the Anglican Church and desirous of promoting an all-male enclave within the church as a preemptive move before women are consecrated as bishops. The group opposed to women in church leadership uses the name "Forward in Faith."

Teachings about women's voice have also appeared in traditional Jewish teachings, which instructed men not to listen to a woman's singing if she is not related to them. Similarly, Islamic teachings have also provided warnings about women's voices and the intimacy and temptation they may create. Strict guidelines, with regard to tone and volume, must be followed when women speak.

Despite all the restrictions that have placed obstacles in the paths of women who wanted to develop and use their voices and other talents, women have nevertheless achieved over the ages. They have composed, performed, painted, sculpted, and spoken publicly. Here are some sites to explore:

Women's Early Music, Art, and Poetry
A goldmine of links to sites showing women's achievements in these fields.

Women in art
On this site, you can click on a long list of names of women artists and see their paintings as well as read about their lives.

Feminism in art
This site presents both illustrations and analysis of art in relation to the feminist movement.

An Interview with the Guerilla Girls
The Guerilla Girls comprise an unusual group of feminist activists who fight bigotry in the art world through humor. Here they talk about how they get noticed and what impact their message has been having.

Gifts of Speech: Women's speeches from around the World
This excellent resource from Sweet Briar College provides a vast array of online speeches by women, including Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Sojourner Truth, Susan B. Anthony, Helen Keller, Marie Curie, Eleanor Roosevelt, Shirley Chisholm, Betty Friedan, Barbara Jordan, and many, many more. Just click on "Browse," and then choose names or dates. Plan to spend a long time on this site and to revisit it many times.

Current Issues

New book on women inventors throughout history
(Guardian Online, January 23, 2003)

"World's Women Look to Win"
BBC, December 31, 2003

Saudi Arabia's veil challenge
BBC, January 21, 2004

"Unveiled women anger Saudi cleric"
BBC, January 21,2004

Muslim cleric jailed in Spain for book on beating wives without leaving marks
BBC, January 14, 2004

"Cleric gets 15 months for book on how to beat wives" (more on story above)
San Francisco Chronicle, January 15, 2004

"Morocco boosts women's rights"
The Guardian, January 21, 2004

Britain has its first female judge on highest court
BBC, January 12, 2004

More about Britain's first female law lord and her views
The Guardian, November 6, 2003

Tech savvy women treated poorly when shopping for electronics
BBC, January 11, 2003

Making decisions about hormone therapy
San Francisco Chronicle, January 18, 2004

Women in politics: San Francisco's example
San Francisco Chronicle, January 23, 2004

A lesbian feminist Muslim calls for reform
San Francisco Chronicle, January 19, 2004

First woman to head a major city fire department
San Francisco Chronicle, January 11, 2004

"Saudi Women use Koran to advance fight for equality"
San Francisco Chronicle, December 28, 2004

"My life as a modern day slave"
(BBC, January 26, 2003). For more information on human trafficking and the modern slave trade, see the following human rights sites: Stop Human Traffic and its parent site, Anti-slavery International. Also, check out Free the Slaves. You might also want to check out the January/February, 2004 issue of Mother Jones magazine, noting especially these articles: "Against All Odds" and "21st Century Abolitionists."

That's all for this edition of "Web Explorations for Christian Feminists." I hope it has stretched your mind and heart and provided new ideas and information to think about. It may take you many visits to check out all of the links, so be sure to come back and visit us often. And don't forget to look at the archived editions as well.

Your Web Explorations tour guide,

Letha Dawson Scanzoni