The Baha'i Studies Listserv > I think that depends on which interpretations you look to. There are > definitely Christian groups (e.g. the Quakers) who are more > egalitarian than the Bahai faith where gender in no way shape or form > is related to differences in roles or treatment. The picture is more > mixed if you look at more mainstream Protestant denominations and > there is also an apples vs. oranges issue. (The Anglican Church has > female bishops but is a bishop comparable to being on the UHJ?)
Dear Gilberto, I would think it is more the equivalent to being a Counselor, a position which women can and do hold. I'm thinking more in terms of what our respective scriptures say, not necessarily the extent to which they have adopted the values of the secular world. > > And even in Islam, are you talking about Amina Wadud's interpretations > or the Taliban's? I'm including them, but I'm thinking much more broadly about women in the Islamic world. And even if you want to talk about sociology, the > Muslim world has seen many different female heads of state (Pakistan , > Malaysia, Bangladesh, Turkey, Indonesia) Yes, there have been more women heads of state in the Islamic world than any place else. That I would consider 'negligible' much like service on the House of Justice because it involves such a minuscule number of women. What is more important is the equality or lack there of enjoyed by *most* Muslim women. > >> It would be dishonest to suggest that Bahais are >>> radically different. >> >> I think the Baha'i Teachings in this area *are* radically different >> and it is not dishonest for me to say so. > > When I say "different" I mean the common fact that the texts of > Judaism, Christianity, Islam and the Bahai Faith ALL make gender > distinctions and they all have statements which are interpreted to > imply some kind of equality. Sorry, but distinctions can be major or minor and that makes all the difference in the world. > But even relative to its time, the Bahai faith wasn't incredibly > advanced compared to what was going on with women's rights in the > West. What the Baha'i Faith was saying resonating with what was happening in the West at the time, but what was happening in the West had little do with Christianity. Indeed it was largely the result of setting Christianity aside. warmest, Susan __________________________________________________ You are subscribed to Baha'i Studies as: mailto:[email protected] Unsubscribe: send a blank email to mailto:leave-537346-27401.54f46e81b66496c9909bcdc2f7987...@list.jccc.edu Subscribe: send subscribe bahai-st in the message body to [email protected] Or subscribe: http://list.jccc.edu:8080/read/all_forums/subscribe?name=bahai-st Baha'i Studies is available through the following: Mail - mailto:[email protected] Web - http://list.jccc.edu:8080/read/?forum=bahai-st News (on-campus only) - news://list.jccc.edu/bahai-st Old Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] New Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]
