What is True Feminism?

Is True Feminism About Hate?

When we hear the word feminism, often we think Gloria Steinem, Gloria Allred, real hard man hating seemingly pro-abortion women who are anti-marriage, anti-motherhood, very liberal on many fronts, and think women should by legislation if necessary be given entry into all the same jobs and places as men, charged the same for the same services so on and so forth.  It's this notion that there are no differences at all between men and women, that there is no such thing as masculine and feminine by nature, and to suggest such a thing is viewed as almost criminal.  Is that true feminism and does God's word have anything to say about feminism, women's role in society in relationships etc... and what about the early church fathers?  I am going to broaden the tent here to go both Catholic and Protestant, so don't anyone get into a huff and puff here.  It is necessary to go broad canvass to look at how all of Christianity views woman, feminism and the role of women in society.  

Does the Bible discuss Feminism per se? Not directly, but it does advocate in a myriad of ways equality for women economically, politically, socially and if we look at the very beginning before the fall of mankind, in relationship as a an equal partner, part of a team, not competing, but in compliment to the man.  In the Catholic Church, some of the greatest doctors of the Church were women, including one who bears my name, reminds me of myself in terms of strong personality, St. Catherine of Sienna I believe and women in the faith are seen in every career strata you can imagine, even if not within the pastoral sphere, but so what.  If they wish to keep that one tradition masculine, okay. What about Christian Feminism? Modern feminism is not an authentic solution to the real problem of the inequality in a society of sin. Feminism has appointed itself  the right to demand respect and equality in every aspect of life by legislation and force.  The modern, militant feminists are calling women to rise up to rebel against the order that God has given us, to hate the child in the womb, to hate all things feminine, or if we embrace that to do so as a tool of selfish pleasure only, and avoid commitment, holy and sacred, to avoid labels of masculine and feminine as assigned by birth by God.  God has a clear prescribed order and created gender male and female for a reason, but with the fall and the sin nature entering things started to get perverted, and notions of that got twisted in the heart, spirit and soul of mankind and even nature itself.  God is very clear on what is male and female, as he made them and intends them to be, how he intends those relationships to be, not in competition, but in compliment, cooperation.   Men and Women as Christian feminism understands it, from a Biblical viewpoints are different, but equal.  Where humanist feminist see them as negative, try to deny or even eradicate them, Christian feminist see them as something wonderful and complimentary to celebrate.   Both men and women are created in the image of God and the relationship reflects that of the Trinity and that of Christ and the Church.  It's this wonderful inter-dependent, yet independent, each contributing to the whole their gifts, talents etc... for the good of the whole, for the glory of God.  When men and women can look at each other as complimentary to each other, as a team, as needing each other to make the world work right, function right, make it go round correctly, and traditional family as the only truly healthy way for the world to work, then society can truly function as it should. 

The early women in the suffrage movement weren't fighting to be like men or outmaneuver men.  They were simply fighting for the right to have the same opportunities in education and work, according to their talents and abilities, to be able to help out the family and also when the children were older to be able to make use of their talents, their gifts, to even explore what they were.   The women of the Women's Liberation Movement would be horrified at what radical modern feminists have done to the movement in the name of "feminism", denying the feminine, traditional family, the differences between men and women.  When men and women become partners, true partners and each other's cheerleader, see family as a beautiful gift for society, not act as selfish twits, truly as Christ towards each other, when all life is cherished from conception to natural death, when aging is seen as a gift, wisdom that comes with it valued, then true feminism will have come to fruition for all.

Shalom and Amen