[ora]

Lately, this has been my number one choice about how the world can be changed for the better:

http://www.right-to-education.org/node/241

[PookztA]

i definitely think it is sad that women have undergone so much oppression and suppression when they are equally important, if not more important, in order to have a stable and successful civilization.

a small scientific fact that has greatly helped in understanding the importance of females in the process of creation, is the fact that the male sperm contributes nothing more than a nucleus with genetic material, and a set of centrioles (which play a role in cell division), to the egg. The egg has everything else, including the membrane, the cytoplasm, the organelles, etc., PLUS its nucleus and genetic material. it contributes what the sperm contributes, and so much much more, to the fertilized zygote / embryo.

another crazy fact… the female menstrual cycle is almost exactly 28 days, exactly the length of the cycle of Earth's moon…. we used to have calendars that were synchronized with the moon, the Mayan Calendar, but ever since the Mayans we have been on a calendar system that is not synchronized with the moon and the female menstrual cycle, aka nature. we need to get back on a natural calendar, and we need to honor the female goddesses which are just as essential to life as we males are!

cool link Ora, sorry for rambling there, but the link inspired me to spout some of my knowledge and appreciation of the female gender. 🙂

[Pauldo]

Islam has absolutely been one of the most brutal religions when it comes to treatment of women.

[PookztA]

Islam has absolutely been one of the most brutal religions when it comes to treatment of women.

i am sure that all people of the Islamic faith hate women, Pauldo… LOL.

way to perpetrate close-minded stereotypes of the Islam faith, as if there aren't COUNTLESS believers in Islam who respect women highly and treat them very well.

ever heard of Peace, Love, Unity, and Respect? you should try employing those values sometime. If you actually respected other peoples' beliefs, you wouldn't be disrespecting the entire Islamic religion with your criticism and stereotyping.

how about all those people that don't go to church and have mostly Atheistic beliefs that get drunk and hit their wives on a regular basis? no mentioning of them?

[Pauldo]

I have never heard of an atheist getting drunk and beating on their wives regularly.  However, beating your wife is suggested in the Koran:

4:034

YUSUFALI: Men are the protectors and maintainers of women, because Allah has given the one more (strength) than the other, and because they support them from their means. Therefore the righteous women are devoutly obedient, and guard in (the husband’s) absence what Allah would have them guard. As to those women on whose part ye fear disloyalty and ill-conduct, admonish them (first), (Next), refuse to share their beds, (And last) beat them (lightly); but if they return to obedience, seek not against them Means (of annoyance): For Allah is Most High, great (above you all).

[PookztA]

this is my final reply to Pauldo, and the only reason I am writing it is because i felt like standing up for those countless people who practice the Islam religion and do not abuse women.

Special Focus: Islam

Understanding a Difficult Verse
QUR’AN 4.34

Many contemporary debates about “women’s status in Islam” hinge on a few key topics: the veil, polygamy, and a few Qur’anic verses that are seen to prescribe female subordination, to men in general and husbands in particular. The most important of these verses occurs in Surat al-Nisa’ (“Women”), the fourth chapter of the Qur’an. This essay will discuss verse 4:34 and the ways in which it has been interpreted both by traditional medieval scholars and by contemporary Muslims from a variety of backgrounds and perspectives. The range of ways in which its key provisions have been interpreted illustrates both the presence of androcentrism and / or misogyny in some aspects of the Muslim tradition as well as possibilities for more egalitarian readings of scripture.

The Qur’an’s basic stance is that Muslim women are first and foremost Muslims, the religious equals of men (e.g., Q. 33:73). It refers to women and men as one another’s “protectors.” (Q. 9:71). Muslim marriage is described in terms of love and mercy (Q. 7:189; 30:21), and the Qur’an describes spouses as “garments” for one another (Q. 2:187). However, in a number of realms, above all marriage and divorce, Qur’anic rules are differentiated by sex, with men seemingly given greater rights and responsibilities.

Verse 4:34 is the clearest Qur’anic example of hierarchy between men and women. It presents numerous difficulties for translation, since so many of the words have contested meanings. My basic translation here leaves three terms in the original Arabic since they cannot be translated without taking a position on how they should be interpreted. Precisely these issues of interpretation will be explored in the following links, along with whether “strike them” (idribuhunna) is to be taken literally.

“Men are qawwamun in relation to women, according to what God has favored some over others and according to what they spend from their wealth. Righteous women are qanitat, guarding the unseen according to what God has guarded. Those [women] whose nushuz you fear, admonish them, and abandon them in bed, and strike them. If they obey you, do not pursue a strategy against them. Indeed, God is Exalted, Great.”

“Al-rijal qawwamun ‘ala al-nisa’ bi ma faddala Allahu ba‘duhum ‘ala ba‘din wa bi ma anfaqu min amwalihim. Fa al-salihat qanitat, hafizat li’l-ghayb bi ma hafiza Allah. Wa allati tukhafuna nushuzahunna, fa ‘izuhunna wa ahjuruhunna fi’l-madaji‘ wa adribuhunna, fa in ata‘nakum, fa la tabghu ‘alayhinna sabilan. Inna Allah kana ‘Aliyyan, Kabir.”

(Read Other translations of verse 4:34)

Interpreters from a variety of perspectives have addressed the key issues raised by this verse:

• Are men “in charge of women”? (link)
• What are the characteristics of “righteous women”? (link)
• What is nushuz and what are its consequences? (link)
• May a man strike his wife? (link)

The numerous possible interpretations of Q. 4:34 serve to highlight the role of human (and therefore fallible) intellect in comprehending scripture. The fact that so many different views exist as to what any particular word – such as daraba, “to strike” – shows that any attempt to fix the meaning of this (or any) verse once and for all is doomed to failure.

There is a sharp divide between traditional interpretations of this verse, which stress female obedience and male authority, and contemporary interpretations, which emphasize the financial component of men’s marital duties and the limits on a husband’s power over his wife. Many Muslims have gravitated toward the latter views, as they are more in keeping not only with modern sensibilities in general, but also the Qur’anic portrayal of women in other verses as full human beings and partners in the relationship of marriage. Yet, however convincing one finds the progressive arguments that a man’s striking his wife is not permitted by Q. 4:34, it is impossible to remove all difference or hierarchy from this verse without doing violence to the Qur’anic text itself.

This is not a problem unique to marriage or to relations between men and women: the tension between equality in spiritual matters and hierarchy in worldly matters applies to many social situations addressed by the Qur’an ( such as wealth / poverty or freedom / slavery). Nor is it unique to the Qur’an or Islam; such tensions exist in other scriptures and in other religions. These considerations do not help to determine the meaning of Q. 4:34 or to resolve the difficulties it presents for those Muslims committed to women’s equality with men. However, they serve as a reminder that no matter how one interprets this verse, one must not do so in isolation, but rather with careful attention to its full scriptural and social contexts.

taken from: http://www.brandeis.edu/projects/fse/Pages/adifficultverse.html

it amazes me that you talk shit about Islam because it is a religion, but you don't talk shit about Alcohol, which is one of the leading reasons that men feel that it is OK to lash out and physically abuse a girl. but obviously your insecurities and inner unhappiness has led you to lash out at religion once again.
way to go Pauldo! when did you become so wise?

[Ascension]

I'm sure there are plenty of atheists who beat up their wives.

Good article Ora, but I don't think it should be only concentrate on one sex or group of people. Everyone everywhere should have the freedom to be educated to the extent they choose. Education breeds progress, innovation and new ideas- some thing the world always needs more of.

[Author]

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