Why I am no Longer a Feminist

    When I was about 8 years old, I decided I wanted to try playing softball. I had never played a sport before, but I had seen my older sister play and wanted to give it a try. By accident, I gave my mother the form for baseball, not softball. I ended up on a team with all boys.
    To his credit, my coach sincerely tried to teach me to hit. If desire to succeed was all it took, I would have been hitting home runs. As it was, I was really quite terrible. The boys on my team were nice enough to me, but inevitably when I would get up to bat one of the basemen would holler to the pitcher, “strike her out, she’s just a girl!”
    “Just a girl” indeed! I had a heavy metal bat in my hand and all he had was a cloth glove to protect him! I tried to focus all my energy into hitting the ball, however, instead of laying out the insulting boys on the other team.
    As I went through school, and especially whenever I played sports, the fact that I was female never failed to make me feel I was second-rate. Even from some of my friends, who were also girls, came taunts of, “you punch like a girl.” Yes, occasionally I punched my friends, upon their request (don’t ask- middle school was a strange time).
    As a Christian, I would love to say that I found things to be different in church. This was not so. In my high school youth group, girls seemed to be more listened to and valued if they invested heavily in their appearance and acted like idiots. Sorry about the bluntness- I actually knew them to be much more intelligent than they let on, which is why I must say “acted.”
    Thus, by the time I reached college age I felt I had to become an object to be noticed. Of course, I rebelled. If I was supposed to be a made-up dummy who laughed at nothing like a fool and didn’t have any strong opinions, I countered this by seeking to be exactly the opposite. My views on issues involving gender, because of the unfair treatment of women by society from my personal experience, became quite skewed. I thought women should be allowed to do anything a man could do, and that more women should be trying to break gender stereotypes by being strong, opinionated leaders and world changers. I masqueraded as exactly that for at least a few years. I was also trying  to be that independent woman who didn’t need any man to help her. Ever.
    Allow me to pause to explain: I am merely stating how my original opinion was formed, not trying to justify it by these anecdotes. I actually say much of this to my shame now.
    In the midst of all this, however, I lost a few things. I lost my ability to respect men. Not completely, but at many points I trampled their opinions to prove that though I was a woman I could think things through well, too. The issue in my heart, and at the heart of feminism, is pride.
    At the same time, God was doing a great work in my heart. I had this nagging question to God--what does it mean to be a woman in His kingdom? I somehow knew I had got it wrong, I just wasn’t quite sure how.
    I knew to find the answer to my questions, I had to fight with my interpretation of the creation account. Why did God create a woman? How is she different from Adam? How is she the same as him? Is she, too, made in God’s image?
    The last question was the most crucial to answer. If I was not made in the image of God as well, then it didn’t seem to me that all the same rules which applied to “men” applied to me. Some wacky theologians even believe a woman can be saved only by being made into a man after she dies. But I digress.
    This brings me to my current thoughts on the matter. If Man was made to reflect God’s beauty, character, and glory, being made in His image, why did God not simply stop with Adam? He could have made him asexual.
    I have a curious interpretation of this matter. Please test what I say against scripture as a whole, and decide for yourself. Even so, this is what I offer: that God wanted Adam to reflect Him in his relational nature, and namely, in His ability to love. Thus, God created Eve from Adam, making her rightly to be loved as himself, as she formerly was a part of him!
    Eve’s purpose, as she is also made in the image of God, is to reflect a different kind of love. This is the love of submission--as Christ submitted to the Father, not in a natural inferiority of being but in a willing, loving, trusting, and mysteriously powerful way. The power of submission is the best way I know to fight the ill effects of pride on other human beings.
    When women allow men to exemplify the power and wisdom of Christ and attempt to exemplify Christ’s humility and submission, God is glorified in both genders. To be clear, this does not let men nor women off the hook for trying to imitate Christ’s full character, but I am proposing that perhaps each gender has been created to more naturally reflect certain aspects of Christ.
    The Fall has undoubtedly contributed to misuse of the above principles, where some men will abuse their position to “rule” her in a controlling or demeaning way. Likewise, some women’s desire will be “against” men. She will contradict him for the sake of contradicting him, or to remind him that she matters, too.  This does not just play out in marriage, but in society as well.
    So how has this changed my feminist stance? If women were created to reflect a different aspect of Christ’s character, we need to stop trying to a) do all the things men do--we were made from Man but not to reflect him and b) one up men all the time--this was not meant to be a “battle of the sexes,” but rather a partnership. I believe men and women can learn from each other, can help one another, and can reflect Christ together. The battle needs to end somewhere, and this woman is laying down her sword (which can be put to much better use elsewhere).
   

To Choose or not to Choose a Political Party...

Many Christians find it necessary to take a side in political debates. Many find it convenient to choose a party to help them define their political stance. I have asked myself whether it is both Biblical and rational to do so. Should Christians align themselves with a certain political party? What are some of the costs and benefits which come from this?

If Christians choose not to have any political stance to maintain an “inviting“ atmosphere, what ultimately  occurs is that everyone else voices their opinions and the “Christian voice” dies out in the public political sphere. This leads to public opinion being swayed by all the non-Christian voices. Theoretically, if this country were truly run as a democracy, public opinion would influence the law, and thus be important. It is important, however, inasmuch as it has the ability to bring about social change.

I therefore must conclude that Christians need to have political opinions. Informed ones, preferably. This would mean the onus is on Christians to figure out how their government is being run and think critically about issues of justice. I admit I have often found this a challenging task. Still, I believe there is a responsibility.

Should Christians side with a political party publicly? If a party advertises many values which the Christian holds, it may seem tempting. However, caution is advised. Aligning with a certain party tells others that you agree with most of its positions, some of which you may be unaware of. One should fully examine a political party before attaching oneself to it. One should find out what the party is actually doing and what their political enemies say about them. One should get to the root of one’s own political beliefs, asking if one holds a Biblical position or not. One should only choose a political party after having done the homework.

That being said, though I think it is necessary to have a voice about political and social issues, I do not find advocating a certain political party to be necessary. I think some Christians choose parties, and then candidates based on parties, sometimes relying solely on one issue. For example, if one is Pro-Life, as the Republican party is most well-known for their stance on this (though Libertarians certainly are too), one may choose to align with this party and then begin choosing candidates who are Republican. Some Republicans aren’t even Pro-Life!

I really don’t mean to sound condemning nor arrogant, so I apologize if I do. The point I am making is: don’t side with a political party for the sake of siding with a political party.

Personally, I grew up in a very Democratic household. I have always had a heart for the less fortunate, and the Democratic party was always painted as “having a heart.“ If asked when I was younger, I am sure I would have responded that Bill Clinton was one of the best presidents the United States had ever had.

I then had very Republican friends in High School and College. I began reading the newspapers and debating issues with friends. The more I debated, the more I found myself choosing a side that was neither Democratic nor Republican. I could make all my friends unhappy at once ;).

Now I am of a strong Libertarian persuasion, generally speaking. I know this only from taking numerous political quizzes and reading about the various parties. However,  I refuse to label myself as such or confine my vote to only Libertarian. Each item must be carefully inspected. I also refuse to dress in strange costumes to support Ron Paul, even though I voted for him. But I digress.

This does not mean I believe the Libertarian party is the “Christian party,” nor the idyllic party, for neither exist. I thus will not speak to a certain issue from a Libertarian standpoint. Instead, I want to speak from the platform of being a Christian. This does not mean all Christians have to agree with me, but my faith is primarily what will inform whatever position I assume.

Christians need to boldly make their faith inform their political opinions. They need to use reason to understand the broader implications of these opinions. They need to voice their opinions humbly, being willing to listen to others. And by the grace of God, we will be light and salt in this world.