Women and Religion

Carole A. Barnsley, Susan M. Shaw

This volume offers students a broad examination of the impact of religion on the lives of women around the world, focusing on differences among women, indigenous religions, the impact of religion in colonization, and resistance to religious oppression. Sexism, pervasive in religion, limits access to high leadership positions; dictates gender-related religious practices and roles; portrays women in limited ways in sacred texts; excludes or condemns them if they are lesbian, bisexual, or transgender; and makes them subject to violence by people of other faiths as well as their own. This volume is organized into eight chapters, each focusing on a different region of the world-North America, Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe, North Africa and the Middle East, Sub-Saharan Africa, Central and East Asia, South and Southeast Asia, and Oceania. Chapters cover women's status and experiences in the religions of each region, including indigenous religions and such major world religions as Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism. Additionally, they cover issues of religion for women, such as women in religious leadership, women in sacred texts, LGBTQ issues in religion, the intersections of religion and politics for women, the legacy of Christian missionaries on the colonial project, religious violence against women, and women's resistance to religious oppression.