Robertson 1
This is an example of the importance of cultural perspective within the discipline because it looks a certain period in history (early 20th century) through the eyes of a very specific group of people: Christian Feminists. The paper not only talks about the actual information from the perspective, but it also highlights the importance of this story to the grand scheme of history. Thus, this paper highlights that individual perspectives, while being specific, are important to the overall story.
Faith and Feminism:
Christian Morals and Feminist Ideals in Women of the 20th Century
Taylor Robertson
History 300
Dr. Wallace Fuentes
December 6, 2012
On May 7, 1937, Ruby Thompson, a woman living in New Jersey during the first part of the 20th century, was fighting with her husband again. At this point, all the topics of controversy were Ruby’s education, her autonomy, and their influence on her role as a Christian woman. After the argument’s conclusion, she turned to her diary for solace and wrote these words: “God the creator I will adore, but I will never hold myself subservient to any one of his creatures. I am constrained by my limitations, but I am not constrained in my soul and spirit. I never will be. I stand for equality of human rights, men and women, born free and equal, and I always will.” [1] Ruby Thompson took the seemingly patriarchal Christian faith and used it to strengthen the sense of worth she had in herself for women everywhere. She combined her faith and her feminism, and she had every right to do so.
As the 19th century came to a close in the United States, the first wave of feminism began to take shape and gain influence and power. The women involved in this movement were not what modern thinkers would consider a stereotypical Feminist, specifically in their theological leanings. For many women involved in the Feminist movement in America during the late 19th and early 20th century, Feminism and Christianity were not enemies. In fact, in some cases one actually encouraged and solidified the other. These women looked to the independent females in the Bible and saw examples of how an autonomous Christian woman should act. The egalitarian society created by the gospel of Christ himself permitted them to create uniquely liberating Biblical morals and convictions. These beliefs allowed a mindset where Feminism was not only a possible lifestyle, but the only lifestyle that coincided with their Christianity. One of these women, Ruby Thompson, a women’s rights activist in New Jersey, began formulating these thoughts in the very beginning of the 20th century and became comfortable voicing them by the late 1930s. Ruby’s diary takes the reader on a journey of self-discovery. Ruby discovers her role as an independent woman, her role as a Catholic woman, and how to reconcile the two.
Obviously, Feminism and Christianity are extremely broad ideals pertaining to two complex belief systems. Therefore for the purpose of this paper, the reader should use the following definitions. By Christianity, the paper means to discuss the idea of the Christian tradition covering a vast amount of time and place. Christianity seen in this light is not separated into sects and denominations such as Catholic versus Protestant, but rather is a faith created not through a church doctrine, but instead defined and sustained through the story of the gospel.[2] Feminism similarly covers a wide range of definitions, but the working definition should fit the timeframe of this paper: early 20th century. Feminism in this time was only an emerging ideology, rather than a legitimate philosophy used for living. It was a way for women to free themselves from the domination and coercion caused by the men in their lives. They pushed for free thought and decision making as equal subjects and partners. King describes this movement as “a truly civilizational transformation . . . fundamental reorganization of human society along new lines of grater gender balance, equity, and justice.”[3]
Due to these broad working definitions, literature discussing the ideals presented in Christianity and Feminism is abundant. Although some literature does directly tie both Feminism and Christianity to one another, connections can be drawn between the two ideologies even in sources pertaining to only one belief system. Feminism: A Reference Handbookwritten by Judy Harlan in 1998, does not speak of Christian thoughts and values increasing early Feminist ideals, but does state the motivations and reasons behind the women thinkers which can be traced back to Christian morals. Face of Feminism by Shelia Tobias (1997) similarly includes the thoughts and reflections of the entire American feminist movement from the perspective of a Feminist who holds no religious tradition. Yet once again, parallels between the emerging Feminist ideology and Christian doctrine existed in the early 20th century.
Some of the literature, however, does connect the two belief systems. Mary Henold’s book,Catholic and Feminist,written in 2008,follows the chronology of Catholic Feminist thinkers in America. Henold discusses the evolution of Feminist thought and the effect of Christianity on this evolution. While still countless other books and journal articles have shown that these two belief systems the world sees as contradictory can actually help one another.[4]
Despite all the connections and parallels that exist between the values and morals of Christianity and Feminism, many authors in both Feminist and Christian theology believe that the two cannot exist harmoniously within one person. Cynthia Eller discusses in her book,Living in the Lap of the Goddess,that women who had religious leanings during the early feminist movement in America found the sexism that existed in the groups they were members of and tried to reform it. However, Christianity’s patriarchal tradition is just too strong to break. Nevertheless, Christian women at the first Feminist and Suffrage Conventions in the United States, such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton, worked together to create The Women’s Bible which combated the male-dominance of the Christian church.[5] Yet Eller maintains the more these women, and the generation of Feminist thinkers after them, studied Christian theology, the more they found it to be sexist.
The very nature of God as a male who controls all people and things on earth contradicts the free will and independence the early leaders of Feminism fought so hard to gain. A prominent Feminist thinker, Mary Daly,was raised Catholic and became Feminist later in life. She tried to reconcile her two belief systems during the 1950s but found it to be impossible. Thus, she decided to leave to church. She became an ardent Feminist with a career in theology. When asked of her decision to leave Christianity, Daly stated “We [Feminist women] cannot really belong to institutional religion as it exists. It isn’t good enough to be token preachers. . .Singing sexist hymns, praying to a male god breaks our spirit, makes us less human. The crushing weight of this tradition, of this power structure, tells us that we do not even exist.”[6] Daly continues this idea by stating that feminism serves as a threat to patriarchal religions not because the women involved in them will work to reform them, but rather that they will grow tired of the oppression and leave altogether just as Daly herself did.[7]
Yet without regard to the actual women of this timeframe, these secondary sources are hypothetical and superfluous. Therefore, the main and driving force of the argument is the diary of Ruby Thompson, a Catholic Feminist living in New Jersey during the early 20th century.[8] Ruby was born in England in 1884 and matured in a time of fervent Feminism in London. Emerging Feminists during this time were promoting more education for upper and middle class women, and by 1891, half of the women in the urban centers in England were both single and working. Thompson took advantage of this independence; she attended a business school for a year and became an accountant for the London General Post Office.[9]
Due to her autonomy, Thompson became attracted to an organization called the Fabians in England. The Fabians advocated for the equal rights of women, a “national standard of civilized life”, education for all, and international disarmament. With her involvement in the Fabians, Ruby became a writer. One of her letters to the editor of the Fabians’ magazine caught the attention of Edward (Ted) Thompson, a banker in New York. He arranged to meet Ruby, and the two began a romance in 1904. The courtship made spiritual sense as Ted was an atheist and Ruby an agnostic.[10] In 1905, Ruby left England for New York to marry Ted. After their wedding, the couple moved to Bayonne, New Jersey and began having children. By the end of her child bearing, Ruby had given birth to seven sons.[11]
At this time in America, women were fighting for the same rights the women of Ruby’s childhood had fought for in England. These women started creating organizations such as the Young Women’s Christian Association (Y.W.C.A.) which would attract Ruby later in life.[12] These organizations supported the financial and educational independence of women which Ruby considered to be nonnegotiable.
In 1908, while Ruby took her three sons to visit her family in England, Ted converted to Catholicism. Although Ruby was weary of the conversion upon her return, she herself converted in order to remain married to Ted and to raise her children.[13] Between her role as housewife and mother and the male-dominated Catholic church, Ruby began to feel suppressed within her new Christian life. Thus, she started the diary which spans the time period from 1909 to 1938. In the diary, Ruby airs her concerns for the role of women both within society and the church. The rigid religiousness of her husband, Ted, forces her to question how she feels about religion, but she eventually decides Christianity is, at its core, good. The personal dialogue between her faith and her feminism allows a glimpse into how women of the early 20th century combined the two ideal systems. The connections Ruby draws between the two systems echo several theological theories and observations. Although Thompson never calls them by the theological terminology, the ideals presented are the same.
The first of these theological observations is the existence of exemplary women in the Bible. Many would consider the Bible to be very patriarchal in its view of women and their role in society. However, independent women thinkers did exist within the Bible and serve as an example for how Christian women can use their beliefs to have autonomy. In the story of Mary and Martha in Luke, while Martha is busy cleaning and preparing food for Jesus as he visits their home, Mary reclines at Jesus’ feet to hear his teachings. Martha confronts Mary and her lack of help and asks Jesus to condemn Mary’s actions. Mary is instead praised for her desire to learn from Jesus, while Martha is told to follow Mary’s example.[14] In this situation, Jesus himself actually encouraged the education of women. Not only does he encourage the education of Mary, but tells Martha that this education is actually more worthwhile than the household duties. Women were also important community leaders and businesswomen in the Bible. A prime of example of this is Lydia within Acts. Lydia not only successfully ran her husband’s business after his death by herself during the Roman Empire, but she was also the head of the church within her city. She corresponded directly with the apostle Paul (who is considered to be somewhat sexist), controlled all of the church’s ministry, and even allowed the church to meet in her home (a dangerous feat in the not always Christian-friendly Roman world).[15]
The final example is that of a close personal friend to Christ, Mary Magdalene. Other than the twelve disciples, Mary Magdalene is considered Christ’s closest friend during his time on earth. Mary Magdalene followed him until his death and sat at the foot of the cross during Jesus’ crucifixion with Jesus’ mother, Mary. Mary Magdalene was also the first to see Jesus once he was resurrected and brought the information to the original twelve disciples. All of the gospels record that she was the first to bear witness to Jesus’ resurrection and therefore can actually be considered the first disciple of the new religion of Christianity which took root after this event. [16]
The women in the Bible provide an example for Ruby, and she often chooses to act upon the ideals represented in their examples. Ruby Thompson experiences a similar situation to Mary when her husband, Ted, pushes her to fulfill “her Christian womanly duty of caring for the house” when Ruby wants to spend time at church. Ruby also finds the same rest and meditation within her church that Mary found reclining at Jesus’ feet.[17] Ruby also longs for the same financial independence as Lydia. Once again, however, Ted does not believe she as a woman is capable of such a thing. Near the end of the diary, Ruby pushes Ted to allow her to see the family’s financial records, but he will not. He states that women are not made to handle businesses or be leaders outside of the household.[18] Finally, the same connection Mary Magdalene felt towards Jesus, Ruby also felt towards her creator, specifically after reading the Eighth Psalm.This psalm discusses the majesty of God’s creation and how man could possibly find favor in God with such a wide range of beauty. Ruby contemplates within her diary how any creation is called to love its creator based purely on the creator-creation relationship. She also ponders how a creator could create a woman with independent thoughts, emotions, and ideas if it did not intend for them to be used, most likely towards the glory of the creator. This connection to the creator is what allows Ruby to remain drawn to Christianity’s message even when the Christians around her, such as her patriarchal husband and leaders of the church, reject the Feminist ideals with which she wrestles. [19]
Outside of the women in the Bible, the very gospel and teachings of Jesus Christ point towards an egalitarian society. The theory of the gospel of Jesus changing the societal roles of his time period is known as Jesus Seminar View. Jesus Seminar View states thatJesusestablished a community of equals through his ministry by interacting with the people in society with whom no one wanted to associate. These “undesirables” included women, foreigners, lepers, and the poor among others. Because Jesus’ message did not have a condition for who could receive the gift of salvation, the very message of Christianity destroys the previous society where only the privileged few could control all aspects of life including spirituality. Jesus Seminar View also states that this type of society envisioned by Jesus did not take root after he left earth (whether through death or a return to heaven) because the leaders of this time did not want to change the society. [20]
While the Jesus Seminar View is a relatively new ideal, being named in only 1985, the ideals presented in the view have been around for decades. The core argument of the Jesus Seminar View discusses the difference between the authority of Christ which is considered divine while the authority of church leaders depends purely on their mortal office. This core argument was accepted and validated by theologians long before the theory actually gained its formal name.[21]
The Jesus Seminar View is a vital part of the egalitarian gospel and directly corresponds to a vital part of Feminism. According to Judy Harlan, one of Feminism’s main ideas is that all people are created equal. While a patriarchal society pushes that men rule over women due to their superiority,20th century Feminism states that women are not necessarily superior to men, but merely equal to them.[22] If one compares these two value systems, they actually say the same thing. If the Jesus Seminar View is accepted as what Jesus wanted as he proclaimed the gospel, it stands to reason that Jesus, himself, would have supported first wave feminism which took place during the early 20th century. The Jesus Seminar View and Feminism both proclaim that neither gender is greater to another, but both are necessary for a society to be successful. Thus, each gender should be granted the same opportunities.
However, then the questions becomes, if Jesus did intend for the egalitarian society presented in the Jesus Seminar View to take root after his departure from the earth, why did society return to the patriarchal form that existed prior to Jesus’ teachings? One possible explanation entails the theory of gender discussed by Shelia Tobias in her book,Faces of Feminism. Shelia Tobias puts forth the theory that genders are not natural or God-created at all. She states that gender is in itself a social construction based on what the society expects from both sexes. Each society is different in these expectations, but nonetheless these expectations are what allow the society to work correctly.[23]