Betty Friedan was thought to be the leader of the femenist movement and was the founder of the National Organization of Women. She died in her sleep a few days ago at the age of 85. This is what she thinks about me:
"Housewives are mindless and thing-hungry... ; They are trapped in trivial domestic routine and meaningless busywork within a community that does not challenge their intelligence. Housework is peculiarly suited to the capabilities of feeble-minded girls; it can hardly use the abilities of a woman of average or normal human intelligence."
Well! I'm not going to give a long, tedious diatribe as to why I think this woman was deceived, but let's just say that she didn't know what an amazing life we are given when we live in Christ...even as a lowly housewife (which is only a third of what I do, right? ;)
What irks me about femenist activists is their incessant denial of the benefit of women who choose to stay home and raise up Godly (or at least intellegent) children. They insult women who want to stay home; they slight women who want to be mothers. Well, if every woman decided that motherhood was oppression where would all the people be?
(bonnet tip to gotmeacollegegirl.com for the quote from Friedan.)
Wednesday, February 8, 2006
oh, Betty
Posted by bonnie: at 11:51 AM
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4 thoughts:
i have to add that while my husband was at grad school, and i was raising our children, i was proven oh so wrong when i learned that the feminists, these respectable educated followers of God, valued my place in the home very highly. that is because *I* chose it, i wasn't *placed* here by a controlling husband. truely, modern feminism is not about bashing women who are "mindlessly at home." the ones who *do* say such things are a teeny minority...unfortunately, the loud minority is ofter heard clearer than the majority-they tend to whine louder.
::shrug::
Hillary,
Good point, "Rejoice in the life you have, and share with others why you've made that choice." You have helped me shape my blog. Note the disclaimer- my goal *is* to share & document our journey of desicion making. I don't exactly plan on being politically correct, but I will try to be less abrasive to others who have made different choices.
Meggan,
Thanks for commenting! This is obviously a blog-in-the-making. I have no idea what it was like in the home during Friedan's generation, and I'm thankful that today women do have a choice.
I don't think all choices are equal, and I feel confident saying so, but I'm not trying to make people angry here. Just seeking God's truth.
I believe Paul states in I Corinthians 7:8-9 8 "But I say to the unmarried and to the widows: It is good for them if they remain even as I am; 9 but if they cannot exercise self-control, let them marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion." This tells me that it is possible to be single and thus more devoted to God. I however know that there are very few individuals who have been given this "gift of singleness". I don't know where I would be without my wife who has furthered my devotion and understanding of God, however the thoughts of family do take away from my time to study and think about God. My personal belief given my studies of scripture is that a woman should stay home which would benefit the family and is further evidence of the order that God has given us for the family.
On a lighter note, this blog is wonderfully put together. Mine which has been up for a while isn't so nice.
James,
I have heard, and yes that means I have *not* sought it out to understand it myself, but I have heard that when Paul is speaking here he says all this because the church is being persecuted (stoned, killed, etc), and under those circumstances it was better to remain single. If you had a spouse and children to look after, indeed, you may not do all that you were called to do for fear of persecution of yourself and your family. This makes sense to me, but again I'm not certain as I'm not so sure how to get into the Greek to understand it *for myself*.
And thanks for the compliment! (you like pink? ;)
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