What exactly is feminism?
When you ask the average person on the street what feminism is, they would probably say something in the line of: "The idea that women can fulfill the roles traditionally reserved for men just as well.". Sounds innocent enough, even noble. But what is the underlying premise of this idea?
It is that men and women are fundamentally the same. It is the denial of gender differences. The Bible teaches that God made mankind as men and women, and He made them similar, but different, with different strengths and weaknesses to fulfill different roles and compliment one another. What is the consequences of denying the existence of these differences?
1. The end of distinct gender roles
The first and most obvious result of feminism is the disintegration of distinct gender roles. In all cultures throughout history, it was understood that men and women have different strengths and weaknesses, to fulfill different roles and duties for the benefit of society. Obviously, the purpose of feminism was to make an end end to different gender roles. To cultivate the idea that men and women are so similar that women can do anything a man can do just as well. But this have consequences.
2. Increase in divorce and the destruction of marriage.
Traditionally, marriage came with very clearly defined gender roles. Men were expected to provide for the family, while women was the carer and the nurturer of the family. Some refer to the wife as the glue of the family. These roles were taken for granted, and so when you entered a marriage, you also understood the role and responsibility you have in that relationship. With the elimination of gender roles, so too has the clarity of responsibility disappeared. Women have taken over the role of the man as the provider, leaving no one to do the work of the carer. This ambiguous situation leads to dissatisfaction, argument and conflict. It is therefore no wonder that with the rise of feminism, we also saw a drastic increase of divorce. After all, when one or both parties think they can do the job of the other just as well, then the other is superfluous. The interdependence breaks down. More importantly, flooding the economy with female workers have altered the face of the economy. Previously, it was accepted that the husband needs to provide for a family, and so they were typically offered a salary to be able to do so. After all, that is what the market demanded. However, now, the market assumes that if you are married (Or even just living together), you have a duel income. So the salary of the men shrank to take that into account. Men only receive half of what they need to support the family, often forcing the wife into the workplace, whether she wants to or not.
3. Female leadership in the church.
Ofcause if there are no gender differences, then there is no reason to accept the teaching of 1 Tim 2:11-15 about positions of authority in the church. Why should this role be reserved for men if there are no differences between men and women? Ofcause, once you have a woman pastor, then sooner or later she will have to deal with passages like 1 Tim 2:11-15 in the Bible. Usually, Pauls reasons for this instruction is ignored and new reasons are invented for why this no longer applies today. This might seem to be a minor issue, but what it fundamentally does is to undercut the authority of Scripture as the sole and ultimate rule for doctrine in the church, and this needs to be explained. One very dangerous path is to reduce this text to the mere opinion of Paul and not of Jesus who supernaturally ordained him as apostle. But Paul wrote most of the new testament. And Paul is endorced by Peter in 2 Peter 3:15. So that also put Peters authority into question. But Peter dictated the gospel of Mark, and Luke was the companion of Paul. And pretty soon you end up with the view that the Bible is no longer the Word of God, God's Word is some where in there between all the noise, and it is up to us to distinguish what is and isn't the Word of God.
4. Normalization of homosexuality.
Once you've set the president that the Bible is not the sole rule of faith, then it opens the doors to other questions of authority. Such as: Does the Bible reliably provide us with God's moral law? The Bible is quite explicit and unambiguous on the matter of homosexual relationships, but what did they know about these matters 2000 years ago (It's "not" like it was part of every day life among the gentiles back then) Moreover, if men and women are basically the same and interchangeable, then why should marriage be defined as the union between one man and one woman? What difference does it make if it is two men or two women, rather than a husband and a wife? Taking this logic further down the rabbit hole, why does a child need a mother and father? Two mothers and two fathers can do just as fine. Or why restrict marriage to just two people? No matter how you look at this though, once you've accepted this line of thinking, you've rejected the authority of scripture to define what is right and wrong. And with it, the notion of sin becomes either nebulous, or superfluous.
5. Christ as the sole way to salvation:
If the Bible cannot define what is right and wrong, then you can ask the question? Are we truly sinners? Aren't we all just God's children? Aren't most people good at heart, seeking to do what's right? Would God really punish those good people who never heard of Christ? Without sin, there is no need for salvation, and no need for a Savior. Inevitably, Jesus is reduced to just "a good example to follow". He is no longer God incarnate, and even if he is, He is not the way, the truth and the life, the sole mediator between us and God. So, this opens the door to religious pluralism. Whether you worship Buddha or Hinduism. Whether you're a Jew, Muslim or atheist, it doesn't really matter. As long as you just follow your heart and do what is right - whatever you think that is. Effectively, by this point the gospel is null and void, and the church is superfluous. But it doesn't end there
6. Transgenderism.
People often ask how it makes sense for feminists, who are suppose to fight for womens rights, could possibly fight for the right of men to pretend to be women and for society to treat them as if they were. Well, if you apply the core presupposition of feminism, it makes perfect sense: Men and women are exactly the same, they are interchangeable. Gender is nothing more than a social construct. Taken to its logical end, if women can do everything men can do, why can't men not also do whatever women can do? And if this is the case, then obviously, gender is nothing more than just a cultural identity. And cultural identities are optional. You get to choose to assimilate to a different cultural identity if you want to. So, as contradictory as it sounds, transgenderism is actually the inevitable and logical conclusion of feminism. But this is also where the logic breaks down. Feminism was meant to protect females, now it is destroying those safe spaces for females. And the same with homosexuality. On the one hand, we're told that homosexual men can't help feeling attracted to other men, on the other hand, heterosexual men are criticized for not wanting to date other men pretending to be women. The logic of feminism is starting to contradict itself. And unfortunately, this is not where it ends.
7. What comes next?
We see a great emphasis in the transgender lobby on children. The idea is that transgenderism should be identified and encouraged as early as possible. Some goes so far as to advocate for a prepubescent child to have the capacity to seek permanent and non reversible surgical and hormonal intervention in their development, even without the consent or even knowledge of the parent. We must ask ourselves. If those who call themselves progressive succeeds in the normalization of this idea, if society accept the notion that a child have the capacity to consent to such a drastically damaging and life changing alteration of their body, what else can a child consent to? Yes, that is the logical next step. It will most likely first begin with the most vulnerable children, under the argument that, despite the abuse, these children are getting a much needed home. And once that generation has grown up, and have been gas lit that what happened to them is actually perfectly normal and fine, then it will expand to all children.
8. How do we stop this?
We as a culture have gone astray Even in many churches, we've decided to ignore what God teaches us about gender in the Bible, and go with what the culture taught us. Different churches are in different stages down this path. Most in the church can see there is a problem, and while it is easy to point the problem out in other churches, people are blind to how far their own church have progressed down the very same path. Jesus told us there can be no agreement between light and dark. We cannot stand with one foot in the world and the other in the Bible. Our testimony will be incoherent and compromised for as long as we do this. It is time that we repent and we return to what the Bible teaches about gender. Not just some of it, all of it. We need to roll back unbiblical ways of thinking that has become so normalized in the church that people even take offense when you point it out. We need to repent and return to Christ, and trusting the Creator to know what is best for His creation. The wedge will divide the sheep from the goats, the wheat from the weed. The one path leads to destruction, the other to life. How long will we think we can walk on the edge of the carnivorous plant without falling in?
