The Role of Women

Lately it seems like so many of my classes heavily overlap each other context wise. In New Testament we discussed the teachings of Paul to the Corinthians. He spoke to them about the role of men and women in society. He tells us that men are subject to god and women are subject to men. Initially, I think most people in the class had an issue with this. We fight constantly for equality between genders and to hear Paul proclaim something like this was a shock. Fortunately my professor explained that Paul was talking about the priesthood and how it flowed through God and Christ to priesthood holders, and from there to women and children. He also spoke about how important the role of women has been throughout time. And not only that, but it's important to remember that there is a distinct difference between men and women for a reason. My professor paraphrased an apostle, saying that there are some women who want to be equal with men, but they should not descend to that level. Surely he was joking, but I think his point was that women should relish and develop the unique gifts they've been given.

In Tonga, the roles of men and women are a little different. Men are expected to own and work the land. Women are supposed to raise the children and make the food. In America, these sorts of chores are looked down on; they are for ignorant old-fashioned people. In our discussion in class on Wednesday, the differences in gender roles was brought up and we had a short discussion about how women should be treated equally, and in Tonga things didn't seem fair. But I think that these roles don't come from oppressing women. They are a result of years and years of cultural influence. For a very long time, women have been considered to have a more spiritual and natural role in the house. I think changing this to an extent is okay, but we also need to be careful about how we alter the characteristics that come naturally to us--both boys and girls.

I want to keep in mind that I'm not going to Tonga to change how they already work. I want to learn from them what I can about which facets human nature is consistent across the continents.