Although there is only one God for most contemporary religions, men and women tend to view him differently. Davie (1994) showed that women saw God more as a god of love, comfort and forgiveness whereas men see God as a god of power and control. This implies a situation whereby, God has preferred, gendered characteristics according to the sex of the believer. A tacit recognition of the female connection in spiritual influence can also be seen in the Jewish religion whereby a person can only be Jewish if their mother is. But, on the other hand, some Orthodox Jewish men include the following words in their prayers; "Blessed art thou Lord…that I was not born a woman". Christianity is also patriarchal with men made in "the image of God" and women for "the glory of man". There are many female characters in the biblical texts and some are portrayed as acting charitably or bravely, but the prime parts are reserved for males. There is no female equivalent of Moses, for example, all the apostles in the New Testament are male.
The most prominent females in the Bible, Eve and Mary serve to reinforce patriarchal idea's regarding the dangers of female sexuality and the virtues of motherhood. Similarly the Qu'ran says that "men are in charge of women". Even Buddhism is dominated by a patriarchal power structure in which the feminine is mainly associated with the secular, powerless and profane.
Although women ministers have long been accepted in some sects and denominations, the Catholic Church persists in formally supporting the inequalities of gender. However, in 1992 the Church of England voted to make the priesthood at last open to women. Many groups opposed the idea, including the organisation "Women Against the Ordination of Women". According to this group, the full acceptance of women is a blasphemous deviation from the biblical truth.
There have been some challenges to the patriarchal structure of organised religion. Judaism, for example, has long elevated women to the role of Rabbi. Gender neutral language has been introduced in many hymns and prayers and the requirement to love, obey and honour is now optional in the Christian marriage ceremony.
It should not be assumed that all religions are oppressive of women. Even in Catholism becoming a Nun can be viewed as either highly oppressive or highly liberating. Holm and Bowker (1994) argue that religious organisations developed exclusively for women are the fore runners of the modern women's movement in that they separate women from men and they enhance women's sense of identity.
Today, women's order's show a considerable diversity in their beliefs and modes of life. In some convents, sisters dress in full traditional habit and keep to established routines. Other communities, by contrast, have dropped many of the old regulations. Judaism has allowed women to become rabbis since 1972, and even Quakerism has not been oppressive to women. According to Kaursingh (1994) Sikh Gurus pleaded the cause for the emancipation of Indian womanhood, fully supporting them in improving their conditions in society.
To conclude, there will never be gender quality in the church so long as notions of gender are attached to the understanding.
