United States of America
USA: Catholic Bishops' Attack on Book Concerns Scholars
Is God male? The Old Testament uses the masculine pronoun to describe him. Jesus refers to the divinity as Father. So does that make the creator a masculine force — and mean that men are more godlike than women?
These are questions that theologians like Sister Elizabeth A. Johnson, a professor, have been mulling for years. At 69, Sister Johnson is among the pioneers of a generation of feminist scholars who examine how cultural biases among biblical scribes may have led to women’s diminished roles in Western religious traditions, especially the .
USA: Fr. Roy Bourgeois Threatened with Dismissal From Maryknoll Community
Today, March 29th, 2011, Fr. Roy Bourgeois received a canonical warning from the leadership of his community, the Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers. Fr. Roy has been given fifteen days to recant his belief that women, along with men, are called by God to serve as Roman Catholic priests. Failure to recant during this time period will result in a second canonical warning from his superiors, whereupon, Maryknoll leadership will submit their charge for dismissal to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith with a request for laicization. Take action .
USA: If abortion isn't healthcare, what is it?
Congressman Chris Smith (Republican, New Jersey) introduced his party’s third highest priority for the new congress, , or “No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act” with a puzzling statement: “Abortion is not health care.”(Congressional Record, Vol. 157, No. 8). Just what is it then? I guess he would call it a sin and try to outlaw it. Perhaps Mr. Smith, and his Democratic partner on this bill Congressman Dan Lipinski know something the rest of us do not. I doubt it. Resorting to their Catholic beliefs this time just doesn’t cut it.
USA: The Tea Party and the new right-wing Christian feminism
Why have American women become so active in the right wing Tea Party movement? Could it be that they are drawn to the new conservative Christian feminism publicized by Sarah Palin? Without its grassroots female supporters, the Tea Party would have far less appeal to voters who are frightened by economic insecurity, threats to moral purity and the gradual disappearance of a national white Christian culture.
Religious Divorce Dispute Leads to Secular Protest
This should have been a good New Year’s for Aharon Friedman, a 34-year-old tax counsel for the Republicans on the . He spent time with his 3-year-old daughter, and could have been thinking about the influence he will have starting Wednesday, when his boss, of Michigan, becomes chairman of the powerful tax-writing committee.
Child Protection Project
Background
Linda Walker and Flora Jessop, the founder and Executive Director of the Child Protection Project respectively, both hail from Mormon backgrounds. Flora Jessop was raised in a fundamentalist community practicing polygamy, and forced and child marriage, and fought to escape to a life where she would be guaranteed the right to bodily integrity and self-determination. Flora’s negative experiences dealing with unsympathetic local authorities and law enforcement officials led her to commit herself to actively campaign for justice for women and children facing abuse in polygamous communities in Arizona and Utah.
Women's Ordination Conference
In 1976, the late Pope Paul VI issued the Inter Insignores, the Declaration on the Admission of Women to the Ministerial Priesthood stating that the Vatican is not authorised to admit women to the priesthood. Since then, the (WOC), based in Washington D.C., has become a visible feminist advocate proactively campaigning for the ordination of women as priests, deacons and bishops under its vision around an inclusive and accountable Roman Catholic Church.
Feminists on the Frontline: Case Studies of Resisting and Challenging Fundamentalisms
This collection of case studies is a testament to the women and men around the world who have stood up to reject the imposition of norms and values in the name of religion as well as to expose and challenge the privileged position given to religion in public policies. In 2008 AWID launched a call for proposals to document the strategies of women's rights activists confronting religious fundamentalisms. The final 18 case studies presented here are drawn from a wide range of religious and geographical contexts, and cover various fields of activism. We hope that this collection will inspire, inform and encourage discussion and debate. Please visit this page again for updates, as finalized case studies and a brief summary of each case study will be posted on a rolling basis. We will also soon be posting a paper that introduces the trends and themes that are threaded through the various case studies.
USA: Landmark legislation addresses sexual violence against native women
Amnesty International has welcomed groundbreaking legislation in the USA, which addresses the disturbing rates of acts of sexual violence committed with impunity against American Indian and Alaska Native women.
USA: Rights Activist Dis-invited as Keynote Speaker on Violence Against Women Due to Right Wing Pressure
Statement by Charlotte Bunch, Center for Women’s Global Leadership, Rutgers University