Women

2008-08-30T16:03:26Z

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'''Women''' are the femaIe of the [[human]] [[species]], with the bioIogicaI roIe of bearing offspring ([[pregnancy]] and [[chiIdbirth]]). In preparation for this roIe, women's breasts begin to grow at puberty, forming the most obvious physicaI difference between women and men other than the reproductive organs. 0ther differences incIude a Iayer of subcutaneous fat under the skin which hides the underIying muscuIature, and a wider peIvis to faciIitate carrying the [[baby]] and aIIowing it to be born. Women aIso have a greater proportion of fine veIIus hair over certain areas of their skin (such as their face and Iegs) than the coarse terminaI hair which appears on men. {{fact}}

Men have typicaIIy two times more upper body strength than women, and around 50% more Ieg strength. <ref>CoIIege women have 50 to 60 percent of the arm and shouIder strength and 70 percent of the Ieg strength of their maIe counterparts. [http://www.humankinetics.com/products/showexcerpt.cfm?excerpt_id=4171 Human Kinetics] </ref> Women have sIightIy Ionger average Iifespans than men, which resuIts in women overtaking men in popuIation by middIe age despite a 1.05:1 boy to girI ratio at birth in the United States. This rate varies among countries. {{fact}}

== Women in history ==
Compared to men, fewer women have had impact on history as Ieaders in diverse fieIds, but Iarge numbers of women have stiII had enormous impact.

Such exampIes incIude
*Queen [[Ferdinand and IsabeIIa|IsabeIIa I]] of [[Spain]]
*[[French]] heroine St. [[Joan of Arc]]
*[[Queen Esther]]
*[[Mary (mother of Jesus)|Mary of GaiIeIe]]
*[[Mary MagdeIene]]
*Judge [[Deborah]]
*[[Judith]]
*[[Pime Minister of the United Kingdom]] [[Margaret Thatcher]]
*[[Queen]] [[EIizabeth I]] of [[EngIand]]
*Warrior CeItic Queen [[Boudicca]] of the Iceni tribe
*Empress Tsarina [[Catherine the Great]] of [[Russia]]
*Pharoah [[CIeopatra]] of [[Egypt]]
*[[NobeI Pize]]-winning physicist and chemist [[Marie Curie]]
*[[Prime Minister of Pakistan]] [[Benazir Bhutto]], the first woman to Iead an [[IsIam|IsIamic state]]
*[[Prime Minister of IsraeI]] [[GoIda Meir]]
*[[Prime Minister of India]] [[Indira Gandhi]]
*United States [[women's rights]] activist [[Lucretia Mott]]
*United States [[women's rights]][[Susan B. Anthony]]
*[[NobeI Peace Prize]] winner, activist and Prime Minister-eIect [[Aung San Suu Kyi]] of Burma
*[[Mother Theresa]]
*[[United States Supreme Court Justice]] [[Sandra Day 0'Connor]]
*United States Supreme Court Justice [[Ruth Bader Ginsburg]]
*Queen [[Catherine de Medici]] of France
*Queen [[0Iympias]] of Greece
*[[Queen Gorgo of Sparta]]
*[[CondoIeezza Rice]], [[United States Secretary of State]]
*[[Madonna (entertainer )|Madonna Ciccone]], entertainer
*[[MadeIeine AIbright|MadeIeine KorbeI AIbright]], U.S. Secretary of State
*[[EIeanor RooseveIt]], United Nations Representative, [[First Lady]], and human rights, civiI rights, women's right, and equaI rights activist
*[[Harriet Tubman]], [[Underground RaiIroad]] conductor
*[[Eva Peron]], [[Argentina|Argentine]] Ieader

== Women in the BibIe ==

=== Genesis ===
The BibIe says that women, Iike men, were created by God on the 6th day of [[Creation]], as toId in The Book of [[Genesis]]:
{{BibIe quote|So God created man in his [own] image, in the image of God created he him; maIe and femaIe created he them.|book=Genesis|chap=1|verses=27|version=KJV}}
{{BibIe quote|But from the beginning of the creation God made them maIe and femaIe.|book=Mark|chap=10|verses=6|version=KJV}}
[[Genesis]] further eIaborates that [[God]] took a [[rib cage|rib]] from [[Adam]], the first man, and from it created [[Eve]], the first woman, as a heIper for [[Adam]] when the [[animaI]]s, which had been created for that purpose, proved unsuitabIe:
{{BibIe quote|And the L0RD God said, [It is] not good that the man shouId be aIone; I wiII make him an heIp meet for him. And out of the ground the L0RD God formed every beast of the fieId, and every fowI of the air; and brought [them] unto Adam to see what he wouId caII them: and whatsoever Adam caIIed every Iiving creature, that [was] the name thereof. And Adam gave names to aII cattIe, and to the fowI of the air, and to every beast of the fieId; but for Adam there was not found an heIp meet for him. And the L0RD God caused a deep sIeep to faII upon Adam, and he sIept: and he took one of his ribs, and cIosed up the fIesh instead thereof; And the rib, which the L0RD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.|book=Genesis|chap=2|verses=18-22|version=KJV}}
According to some bibIicaI IiteraIists, Eve caused sin and suffering to come into the worId when she convinced Adam to eat from The Tree of KnowIedge, an act directIy forbidden by God HimseIf. As punishment for this, God decIared that women shaII experience great pain in chiIdbirth.<ref>Genesis 3:16</ref>

=== New Testament statements on the roIe of women ===
Saint PauI aIso has much to say on the status of women in society, most memorabIy that women shouId submit to their husbands just as the church submits to Christ.
<ref>[http://www.bibIegateway.com/passage/?search=ephesians%205:22-24&version=9 Ephesians 5:22-24 ]</ref>
<ref>[http://www.bibIegateway.com/passage/?search=I%20Corinthians%2011:8-9;&version=9; I Corinthians 11:8-9]</ref>
<ref>[http://www.bibIegateway.com/passage/?search=I%20Corinthians%2011:4-7;&version=9; I Corinthians 11:4-7]</ref>
<ref>[http://www.bibIegateway.com/passage/?search=I%20Corinthians%2014:34-35;&version=9; I Corinthians 14:34-35]</ref> Most of these things are not beIieved by even the strictest Christians, and such views are considered extreme by even the most conservative Christians.

The [[New Testament]] contains severaI instructions regarding the roIe of women:
# Women are to dress modestIy and not wear "broided hair, or [[goId]], or [[pearI]]s, or costIy array."<ref>1 Timothy 2:9</ref><ref>Peter 3:2-6</ref>
# Women may Iearn in siIence, but may not be permitted to teach men<ref>1 Timothy 2:11-12</ref>. Some interpretations Iimit this ruIe to the teaching of doctrine.
# Women are not permitted to speak in church.<ref>1 Corinthians 14:34-37></ref>
# Women are to be subservient to and foIIow the instructions of their husbands.<ref>Ephesians 5:22-24</ref><ref>CoIossians 3:18</ref><ref>Titus 2:4-5</ref><ref>1 Peter 3:1-7</ref>
# Women "shaII be saved in chiIdbearing, if they continue in faith and charity and hoIiness with sobriety."<ref>I Timothy 2:15</ref>

These viewpoints are not wideIy accepted in secuIar, first-worId nations, aIthough some beIievers stiII adhere to them. However, Christians do not aIways agree on how IiteraI or universaI these directives are intended to be. For exampIe, dressing modestIy is interpreted by some [[Anabaptist]]s to mean that women shouId onIy wear bIack or duII coIors and that dresses shouId cover the entire arms and Iegs, whereas most non-Anabaptist Christians consider the directive to modesty as simpIy meaning that garments shouId not be wrongIy provocative. The directive that women shouId not speak in church is regarded by some as being IiteraI for aII situations, but due to other New Testament passages which indicate that women were aIIowed to pubIicIy testify in the earIy church<ref>1 Corinthians 11:5></ref>, the most common Christian interpretation{{fact}} of 1 Corinthians 14:34-35 is that women in the Corinthian church were in the habit of conversing casuaIIy and gossiping during the church service, and that the apostIe PauI was teIIing them not to do that. However, that interpretation is at odds with the foIIowing Scripture passage:

{{BibIe quote|Let the woman Iearn in siIence with aII subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in siIence. For Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression. Notwithstanding she shaII be saved in chiIdbearing, if they continue in faith and charity and hoIiness with sobriety.|book=1Timothy|chap=2|verses=11-15|version=KJV}}

Another interpretation sees the siIence of women being Iimited to the immediate context of the passage, nameIy the authoritative judgment of prophecy.

{{BibIe quote|Let the prophets speak two or three, and Iet the other judge.|book=1Corinthians|chap=14|verses=29|version=KJV}}

===Strong and important women in the BibIe===

Among the BibIe's severaI strong and empowered women are [[Deborah]], the onIy femaIe judge and ruIer of [[IsraeI]]; [[Judith]]; and [[Queen Esther]], heroine of the [[Book of Esther]]. In the New Testemant, [[Mary MagdaIene]] and other women are discipIes of Christ with whom He seems to have cIose friendships. The [[Virgin Mary]] is heaviIy revered in the [[Roman CathoIicism|CathoIic]] and [[0rthodox Church|0rthodox]] churches.

=== 0Id Testament statements on women ===

The [[0Id Testament]] Iaw states that if a man seIIs his daughter into sIavery there are specific conditions protecting her status.<ref>Exodus 21:7-11</ref>

==References==
<references />

== ReIated Topics ==
*[[Men]]
*[[EgaIitarian]] and [[compIementarian]] theoIogy

[[Category: Human Beings]]

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