By Karis Rogerson
Online Managing Editor
There’s a reason I cannot stand Matt Walsh of the Matt Walsh blog—actually, there are several reasons, but only one which I’ll get into today—and that is this: he claims Christians cannot be feminists.
That’s right. A random guy I’ve never met just told me that, because I believe that there is still an inequality between men and women that needs to be fixed, I don’t really love Jesus. I’m not a Christian to the level he is.
In his April 22 blog post, “Christian women: feminism is not your friend,” Walsh urges women, “Unbind yourself from the bondage of this term that’s become inexorably tied to a demonic dogma that obliterates the unity of the family, drives a wedge between a wife and her husband, and digs a giant chasm between a mother and her child.”
So now I’m not only not a Christian, I’m also essentially a Satanist who hates men. Brilliant.
He states as his reason for disliking feminism the fact that feminists support abortion. Actually, he says that the core of feminism is pro-abortion.
That’s an interesting take. And it’s also why I think Christian men and women should be feminists.
First of all, let’s get a definition of feminism. According to Google, the definition of feminism is, “the advocacy of women’s rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men.”
Now, did you see anything in there about abortion? Neither did I. That’s because, even though abortion is one of the things that some feminists support, it is not at the core of what feminism truly is. Feminism is an attempt to equalize men and women. And in a world where, according to a report by the American Association of University Women (AAUW), women made 22 percent less than men in 2013, among other worldwide injustices that I don’t even know about, that goal has not been reached.
Feminism is not about man-hating, or child-hating. While that is something that some feminists pick up, saying it is at the core of the movement is akin to saying that, because some Christians believe that God hates and wants to destroy all gay people, all Christians must be people consumed by hate. It is an over-generalization that is, quite frankly, ridiculous.
Going the extra mile and saying it is demonic is going quite a bit too far, Matt Walsh. There’s a line—you might not be able to see it, because it’s so far behind you as to be actually invisible, but it’s there—and you crossed it.
Here’s the thing: I’m anti-abortion. Completely, 100 percent against the killing of infants. I don’t believe that women who have abortions are evil or demonic, I just think it’s wrong, in the same way I think lying and cheating and stealing are wrong. I don’t deny the fact that millions of infant deaths is a tragedy; an undeniable tragedy. And I hope I’m never in a situation where I have to decide between my life and the life of my baby, because I honestly don’t know what option I would choose.
But it is true that many feminists are pro-abortion.
That’s why I believe that Christians should be feminists.
Is that shocking? It shouldn’t be. It’s the same reason many of us believe that Christians should go into the entertainment world: to shine a light where light has not been shone before.
If we stand on the sidelines and hate on feminists, we’re just giving fuel to their fire. We’re confirming in their minds the idea that Christians are bigoted, sexist people. We’re making it even harder for us to reach out to those feminists who might not be Christians, and show them God’s love.
If we don’t stand shoulder to shoulder with them in their fight, proving that we, too, see the injustices of the world and believe they need to stop, how will they believe us when we say God is a god of love and not of hate?
Can I say something radical? Can I say that I think God just might be a feminist? Can I say that God loves men and women equally, and believes they are equally deserving (or equally undeserving, really) of good things? Can I point out that Jesus put his arm around the prostitute when his disciples would have jeered at her, and let her know that she was valued no matter what? Can I mention all the women God used, from Rahab to Esther to Ruth to Mary, all women whom He used to do amazing things and bring about amazing change?
God loves women just as much as he loves men. That’s a fact.
The world needs to fight for feminism for the same reason that America needed to fight for independence from England and liberation for slaves: freedom and equality. And Christians need to join in that fight not only because it is right, but because that is the only way we can minister to those fighting.