Does religion have a sexual preference?

[Robert Z]

I tend to think so. At the least, men seem to struggle with their beliefs more than women. I have noticed that men often try to prove their beliefs to others, while women seem to be more accepting and simply believe without the need to prove anything. To me this suggests that the men are struggling with their beliefs more than the women.

 

I have known very few women who debate religion but almost all religious men I knew would.

 

Also, I knew of quite a few families, including my own, where the mother was highly religious and the father wasn't. So as I was growing up I was left with the impression that religion is more a feminine pursuit.

 

I suppose this view was strengthened by watching The Waltons LOL! That just occurred to me. They had the classic religious mom and the don't bother me with that stuff dad. But religious mothers and stay-at-home-on-Sunday dads were the norm in my neighborhood as well.

Edited June 1, 2013 by Robert Z

[M30USA]

I tend to think so. At the least, men seem to struggle with their beliefs more than women. I have noticed that men often try to prove their beliefs to others, while women seem to be more accepting and simply believe without the need to prove anything. To me this suggests that the men are struggling with their beliefs more than the women.

 

I have known very few women who debate religion but almost all religious men I knew would.

 

Also, I knew of quite a few families, including my own, where the mother was highly religious and the father wasn't. So as I was growing up I was left with the impression that religion is more a feminine pursuit.

 

I suppose this view was strengthened by watching The Waltons LOL! That just occurred to me. They had the classic religious mom and the don't bother me with that stuff dad. But religious mothers and stay-at-home-on-Sunday dads were the norm in my neighborhood as well.

 

You're going to get into a lot of trouble with this topic. I would post, but that would only set people off and hit sensitive nerves.

[Robert Z]

You're going to get into a lot of trouble with this topic. I would post, but that would only set people off and hit sensitive nerves.

 

Huh. I was expecting something more along the lines of general agreement. The more I think about it the more examples come to mind - at least when it comes to the US Christian culture.

 

I was looking for some study showing the measure of involvement as a function of gender but kept finding things about the different roles of the sexes in religion.

[M30USA]

I tend to think so. At the least, men seem to struggle with their beliefs more than women. I have noticed that men often try to prove their beliefs to others, while women seem to be more accepting and simply believe without the need to prove anything. To me this suggests that the men are struggling with their beliefs more than the women.

 

I have known very few women who debate religion but almost all religious men I knew would.

 

Also, I knew of quite a few families, including my own, where the mother was highly religious and the father wasn't. So as I was growing up I was left with the impression that religion is more a feminine pursuit.

 

I suppose this view was strengthened by watching The Waltons LOL! That just occurred to me. They had the classic religious mom and the don't bother me with that stuff dad. But religious mothers and stay-at-home-on-Sunday dads were the norm in my neighborhood as well.

 

Well, right off the bat, the man (Adam) was supposed to be the spiritual leader of the woman (Eve). Compare that to today where, as you say, men in general are following the spiritual direction of their wives! There is no doubt in my mind that this is the direct, intentional plan of Satan. More than any other factor, this is why I believe the church is in the state that it's currently in: based not on the Word, but rather feelings and personal experience--and for the purpose not of following the will of God, but rather the direction of personal fulfillment. My 2 cents.

 

To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you..." (Genesis 3:17 NIV)

 

This does not mean men shouldn't listen to their wives. It's in specific reference to men listening to their wives when they KNOW it's wrong or not God's will.

Edited June 1, 2013 by M30USA

[HokeyReligions]

Huh. I was expecting something more along the lines of general agreement.

 

I don't think your expectations are going to be met!

 

In every church or bible study or religious studies class I have been to it is the Male who is the religious "head of household" as set forth in the Bible and Quran.

 

Also if I were to count heads in churches I'll bet there would be an equal number if you don't include children and average the count over a six month period. I'm thinking back to all the churches I've attended and thinking of evening services which traditionally include more men because its after the workday.

[Robert Z]

Uh, that isn't what I was considering. I am talking about the perception of religion as a function of sex, not what religion teaches about it.

[Els]

My previous experience in 20-odd years of church attendance, has been that the numbers seem to be about equal.

 

Logically speaking, this makes little sense to me. Literal interpretation of religious doctrines (most notably Christianity/Catholicism and Islam) seems to be quite male-biased, in support of the traditional male supremacy dogma. So if I had to guess, I would think that that would make men more likely to adhere to such doctrines, than women.

 

There are some who take a more moderate and less literal view of religion, but not sure I would categorize them as 'highly religious'.

[M30USA]

Okay, I'm out of this thread...

[HokeyReligions]

Uh, that isn't what I was considering. I am talking about the perception of religion as a function of sex, not what religion teaches about it.

 

I guess I'm not sure what you are going for. Do you mean like its a man's job to take out the trash and a woman's to do laundry? Or that its a woman's role to attend to the family faith? Can you be more specific because I don't see religion as a 'function' of sex except as how each religion specifies it within its own teachings, in which case I hold to my origional comment.

[taiko]

Huh. I was expecting something more along the lines of general agreement. The more I think about it the more examples come to mind - at least when it comes to the US Christian culture.

 

I was looking for some study showing the measure of involvement as a function of gender but kept finding things about the different roles of the sexes in religion.

 

It is often stated the the growth of Islamic converts in the west and Nation of Islam converts in particular is because of the feminization of the Christian Church. Even in the denominations which hold the line and forbid women in leadership roles are often dominated by women at the ministry worker level, particularly the Sunday School teacher.

 

That boys don't see dad growing up in the church, or at home, are faster to leave then the girl looking for a "good" man who won't leave like her father did. And then the mother who settled for a non church going man tries to become the head of the spiritual house but the teen aged boy will reject her leadership and see the disciplined brother on the corner selling bean pies and Final Call newspapers as an alternative to becoming the drug dealer on the corner

[pureinheart]

I know a lot of women who have departed from religion, and happily debate it

 

The holy books of a lot of religions are sexist, biased towards men which is kind of no wonder considering who they were written by.

 

I'm glad you singled out this particular point. Many women are excellent debators...I'm not one of them, still too emotional, and it's not a "woman" thing- I'm still operating on trauma based thinking.

 

To stay online wit the thread though, lol, while I can't speak for other faiths, my own, the Bible makes sense to me, along with the chain of command per se. This isn't popular in this day and age, but I never go with the flow, I go with what works for me.

[M30USA]

It is often stated the the growth of Islamic converts in the west and Nation of Islam converts in particular is because of the feminization of the Christian Church. Even in the denominations which hold the line and forbid women in leadership roles are often dominated by women at the ministry worker level, particularly the Sunday School teacher.

 

That boys don't see dad growing up in the church, or at home, are faster to leave then the girl looking for a "good" man who won't leave like her father did. And then the mother who settled for a non church going man tries to become the head of the spiritual house but the teen aged boy will reject her leadership and see the disciplined brother on the corner selling bean pies and Final Call newspapers as an alternative to becoming the drug dealer on the corner

 

I'll go with that.

 

But it still seems like replacing one false religion with another, one non-working solution with another.

[pureinheart]

I tend to think so. At the least, men seem to struggle with their beliefs more than women. I have noticed that men often try to prove their beliefs to others, while women seem to be more accepting and simply believe without the need to prove anything. To me this suggests that the men are struggling with their beliefs more than the women.

 

I have known very few women who debate religion but almost all religious men I knew would.

 

Also, I knew of quite a few families, including my own, where the mother was highly religious and the father wasn't. So as I was growing up I was left with the impression that religion is more a feminine pursuit.

 

I suppose this view was strengthened by watching The Waltons LOL! That just occurred to me. They had the classic religious mom and the don't bother me with that stuff dad. But religious mothers and stay-at-home-on-Sunday dads were the norm in my neighborhood as well.

 

You know Robert, I've never thought of this angle- I did read a piece however that did give the stats several years ago and did support the topic of the thread.

 

I was forced into being the Spiritual head of the house and didn't like it- if that's how it's gonna be then I'll stay single.

 

I know many women that have to play the role of spiritual head- we do what we gotta do I guess...like being single parents and having the entire financial load because of fathers abanding their children in all ways (yes I did go there, by injecting my own personal anger issues:laugh:).

[Robert Z]

First I want to apologize for the title. It was meant to be a bit whimsical but apparently has created some confusion.

 

I am talking about how men feel about religion, as opposed to how women feel. This is not intended to be a discussion about the different roles of the sexes in religion. It is about the role of religion as a function of gender.

 

In short I am saying that I suspect that women tend to have stronger faith than men do, on the average.

 

I'm glad you singled out this particular point. Many women are excellent debators...I'm not one of them, still too emotional, and it's not a "woman" thing- I'm still operating on trauma based thinking..

 

I didn't mean to imply that women aren't good debaters. In fact I was on the hs debating team. I was tied for #1 with a girl who was quick witted and very bright. We were constantly battling each other. Great fun! And we ended up dating for a time.

 

My point was driven more by the idea that men tend to debate because they are still trying to prove their "beliefs" to themselves. Whereas women seem to just accept things more. They don't seem to be fighting with religion like men often do.

 

When I first moved out of the parents house, a friend and I got an apartment together. I was basically raised Catholic and he was raised in the Church of Christ. We were constantly getting into huge fights over religion. In fact it was probably the biggest source of tension between us. The real irony is that by then both of us had actually stopped attending church. I did attend again later but soon stopped going for good.

 

So I see this as a great example of what I mean. I think the reason the fights got so heated is that neither one of us really believed what we were saying but hadn't let go of those philosophies yet. We each felt threatened because neither one of us had much faith left.

Edited June 1, 2013 by Robert Z

[HokeyReligions]

Thank you for the clarification. I guess it comes down to personal experiences and observations and perceptions of the observations. In my experiences I've seen men more vocal about their faith and their church not so much because they are questioning but because they do not question their faith or church and because they are less accepting or tolerant of other views and feel their way is the only right way. Not that all men are like that. Or all women - that's just based on my experiences and observations. In my home my husband attends church and I don't. (I'm more like John Walton!)

[pureinheart]

First I want to apologize for the title. It was meant to be a bit whimsical but apparently has created some confusion.

 

I am talking about how men feel about religion, as opposed to how women feel. This is not intended to be a discussion about the different roles of the sexes in religion. It is about the role of religion as a function of gender.

 

In short I am saying that I suspect that women tend to have stronger faith than men do, on the average.

 

 

 

I didn't mean to imply that women aren't good debaters. In fact I was on the hs debating team. I was tied for #1 with a girl who was quick witted and very bright. We were constantly battling each other. Great fun! And we ended up dating for a time.

 

My point was driven more by the idea that men tend to debate because they are still trying to prove their "beliefs" to themselves. Whereas women seem to just accept things more. They don't seem to be fighting with religion like men often do.

 

When I first moved out of the parents house, a friend and I got an apartment together. I was basically raised Catholic and he was raised in the Church of Christ. We were constantly getting into huge fights over religion. In fact it was probably the biggest source of tension between us. The real irony is that by then both of us had actually stopped attending church. I did attend again later but soon stopped going for good.

 

So I see this as a great example of what I mean. I think the reason the fights got so heated is that neither one of us really believed what we were saying but hadn't let go of those philosophies yet. We each felt threatened because neither one of us had much faith left.

 

Oh no dude, I knew what you meant- you never mean anything in malice...lol, I'm just venting it seems every chance I get...this happens every now and then, I mean you can't pass up a good opportunity!

 

Your post is really interesting andwant to talk more about it (with less of my typical spin) ...lol...taking the little ones to church

[Robert Z]

Oh no dude, I knew what you meant-

 

Yes, I realized that you were on point, but the title had clearly thrown some folks off, and understandably so.

 

And, just sayin... I in particular can't slam women as debaters. That was one of the highlights of my time in hs. It was about the only class I never ditched LOL! She was cute and I almost always had her attention!!!

Edited June 2, 2013 by Robert Z

[pie2]

My point was driven more by the idea that men tend to debate because they are still trying to prove their "beliefs" to themselves. Whereas women seem to just accept things more. They don't seem to be fighting with religion like men often do

 

When I first moved out of the parents house, a friend and I got an apartment together. I was basically raised Catholic and he was raised in the Church of Christ. We were constantly getting into huge fights over religion. In fact it was probably the biggest source of tension between us. The real irony is that by then both of us had actually stopped attending church. I did attend again later but soon stopped going for good.

 

So I see this as a great example of what I mean. I think the reason the fights got so heated is that neither one of us really believed what we were saying but hadn't let go of those philosophies yet. We each felt threatened because neither one of us had much faith left

 

I love your example, and I think you make an important point . I think anyone who has an insecurity about something can feel defensive about it, and have a tendency to argue rather than calmly debate or express beliefs (both men and women).

 

But I do think that men, in general, express their thoughts and beliefs differently than women (religious or not). I think that men are often more assertive in expressing themselves, and can even be a little aggressive about it. Yes, women can do this too sometimes. But, on average, I think men are more assertive in debate.

 

I am talking about how men feel about religion, as opposed to how women feel. This is not intended to be a discussion about the different roles of the sexes in religion. It is about the role of religion as a function of gender.

 

In short I am saying that I suspect that women tend to have stronger faith than men do, on the average.

 

Based on my own experiences, I would say that I see more women in church than men. I've been to many churches, in different places. Of course, all my evidence is just anecdotal, but it seems to be pretty consistent. Some places are more exaggerated than others. Once I went to a church where the men and women were seated on different sides of the church. Women outnumbered men probably 5:1 (at least!) . Other places were more equal.

 

I'm not sure that this signifies that women have stronger faith, though. I mean, the men who are in church probably have equal faith as women do. And maybe some women are attending church, but do not have strong faith????

 

Some people say that men are spiritually stronger because they have been placed as the head. I don't know if I can buy that though.

 

(Is this related to the question? )

[TheFinalWord]

I suppose this view was strengthened by watching The Waltons LOL! That just occurred to me. They had the classic religious mom and the don't bother me with that stuff dad. But religious mothers and stay-at-home-on-Sunday dads were the norm in my neighborhood as well.

 

Haha Good ol' John Boy.

 

My dad was more like Charles Ingalls

 

He always knew how to apply God's wisdom to daily life...

 

LHOTP - Injun Kid - YouTube

[Robert Z]

My dad was more like Charles Ingalls

 

He always knew how to apply God's wisdom to daily life...

 

LHOTP - Injun Kid - YouTube

 

Did he cry a lot as well? Charles Ingalls cried more than John Boehner does!

 

Incidentally, I got to hang out with Michael Landon for a few minutes once when I was about 12 years old. That was cool! He was sitting right by us at an LA Rams game.

Edited June 2, 2013 by Robert Z

[Els]

 

I didn't mean to imply that women aren't good debaters. In fact I was on the hs debating team. I was tied for #1 with a girl who was quick witted and very bright. We were constantly battling each other. Great fun! And we ended up dating for a time.

 

My point was driven more by the idea that men tend to debate because they are still trying to prove their "beliefs" to themselves. Whereas women seem to just accept things more. They don't seem to be fighting with religion like men often do.

 

When I first moved out of the parents house, a friend and I got an apartment together. I was basically raised Catholic and he was raised in the Church of Christ. We were constantly getting into huge fights over religion. In fact it was probably the biggest source of tension between us. The real irony is that by then both of us had actually stopped attending church. I did attend again later but soon stopped going for good.

 

So I see this as a great example of what I mean. I think the reason the fights got so heated is that neither one of us really believed what we were saying but hadn't let go of those philosophies yet. We each felt threatened because neither one of us had much faith left.

 

Whether or not someone chooses to 'debate' religion is quite a different kettle of fish from how religious they are.

 

Women tend to, IRL at least, be less confrontational and aggressive with their opinions. Personally, despite the fact that I'm perfectly capable of debating religion and do so on occasion in appropriate places, I rarely debate it with friends IRL. It's often a very heated topic, can get offensive quite quickly, and can sometimes damage a friendship irrevocably for no good reason. Seems like a much better idea to live and let live.

[TheFinalWord]

Did he cry a lot as well? Charles Ingalls cried more than John Boehner does!

 

Incidentally, I got to hang out with Michael Landon for a few minutes once when I was about 12 years old. That was cool! He was sitting right by us at an LA Rams game.

 

Oh, that's awesome! Landon (RIP) was a class act.

 

haha no, he worked a lot, prayed a lot, cried only a few times that I can remember. More of he had that presence of authority mixed with love...if you know what I mean

[pie2]

Whether or not someone chooses to 'debate' religion is quite a different kettle of fish from how religious they are.

 

Women tend to, IRL at least, be less confrontational and aggressive with their opinions. Personally, despite the fact that I'm perfectly capable of debating religion and do so on occasion in appropriate places, I rarely debate it with friends IRL. It's often a very heated topic, can get offensive quite quickly, and can sometimes damage a friendship irrevocably for no good reason. Seems like a much better idea to live and let live.

 

I agree.

 

I was just thinking about how women can be better at verbal communication; they can often pick up language easier and just talk more, in general . At the same time, I think women can use their verbal dominance to attack, at times (namely in a relationships?).

 

But I think winning religious debate is related more to ego and pride. And I think men have more of a need to prove themselves than women do.

[Robert Z]

Personally, despite the fact that I'm perfectly capable of debating religion and do so on occasion in appropriate places, I rarely debate it with friends IRL. It's often a very heated topic, can get offensive quite quickly, and can sometimes damage a friendship irrevocably for no good reason. Seems like a much better idea to live and let live.

 

Wrt the bolded text, why?

[IWasJustThinking]

Men and women are soooo absolutely different in the first place...

I'm a Christian woman but I am not so naïve that I don't understand men are driven by different things. Can a man genuinely live a true Christian life? sure. But he is still a man striving for a spiritual connection all while dealing with a carnal struggle. I could be wrong but I believe that if things are physically good some men see no need to deal with the spiritual. That's my opinion anyway.

 

 

Cherokee proverb:

“A woman’s highest calling is to lead a man to his soul,

so as to unite him with Source.

 

A man’s highest calling is to protect woman,

so she is free to walk the earth unharmed.”

(This isn't in its entirety)