I’m interested in how many of the women reading this consider this an acceptable attitude toward men.So, yeah - women doing all the work, men getting all the credit. Things haven’t actually changed all that much, have they?
Take in the context for which it was given. I totally understand…as my grandmother said the “same thing”. She was not allowed to have “her own money” or “bank account” or “establish credit in her name”. “Obeying” the husband was the order of the day…in the literal sense of the word…not just in “spiritual” matters. She was a southern belle to greatest extent of the word and did obey and was the belle. It was easier to be the victim, then if there was a mistake she could say…“well it wasn’t me”. She had a fit when my mother joined a bowling league and went bowling once a week and “asked her”, “did you get C’s permission to go bowling?” Yeah she was serious. My mother just looked at her funny…well since mom married a Catholic and all…they were doomed.
See, from my view, these things are just as important as the contributions that the lay man makes to the parish. I think a big mistake within Catholic culture was introducing the suggestion that what the women do is somehow “less important” and therefore, they needed to do what the men were doing. And this is ultimately sad, as both roles are of importance but they are unique and therefore different.
So when somebody puts down men, you take it in context. Your response to my posts, however, was a bunch of ad hominem attacks such as saying that I wanted to turn back the clock so I would not have to think for myself. For the record, your response did not involve taking my posts in context or apparently even understanding them.
:nope:
gee, I thought you were a man…my bad
I take offense at this: One woman belittling the contributions of other women. I’m sure that just about any parish priest in the country would tell you that his parish wouldn’t have a chance of running without the women volunteers and employees…and he knows it OH so well!
So I guess on another thread that claims “women are taking over the Church” isn’t true. What I mean is…it was “women’s work”. However, my grandmother could not place the altar cloth…a 12 yr old boy could, but she could not. She couldn’t cross the railing…she could polish it, but she couldn’t go beyond it. I must admit I was stunned a bit when I saw women up at the altar as eucharistic ministers…I was even more stunned to see a group of teens gathered around the altar at the teen Mass. I remember thinking look how far we have come. While touring the Church with the RCIA group…we toured the whole Church…and for the first time I stood and walked around the altar…(it was a Church in the round). The Tabernacle was behind the wall. I had never been back there until that time. There was a light and a few chairs there. It was totally awesome.
Hopefully most Lifeteen parishes put a stop to that as it was a spontaneously-introduced novelty that sort of crept in.
What’s wrong with something being “women’s work” or “men’s work”? I have no problem with the idea that men and women have certain activities and characteristics that are proper to them. I think people today get so offended because we are so keen to meld the roles of the sexes together to be some androgynous mess, that we forget that men and women are biologically different, do have different roles and work on earth that is more suitable to them and there is nothing offensive or belittling in accepting and embracing these roles.
I do. In cases in which the husband wants to vote one way, and the wife wants to vote the other, the only logical solution is to have both vote the way they want to cast their vote. That way, both are getting equal representation.
Sitting in a den smoking cigars is not a prerequisite for talking about world affairs. Women can talk about world affairs in their own element, wherever that may be whether it’s a tea party, a luncheon, an after-church gathering, while cooking, while cleaning up after a meal, etc. My women-family-members talked about politics (like any other subject) whenever they were gathered. It has nothing to do with smoking cigars.
Well it didn’t make much sense to write that to a man, but there are a lot of things about your posts that don’t make sense to me.gee, I thought you were a man…my bad
That sure sounds belittling! That’s like saying “all my mom ever did was have kids and cook meals”. Frankly, if moms had not done that for thousands of years, and continued to do so today, there wouldn’t be many humans left. Raising a child is the most important thing a human can do and, yes, THAT is “women’s work”. It’s out of our hands, but God did make men and women differently. He chose men for priesthood and women for motherhood and we can’t change either of those.
Amen!
These issues are societal ones that have crept (or that we have let creep) into the Church. Beyond gender sniping, it seems to me that the deeper issue is that our society tells us it’s OK for it all to be about us. So what if I can’t stand in the sanctuary during Mass? So what if I can’t do the one job that supposedly gets the most honor? The Mass is not about our egos or making ourselves feel good. …and anyone who wants a leadership or volunteer position because they want the recognition for doing it is there for all the wrong reasons. (And won’t last long, the way most parish work goes!) 
“Vanity of vanities, said Ecclesiastes vanity of vanities, and all is vanity. I have seen all things that are done under the sun, and behold all is vanity, and vexation of spirit. The perverse are hard to be corrected, and the number of fools is infinite.”Amen!
Are you serious? Less enlightened?? Oh, wait, you must not mean the southern women who ran plantations and owned businesses and shot firearms. Belles are hard as rock underneath, sweetie pie.
And back in the day…1800’s early 1900’s.how much $$$ was hers? Was her name on the land deed? How much credit could she get in her name? Was she allowed to purchase anythiing without her husband’s permission? Obey was the letter of the law…you know that…yes I know history. I asked my southern grandmother and she told me so. She could not “own” anything, my grandfather’s name was on everything.
floresco, we agree to disagree…and let’s leave it at that.
Land ownership laws are different in each state, they are not federal. So any sweeping statement about “the South”, which is a big place, is going to be erroneous. Some states allowed women to own property by 1837, 1848, etc. Louisiana allowed women to own land, slaves, and businesses. Who were the people in Louisiana? They were French and Irish Catholics, for starters.