Hey Trump? Have you checked what your own religious book says about women speaking in public?

Last updated on: August 2, 2016 at 11:06 am by Libby Anne

Hey Trump? Have you checked what your own religious book says about women speaking in public? 2016-08-02T11:06:34-04:00 Libby Anne

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In his now-infamous response to Khizr Khan’s moving speech at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, Donald Trump said the following:

“If you look at his wife, she was standing there. She had nothing to say. She probably — maybe she wasn’t allowed to have anything to say. You tell me.”

This was, of course, a reference to the repression of women in the Muslim world. And it is absolutely true that there are problems out there—take honor killings in Pakistan, for instance, or the ban on women driving in Saudi Arabia, or the sexual enslavement of Yazidi women by ISIS fighters. But Islam is not monolithic, and Trump’s assumption that Ghazala Khan did not speak because she “wasn’t allowed to” was born of the same assumptions that undergird his claim that we should suspend all Muslim immigration to the United States, because of the threat of global terrorism.

But I don’t want to talk about Trump’s foibles when it comes to Islam. I want to talk about somethings lightly different. I want to talk about Trump’s own claimed religion, Christianity, because what he said about Ghazala Khan not being allowed to speak sounded vaguely familiar. Hmm, I wonder why—maybe—

I Corinthians 14:34-35—Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church.

Oh, that’s why it sounded familiar! It turns out that Trump’s own religious book states that women should not be permitted to speak in certain contexts, such as church. Wild, right? It’s right there in One Corinthians! I wonder what else Trump’s religious book says? Let’s check. I’m on the edge of my seat!

I Corinthians 11:5—But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head–it is the same as having her head shaved.

Ephesians 5:22—Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord.

I Timothy 2:11-12—A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man; she must be quiet.

You can’t see this, but I am now hiding under my chair.

But wait, what’s that you say? Not all Christians take these verses literally or apply them today? Say it ain’t so! But more seriously, that’s exactly my point.

Like Islam, Christianity is a religion that (1) has a holy book sprinkled with texts promoting female submission; (b) has a long history and tradition of denying women an equal role in religious and civil society; and (3) still has sects today that preach and practice female submission. Of course, Christianity also (1) verses that feminist Christians today use to promote gender equality; (2) a long history of women working within religion to push back against patriarchal norms; and (3) sects that preach and practice gender equality today. Well guess what? Islam has those things too!

I’m not going to get into a contest of which religion does more to suppress women. That is not my point. My point is that Trump is making monolithic assumptions about a large, complex, and varied religion while being a member of a similarly large, complex, and varied religion. Trump’s misogyny aside, I doubt he would appreciate having someone make assumptions about his beliefs based on Pentecostal Christians, or Independent Fundamentalist Baptist churches, or FLDS Mormons, or Amish communities, or the quiverfull movement. And yet, that is exactly what happens every time someone acts like ISIS is somehow representative of Islam.

Going forward, I vote we point Trump to One Corinthians every time he makes monolithic assumptions about Islam. Oh I’m sorry, I Corinthians.

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