Feminists, anti-fems and everyone else in the spectrum: what are your spiritual beliefs?

Question

I am interested here in finding out your position in the feminist/anti-feminist/(neutral??) debate and how this is connection to your spiritual being.

Do you feel politics and spirituality are connected?

Does your position in the gender debate preclude, exclude, complement or exist notwithstanding your spiritual beliefs?

How do they work together?

How do they work into non-gender-based politics?

How does your spiritual self fit into your gender role?

Answer 1

I am a feminist, and I am an atheist. An agnostic on my more sentimental days.

My views (or lack of religious views) have nothing to do with my identity as a feminist. I just don't believe that the Universe and the life in it is anything but the result of physics and biochemistry.  

Answer 2

I am a feminist. I am agnostic.

I feel that politics and spirituality are very strongly connected. In fact what frustrates me most is when people throw '...but the Bible says...' into an argument rather than providing a real debate.

My beliefs on all things complement each other well. I love being able to form my own opinions without being told what I am supposed to think.

Answer 3

I am an atheist, and I was raised in an agnostic household. I do not feel that politics and spirituality should be connected, but politicians do have a way of letting their religion bleed into their platforms.

Answer 4

real gud question...

i support most things the feminists want... equal rights for women... equal jobs... equal pay... battered womens shelters...  thats y all the men on here hate me...

but then im also a christian...  so im aganst abortion...  thats y all the feminists here hate me...

guess u cud say i got equality... im hated equal by both the men an women here...

Answer 5

Good old fashioned atheist, also a feminist.

I've never believed in God anyway, so it's not like I had to think about it, but I think many organised religions put women down and expect them to let men lead, which I don't agree with.  There are a few echoes of conservative paternalism hovering around politics, but I think they are on their way out - governments need to move with the times to keep getting the votes, something religion has a hard time doing  :-)

Miss Theo - you're right, both are as illogical as each other - the need to believe, and the need not to believe.  But I don't need to believe anything, so it doesn't matter to me whether God exists or not :-)

Answer 6

Mutterhal "I don't believe there is any purpose to life, other than one you might create." That's an existentialist. Nihilists don't believe there is any meaning to life at all.

Tracy, Eleanor; No one can know for sure whether there is or isn't a god or some sort of intelligence that is responsible for not only life but also the laws of biochemistry and physics. So being an Atheist is just as illogical as being a blind follower of the good book.

Edit: Since it is impossible to know for sure if there is or isn't a god or intelligence it would be foolish to call yourself an Atheist. If the burden of proof is on the believer and they can provide no absolute proof for themselves then the wiser choice of the term to use would be Agnostic.

Edit;

If you're going to 'make a choice' about something you can't possibly make a well enough informed decision about, it's better to fence sit and admit you're fence sitting than look like an idiot claiming to know something you don't.

A belief is a claim to know. Atheism is a belief. At the dawn of man...there were no believers, Atheists or Theists. Only after a while gods were formed from observation as an explaination for the things they couldn't understand. Science is observation but these observations only bring up more questions about how it works. It's still unclear WHY these things science observed work this way or HOW they came to work this way. People are just as clueless now about why things are the way they are as they ever were.

Answer 7

My answer is simple.... I am very much against most religions because most religions are just plain sexist. The bible, I believe was written by men, about men. God is supposedly male, Adam was the first living human, and woman was a product of man... Ow please, this is nothing but a 'story' written by men! Everything about religion is pro-male!

I am a feminist and yes, for the reasons I stated above, I believe my feminist beliefs directly affect my spirituality. My spiritual beliefs are not based on a story. I am a nihilist. I believe I control my destiny and when I'm dead, I'm dead. My god is the brain inside my head...

Answer 8

I am a non-feminist g*y male and I believe in equality between all human beings on the planet.

I don't believe in God and I don't believe human beings have a 'spirit'. The word has been made up. We don't have one.

So therefore it isn't possible to be spiritual.

One can live the best way that one can to reduce unhappiness and maximise happiness for oneself and those around us.

My beliefs or non beliefs regarding gender have nothing to do with my atheistic agnosticisim.

Answer 9

Feminist...

I'm a deist....which is basically.  There is a "higher" being, "it" (b/c it doesn't need of have a gender...is more of just energy then a being)  set the world in motion and moved on, we live in a very complex world that is very much like a computer program, plus the things that had to of happened for life to exist couldn't have just happened by luck.  However this engery/higher being doesnt really care what we do or don't.....basically "He came, he set the program, he left, can we move on now?"  

As for after life...thats a whole other theory that I came up with.  Think everyone is right.  Everything has a soul, and so does everyone.  Our souls live of both this tangible world and other plane which it is connected to though most dont feel it.   Anyway everyone is right about the afterlife for our souls create the world we believe in.  Christians if they are good, and believe they have been when they died create there own heaven.  Atheist died...there soul forgets all and it moves...so in there own "mind" nothing happens.  Hindu start in a new body....etc etc etc everyone is right for they/; there soul or engery create their own heaven or h**l.

do the two mix...not much to really "do" as a deist not like I have weekly meets or something.  

Answer 10

I am Anti-ideology which makes me Anti-feminist since its an ideology

I call myself agnostic but I'm really just a reluctant atheist

i feel that, since religion is a system of morals and laws are enforcements of a societies morals that yes spirituality as a function of religion is connected to politics, the creation of laws

see answer above for working together

TO me all politics are non-gender-based except when a special interest group tries to buy/coerce legislation to support their cause

My spiritual self doesn't realy define my gender as much as my sexual organs

Answer 11

I am an Feminist Agnostic Existentialist, and I appreciate Mahayana Buddhism, but I practice the native religion of my Lakota ancestors, also known as the Red Road.

I feel that politics and spirituality are innately connected. While I am the first to admit that one can never "know" the answers to existential questions (Why are we here? How did existence come to be? What happens after we die?), I do have beliefs that I have come to through my own life-long seeking. I recognize that they are subjective beliefs and not objective knowledge, however, and this is what allows me to remain Agnostic. The most fundamental beliefs I hold are that everything is sacred and everything is connected.

The dominant religion(s) of the day which posit a male god (who presumably gets jock itch on occasion, right?) who exists separately from, and above, the material realm and is a sort of split-personality, nice daddy, vengeful judge guy. I conceive of the Divine (when I do) as the Fundamental Mystery, as the Paradox, the Isness. It is the Prime Mover which has no specific gender, but rather which contains the possibility of all things, including what we humans conceive of as beautiful, grotesque, good, evil, life, death, man, woman, light, dark, happy, sad, night, day, hot, cold, together, alone,...and all the infinite shades and permutations thereof.

Since the Prime Mover is, by definition, what created existence, and since, by definition, there was nothing other than Itself from which to create, it stands, therefore, that everything is a manifestation of the Divine. This means, in a very practical sense, that politics is sacred, and s*x is sacred, and the Earth is sacred, and periods (Moontime) are sacred, and birth is sacred, and death is sacred, and everything in between is far to short to spend in fear, ignorance, hatred or sloth.

This means that I live my life in such a way that every thing I do, typing on this keyboard, drinking this water, showering, lovemaking, cooking...it's all a sacred task. This means that my political involvement, including my feminist work, is a manifestation of the sacred which permeates my being and everything else. There is nothing that is not a sacred task. There is nothing that is not sacred.

Because I approach The Whole of Existence as sacred, it is impossible for me to either reject, nor embrace, a static, rigid, gender role. I embrace and honor that within me which is considered "feminine" and that within me which is considered "masculine." In some senses I conform to a very feminine gender role. I am gentle, compassionate, concerned with my outer and inner beauty, etc. Yet I also embrace and embody typically masculine traits as well. I am a scholar and athlete who can throw down under the hood, engage in dispassionate debate, and jump out of airplanes on occasion. I honor and love all of these traits, in me and in others.

While I believe that everything is sacred, I do recognize that what we conceive of as negative or evil does exist, though it serves a sacred purpose; as an illusion, it teaches us what we are not. I do try to live in such a way that i manifest the higher side of my humanity, my femininity, and my masculinity, and I call on others to do so as well.

Thank you for the important question. Spirituality, how we answer the existential questions we all inevitably face, well, this is the determining factor of who we live our lives. It is the primary ethic with which we measure and judge ourselves and others and it determines our actions more than any other trait. It is important to recognize the power that our spirituality holds.

Answer 12

I'm a non-feminist and agnostic, bordering on atheism. I'm not part of any religion and I don't believe in a conscious higher power, but I do think there may be some kind of energy in the world and I'm a strong believer in the strength of nature.

I think politics and spirituality and best kept apart, because I see religious beliefs as very personal and relating to your own actions, whereas your political views impact a wider circle of people.

My thoughts on gender probably go along with my spirituality... I place more emphasis on trying to make this world a better place and treating people equally rather than wondering about the afterlife. I'm quite traditional myself, but other people can live however they like as long as they're not hurting anyone.

Faith should be something that frees you, not oppresses or confines you.

Answer 13

I am an atheist / naturalistic pantheist / pagan. I do not believe in personal gods. I believe that the universe itself is sacred and all things contain inherent value.

I have never found that not believing in a non-existent being has made me any less moral in my actions and behaviour. I aim to do what is right and causes the least amount of suffering.

My politics and spirituality are connected in that I support ethical, sustainable and environmentally friendly policies. As I view people as equals, I support policies that address discrimination.

I aim to be a compassionate and moral human being. I do not believe in gender roles. I do not believe in people having a predetermined 'place' or 'role' in society, dependant on which s*x they were born or which caste they were born into. I believe we each have a duty to find our own 'place' in society that fulfils us as human beings and contributes to our community / humankind as a whole.

I think we should strive to be happy - and help others to be happy - in this life, as I do not believe there is anything beyond.

Answer 14

I apply neither the term feminist, nor anti-feminist to myself, but am most likely viewed as an anti-feminist.  When I was younger I bought into atheism, and the ways of the world.  The lines between right and wrong became very blury.  I actually slipped into paganism.  It was in coming back to Jesus that I have been able to see the damage we are doing by rejecting him, and rejecting the word.  I am an imperfect sinner, and have lived very much against God's will.  This has had consequences.  We as a society are disregarding his plan for us as "absolute rubbish."  This has dire consequences.  Holding families together is not backwards, ultra conservative thinking.  By no means do I feel women should be beaten or abused.  I do believe husbands should love their wives, and wives should respect their husbands.  I believe children should obey their parents, and I believe that husbands will be held accountable when this does not happen.  I've failed following the world's way.

Answer 15

I am an atheist (thank God! lol)

I was born that way, I was raised that way and I stayed that way out of conviction after playing with the idea of choosing a religious path during my teenager years.

Spirituality is something else, I feel I am a spiritual person, I developed my own spirituality. Spirituality is a state of mind which help us go through life in a more positive way.

My personal (invented) spiritual life, is a world apart from my social and political ideas. It has nothing to do with my gender role, either, it is like a very private world!.

Global feminist/Human Rights advocate...if I have the need to chose a label

Interesting question!

Answer 16

I would say I am- Feminist neutral... I understand both ends and as long as the argument is logical, I consider it valid because there's more than 1 way to live.

Politics and spirituality are definitely connected, but more so in some than others... for example far-right bible bangers who are generally anti-feminist and very conservative.

My own spirituality has no influence on my position in the gender debate, and my position in the gender debate has no influence on my spirituality.

They don't work together. For me, there is no "universally correct" position in the gender debate, nor is there a "universally correct" position on spirituality. There is what one believes to be more correct, but we, as creatures who are limited in our understanding of universal concepts, are not in the position to judge on absolutes.

I myself try my best not to see gender. Impossible, I know, but it is possible to come to a medium in which one treats both genders equally... and that is what I strive to accomplish. In some cases, sexuality and tradition must be sacrificed.

I am a Catholic male. My gender role is obviously male. As I said before, they are separate issues requiring separate thoughts and separate conclusions.

Answer 17

Nihilist; basically I don't believe in god, or any afterlife, and I don't believe there is any purpose to life, other than one you might create. I value reason and autonomy above all.

Edit: No, I am a nihilist, not an existentialist. If feminists can make up new definitions for already established words, so can I.

http://www.a**s.com/zine/nihilism/

Edit II: Theo, the burden of proof is on the believers, therefore atheism is the logical choice.

Edit III: An agnostic is a fence sitter; an atheist makes a choice based on observable phemenona. Since the dawn of man, believers have been unable to provide any sort of definitive proof of a higher power. I think it's safe to say that atheism is the logical choice.