While I was ironing this morning (wow, isn’t hubby going to be so blessed {smile}) I was thinking about how “big business” has really taken off as a result of the feminist movement. Let’s look at it:
The feminist movement took place and basically said that women can and should do what the men of the society are doing. Our country bought into it and women flooded the workplace.
With these women out of the home, there was a huge NEED for certain types of businesses because the need was no longer being met by the wife. Here are a few examples of these businesses: fast food (you gotta eat), laundry service (who has the time?), daycare (can’t take the kids to work!), house cleaners (we aren’t home enough to do this), seamstress (what is a needle?), bakery (bake from scratch? You’ve got to be kidding!), disposable diapers (gotta have them for daycare), formula (with working there is no way I can nurse),
How big are these businesses and how reliant are they upon the ideas that the feminist movement brainwashed so many into? Here are some facts on just three of the businesses I listed:
Restaurant Industry
• In 2005, there are 900,000 locations serving more than 70 billion meals and snacks per week. This industry employs 12.2 million and is estimated to have sales of $476 billion this year. (http://www.restaurant.org/research/ind_glance.cfm)
Laundry Service:
• In 2002, there were 200,806 establishments with 1,289,699 employees and revenue of $71 billion. (http://www.atmosfear.ro/prod/ec02/ec0281i02.pdf)
Daycare:
• More than 130,000 childcare establishments in the US with nearly 930,000 employed in this industry. In 1995 (this was the most current stat I found from the government) for children under age 5, 75% of them were in some sort of childcare facility. (http://www.sbdc.uga.edu/pdfs/childcare.pdf#search=’daycare%20childcare%20statistics’)
I am not saying that if more women stayed home, there wouldn’t be a need for these businesses at all but it would greatly cut down on the need.
The role of the wife and mother is very important in our society even though the feminist movement undermines this fact. As Christian women, we are called to be homemakers and thus provide immeasurable services to our family.
What do you think about this? Have you ever thought about it? Do you believe that most women in the workforce are there because of the impact that the feminist movement has had on our society?
myhighcalling 
Hey Dana, I agree that women should stay home and take care of there families. But I also know that Some women have no choice but to work. Like for instance there might be a Disabled Family Member in that home and they may Relie on The Woman’s Check to pay most of the Bills as well as buy some needs. Or Another Situation is a Single Mom who has no choice but work and gets no help from the Goverment. What are your views in these areas?
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I agree that there are times when a woman must work ( I worked until almost 2 years ago). The reason I worked was becuase my dh and I were “slaves to the lender” (we had a ton of debt). Following Biblical principles, we paid off our debt and I came home. Also, my heart goes out to the single mother and I agree that she does have to make ends meet and therefore must work. I also know that the majority of these woman became single becuase of divorce. I don’t have time to get into my complete view on this right now but I will plan to post on it at a later time (hopefully next week). Thank you for your questions and I can’t wait to post more in-depth on it ;-D
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Interesting stats. I remember reading a statistic somewhere on how much a homemaker would earn in the “real world” if her services were added up. Of course, I can’t remember where I saw that statistic! :hammer: Oh, and I think I earned my overtime last night since I only had 3 hrs. of sleep being up with a sick kid. 😮
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It is not clear to me what you consider “feminism” to be or why you find it objectionable. Why do you perceive feminist theory as stating that women “can” and “should” do what men do? I understand it to say that women should have the same options, rights and privileges that men have. What is objectionable about such an idea? Do you believe that women should have the right to vote? Do you object to the feminist movement that gave us this right?
Also, the notion of a stay-at-home wife is itself a relatively modern one. Prior to the modern era, men married women not because of notions of love but because a woman was strong and would make a good worker in an agricultural economy, because of social convenience or for other utilitarian reasons. In this respect, even children were viewed as fungible.
It seems to me that what has forced the stay-at-home spouse out of the home and into the workplace isn’t feminism at all. It’s the economic realities of life in the 21st century. I know a lot of women who work simply because they feel they need to and for no other reason.
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Economic realities of life are that most people spend more money than they make, and are forced to work only so that they can keep up with the Jones’. Are there time when a mother or wife must provide for family by going to work? Absolutely, but cable TV and a Brand new car are not one of them. We should not let the feminist movement hide behind womens rights. The last of which I fully support 110 percent.
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I don’t disagree with the last comment, but I still don’t understand what you believe “feminism” to be and why you find it objectionable. Feminism isn’t the same thing as consumerism. Our upside-down cultural values that emphasize spending over savings, the acquisition of material possessions over intangible values, is not connected to feminist theory. I’d be interested in knowing what you find objectionable feminism.
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Why object to feminism, a few reasons are it’s support for homosexuals, abortion, not to mention a pure hate towards Christians and men. Go to Organizations such a NOW.org just to see what they stand for. As I said earlier, Feminism takes womens rights to the extreme. Any movement that represents the slaughter of babies and can not be good. Ask a feminist their view on wife submitting to husband and see the rage that follows.
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What is your view on a wife submitting to a husband? Do you find it objectionable if a feminist merely maintains that, while it’s fine for your wife to submit to you, women are entitled to a choice, and if they choose to be treated like equals in all aspects of their life, they should have that right? I am feminist and would respect any woman’s choice. If she wanted to live a life that involved submission to her husband, I would respect her right to make that choice. It’s not for me to tell her or you what to do. All I understand feminism to say is that it’s not for society to tell me what to do because of my gender.
Abortion is related to one aspect of feminism, but it is a movement that encompasses the right to vote, the right to be free from domestic abuse, the right to serve on a jury, the right to receive equal pay, the right to be free from sexual harassment in the work place, etc. Not very long ago at all, property could not be inherited by women.
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I suppose one could argue if you’re not a Christian–fine, it’s your choice not to submit. If you are a Christian, you have the choice to disobey God and be miserable. Wives are to submit to their husbands. However, all Christians are to submit to each other and husbands are to love their wives as their own body. He is not to be a dictator. They are to become one flesh. I think people just have a misconception of what submission is. Of course, the husband is the head of the family as Christ is the head of the church. He does have the final say in anything important that the two of you disagree on.
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Shanti I could not agree with you more that that verse is taken out of context way too much. If it sounded that way, it was not meant too. The huband is definately not a dictator. The wife is not his slave or servant. It is a like circle. If the wive submits to her husband, he will want to love her her as Christ loved the church, and when a husband loves his wife as Christ loves the church. When both parties do their different but equal role, it falls into place. The Husband should not just love, but cherish (something too many men have forgotten since say that in their vows) his wife. When this happens, the wife will know that the husband has her interest in mind, and would never take advantage of her submission. Again my last comment was in no way intended to mean the husband had freedom to do anything he pleased. When one does not fulfill their it does not give the other the right to do the same. I know this is not a popular view, but it is God’s design for how a marriage works. It is funny how if this is such a wrong view, that couples holding this standard rarely get divorced. Do you think God just happened to know what he was talking about when he designed marriage? I will be posting on this issue in more detail later. On a side note, my wife hardly ever submits. This does not mean that she is not a submisive wife. We run all of our decisions through the God’s Holy Word, and because of this we are usually on the same page. but when we do differ, she will submit, but because I love her so much, and I am willing to die to my own desires, to make her happy, she doesn’t have to. When we are at odds, it usually is because she wants to submit to me, and I want to die to self for her. Once more We are BOTH created in God’s image.
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Yes, life is definitely easier when we follow God’s rules. His rules were meant to make our lives easier and more joyous–not grievous. They were made to protect us from harm–not to make us miserable. 🙂
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Thanks for the comments; I appreciate them. Chad, I don’t know what you’re exposure to women who identify themselves as feminist has been in the past, but I don’t hate Christians and I don’t hate men. My father is a Christian and a man and I love him dearly. I love my husband too.
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Hi Lisa, Thank you for your comments. I see that most of your comments have been answered but I wanted to add a few comments of my own for clarification. In referring to the “feminist movement” I am not referring to “women’s rights” (such as the right to vote). What I am referring to is the movement that began in the ‘50’s that included many events such as “the pill”, abortion, and women being encouraged to get a job outside the home (that they were being oppressed by staying at home and it was an unimportant job). Now, please understand that this is not a complete list of what the feminist movement encompasses but just a few of the things that I disagree with. Okay now with that explanation out of the way, what I say, is based on MY Christian worldview and the scripture, which is the Word of God. Scripture tells us that women are to be “sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed (Titus 2:4-5). The part I was focusing on in this discussion is “keepers of the home”. God is our creator. He is the creator of men and women. He created us as equals but with different roles. The role of the husband is to be the head of the home and the provider. The role of the wife is to be submissive (in the biblical way) to her own husband and to be a keeper of the home. I know from first hand experience that when I have tried to be the head of my home and be a provider that my marriage was awful. When dh and I starting living in the way that the Lord commands us in His word, we had a heavenly marriage. It is very hard to explain this because our society as been saturated by our modern media that this is the wrong way to live. I really don’t care what the modern media says, I live for the Lord. I have talked to so many women who are searching for love in all the wrong places. It starts by trusting in Christ (He first loved us) and then living to serve Him. In the past, my life dishonored the Lord but now I live to glorify Him. In the past, my life was self-centered, miserable and unhappy but now, I have a joy that is unexplainable. I really hope that you will continue to visit my site to learn more about this joy that I have. It is joy that cannot be explained, only experienced. Have a blessed day!
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Thanks, Dana. It sounds like you have given the matter some thought, and I can appreciate that. Sometimes I think we live in our own little worlds and have very strong opinions about those who don’t, you know, like what it means to be a feminist or a mother who stays at home and cares for her family. I am quite certain that all feminist don’t hate men and Christians and equally certain that you live a very full, rich and rewarding life. I kind of like popping in a little because your world is very different from mine. Hope that’s okay. Thanks.
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Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Mix all ingredients together. Spoon biscuits onto pan (the dough mixture will be sticky but they will stay about the same size you spoon them). Bake for 15 minutes
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