The Role of Women and Coexistence

Considering the story of the Virgin Mary and the birth of Jesus alone, the Koran and the Bible so similarly portray Mary that they could very well be different translations of the same text. Both texts glorify her virtues, such as chastity and devotion to God. Both texts promote respect and gratitude towards the mother through the words and deeds of Jesus. The strength and wholesomeness of Mary in both texts defines what both religions deem ideal in women and evoke the divine qualities of their sex.

“When a woman if Imran said: My Lord! Surely I vow to Thee what is in my womb, to be devoted (to Thy service); accept therefore from me…” (3.35)

The dominance of this story in two major world religions, the story of Isa’s (Jesus’) miracle conception reveals the power and intent behind it. God grants the Virgin Marium (Mary) the ultimate blessing, Imran, because of her perfect devotion and goodness. Thus, the story establishes the holy qualities of the ideal woman, and then establishes that such a woman should receive respect.

“ ‘And dutiful to my mother, and He has not made me insolent, unblessed…” (19.32)
Imran proclaims his respect for her from the moment of his birth, a powerful testament to the good in respecting women.

Why, then, have so many women in both religious worlds experienced subordination?

Perhaps for the same reason that many Americans perceive the Muslims as a violent, dangerous people—the individual’s interpretation of the text.

“The religious intolerance that characterizes the behavior of many Muslim communities today is inconsistent with the heritage of tolerance that is professed by the Islamic tradition” (320).

The acts of violence committed by the few, small groups of Islamic extremists grossly misrepresent Islam. However, the long lasting effects of each of their attacks so affected Americans that they severely slanted their perception of the Islamic faith.
Many of the practices of Islam, as with any religion, come from tradition. Pop culture’s ideal American woman until the late 20th century (arguably) was the good, church-going, homemaker who cooked and cleaned for her husband. The ideal Muslim woman similarly served her husband faithfully. Indeed, both the Koran and the Bible portrayed Mary as a good, loyal wife to her husband, yet the Koran’s ideal woman is a powerful and strong individual.

“…Muslims are reminded that God can be either woman or man” (320).

“While the Muslim vision is often perceived to be authoritarian and punitive the Koran, on close inspection, is filled with descriptions and vision of God’s more feminine attributes such as gentleness, providence, love, universal compassion and tender-heartedness” (320).

The Koran’s feminine features complete the depiction of God. Many of his most merciful characteristics stem from the ideal woman, according to the Koran.

But the Koran contains various other stories that do not glorify the woman, some of which parallel stories in the Bible, such as the story of Adam and Eve. The various interpretations and portrayals of women in both texts have caused centuries of disagreement about the role of women in society. Many progressive Muslim women have protested the traditional head coverings, scandalizing traditionalists.


And some Muslim women maintain traditions as a cultural battle between traditionalists and progressives ensues.
(http://www.themuslimwoman.org/images/iran_women_women_8y.jpg)


The parallel stories and similar portrayals of women in both texts seem to cry for coexistence. Many of same teachings dominate both texts. Yet the small, radical groups in both religions so powerfully skew perceptions of the cultures worldwide that the differences seem irresolvable.


This symbolic "coexist" sign appears on t-shirts, bumper-stickers, and graffiti art all over the world as an underground movement for worldwide tolerance, something both the Bible and Koran condone.
(http://www.flickr.com/photos/45756796@N00/1201390590/)