Blackwell Reference Online

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Women's religious commitments, ideals, and involvement are increasingly of interest to sociologists within both the sociology of religion and other fields. While early research on religion focused on the origins, functions, meaning, and measurement of religion, the past few decades have witnessed a burgeoning interest in women's spirituality, the involvement of women within religious institutions, and religiously based women's social movements. Part of this shift is the result of the growth of gender studies within sociology, as well as increased religious pluralism and expression across the religious landscape. Women's involvement in religion varies depending on whether we are considering personal beliefs and practices or institutional affiliation and leadership. Some scholars have been critical of women's marginalization within religious institutions. Some critics, such as theologian Mary Daly, argue that women's historic exclusion from positions of leadership and authority within western religious traditions is evidence that the Judeo-Christian tradition itself is inherently patriarchal and oppressive and should be abandoned in favor of non-patriarchal feminist spiritualities. The recent growth of neo-pagan ( Neitz 2000 ), goddess worship, and other forms of feminist spirituality suggest that some women are moving away from traditional western religious institutions because they ... log in or subscribe to read full text