Why are you so obsessed with me?

An Arkansas pastor has gained media coverage for something asinine that he said. (big shock) His sermon on Sunday morning revolved around something called 'theological dualism'. A claim that the soul and the body are separated. This allows for religious people to go to church on Sunday and purify their soul but their body is an earthly thing and it does not matter what they do to it.

He referred to 1 Corinthians 6. This chapter says that our bodies are temples and God owns us. He shamed people for overeating, abortion, and pornography. Somehow, doing things like this is 'offending our body'.

He then said that women do not have the right to their own body. He never said that men do not have the right to their body. Sure, it was implied that no one owned their own bodies but, he only deemed it necessary to specifically say that women had no claim to their own body.

Here is the story from Raw Story with a clip of the pastor:

http://www.rawstory.com/2015/11/arizona-pastor-if-a-woman-thinks-she-has-the-right-over-her-own-body-no-thats-not-true/

Why do so many church leaders seem to make sure women know they are less important?

When I was 19 I got a tattoo. It's small and I can hide it easily. Just a simple ankh and a number.  Like many people, my tattoo is meaningful to me. I'm proud of it. It's on my foot and kinda ugly but it wasn't meant to be a work of art. I love it.

When I got it I was still hanging on to my religion. Hanging on by a thread but, still, I went to church every week.

The first Sunday after I got my tattoo I went to my church's morning services. I remember a deacon (kind of like an elder but on a lower rung) came over to me to say 'good morning'. He had a son about my age so he felt he had an 'in' with the youths. He looked down at my foot and saw my new ink.

I distinctly remember him telling me that the bible says that our bodies are not ours and that making marks on it is forbidden. He didn't yell at me. He wasn't overtly angry. He sounded disappointed in me. And, for an instant, I was ashamed.

I think back to it every now and then and I'm sad that I didn't say something prolific.  I'm annoyed at myself for, once again, being silent in church. I'm disgusted that I was intimidated by the deacon. But, I was a girl. In this church, and many others, it's the men's duty to make sure we stay in line. I deserved that talking to, apparently.

What was I supposed to say? "Some guy assaulted me a year ago and this tattoo was to remind me that I'm, once again, in control of my own life and body"? Maybe. That would have knocked the deacon back for a second. But, I bet I can think of how he would have responded. Something about god testing me. Maybe something about how I was assaulted because I wasn't acting like a christian in the first place. Or, two wrongs...something something something.

The important thing I learned from that experience is that women in the church are always being reminded that our bodies are not ours, we have no choice in anything, and we can do nothing about it.

I became a more empowered woman when I left the church. I became a better, nicer, more loving person when I left religion. I'm still saddened when I see so many women flocking and clinging to their religion. A religion that doesn't respect, empower, or give authority to them.

I won't take away anyone's religion. I can never do that. But, I can be disappointed in it. And, I'll be there for those who choose to leave it behind.