Tovis Page
After college, I worked as a reproductive health specialist at Planned Parenthood clinics in both Providence, Rhode Island and Menlo Park.
It was the height of the 1990s culture wars — a precursor, perhaps, to our own. I had grown up without religion for the most part. I knew little about religion beyond what radical feminists like Mary Daly were writing about it (not good) and what I experienced in the public sphere and at work (also not good).
Working at Planned Parenthood in the mid-1990s convinced me that Mary Daly was right. Religion was obviously not only patriarchal, but downright dangerous for women. In Providence, I had to wade through throngs of Christian protesters to get into the clinic on the days abortions were performed. I felt threatened and violated every time, and I could only imagine how our patients felt. For most of the women I counseled at Planned Parenthood, the decision to end a pregnancy was painful, frightening and often full of shame. I was enraged that they were forced to undergo even more fear and shame just to get to the doors of our clinic for basic medical care.
After the Christian anti-abortion activist John Salvi opened fire at two Planned Parenthood clinics in Boston in 1994, killing two and injuring five, the Providence clinic where I worked started to feel like a prison. The security glass that encased the reception area, the safety locks installed on doors throughout the clinic, the bulletproof vests our doctors wore, and the police detail out front were constant reminders of the precarious status of women, especially those without many financial resources. And the fact that the people threatening us were motivated by their Christian faith fueled my belief that religion was deeply oppressive, especially for women.
Strangely enough, this was an important juncture on my path to ordained ministry, because it led me to Harvard Divinity School, where I spent the next 10 years studying religion, gender and culture. There I discovered what so many others already know: When it comes to liberation and oppression, religion is a double-edged sword. It cuts both ways. I eventually made my way to Unitarian Universalism, a tradition that unequivocally defends the right of bodily autonomy and publicly advocates for reproductive justice and other forms of liberal and progressive social change.
What I want to hold up about my story is this:
Liberal and progressive religious people have allowed the religious right to dominate the public sphere for too long, and the impacts are increasingly clear, widespread and dangerous. Too often, we have allowed politically conservative forms of religion to be the religious voice capturing headlines, publicly influencing policy and wielding moral power. But there are other religious options — many of them. Religious options that can be life-saving for people desperately in need of a faith that affirms their inherent worth and dignity, that affirms their gender identity and sexuality, that affirms their right to choose if, when and how to bear a child or start a family and with whom.
In our current moment of political and cultural polarization — when so much is at stake for so many people whose rights are under assault — we can’t let Christian nationalism be the dominant moral narrative. Politically liberal and progressive Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Jews, Muslims, Unitarian Universalists and so many others must be those religious alternatives — loudly, boldly, visibly and powerfully in the public sphere. To do that, we need one another, we need interfaith spaces and networks that are socially engaged and politically influential. We need seats at the tables where decisions are made. We need to partner with organizations working to protect civil rights, reproductive health care and democratic institutions in increasingly perilous times.
Rev. Dr. Tovis Page is co-minister of the Unitarian Universalists of San Mateo and the program coordinator of the Peninsula Solidarity Cohort.
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(12) comments
While ignoring what she should have learned in her religious history and Divinity classes, the Reverend does not even realize that it is exactly the Christian religion that has been, and still is, overall most progressive and beneficial for womanhood. Of course, unless one believes otherwise that suppression in some religions force women to wear ancient head coverings, get their genitals mutilated, cannot sit next to a Buddhist monk, need to worship apart from men in their temples, are not allowed to drive a car and are simply relegated to household chores and child bearing, are preferred. Christianity has provided more freedom for women than any other religion. The church that the Reverend subscribes to is nothing more than a liberal, humanistic, nihilistic compact that is inexplicably labeled as a religion.
Dirk: Even most baby boys in this country "get their genitals mutilated", something called horrible child abuse in more progressive countries, like Scandinavia. Isn’t there something about the Hippocratic Oath to do no harm, - while this most unkind cut of all, reduces a male from what he was intended to be, making it look like “God” made a mistake that humans must fix? Yeah, religious logic at its best!
Scandinavia appears to be your country of choice and we all learned from you that it was Sweden who actually won WWII and saved the world, we have also learned that abortion is a saving grace and should be celebrated and now we learn circumcision is considered genital mutilation. Do Scandinavians also believe an umbilical cord should not be cut so as to not mutilate? There are medical pros and cons to circumcision, and several major medical associations recommend offering circumcision as a choice for parents. These groups include the American Urological Association (AUA) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
Both organizations state that the benefits are greater than the risks. But they don’t explicitly recommend circumcision — it’s ultimately the parents’ decision.
Look - according to Westy, some of us have been promoted to the Troll level which is a compliment from her. Jorg is not aware of the difference between female genital mutilation and circumcision. When all fails, start insulting and deliver responses that have little or no bearing on the topic at hand.
Seems to me the rev dr is doing what she complains religion does - by, she wrote , "capturing headlines, publicly influencing policy and wielding moral power." She notes "reproductive" rights, the latest media buzz word. How can abortion be "reproductive?" I think mass media is the new religion by setting our public agenda and the terminology we use. I guess I am getting old because I remember when gay meant happy.
"Religion was obviously not only patriarchal, but downright dangerous for women."
This is the flawed basis for this lunatics interpretation of Christianity - our Lord is our Father - so yea its patriarchal by nature. This woman thinks she knows better than God. You know what that's called? Satanism. A "reverend" who grew up killing babies and continues to advocate for it. If you read Dante's Inferno - people who use God's authority to lead their flock astray for whatever reason get one of the deepest pits of Hell - and that's exactly where you are going promoting this. Nothing more disgusting to God than harming children - and it seems you enjoy harming our most innocent. Killing a baby isn't "reproductive care" - its murder. Crazy how somebody would think its okay to kill a baby because a woman doesn't like who she had sex with. God isn't political - you just hate Him - thats the only truth in your heart. You hate God and you think you know better. Typical post-post modern woman - rules dont exist - solipsistic - my emotions are all the truth i need - wa wa im soo oppressed because I want to do evil things and good men tell me not to. This woman is her own god. Good luck with all that.
Tovis Page, Satan doesn't get "a seat at the table." And no matter how you twist a few unfortunate stories of overly zealous individuals acting in the name of God, they were acting in the name of Satan and are mentally disturbed. Individuals who search for meaning are typically open minded, but it appears your mind was made up long ago and you simply had to find a way to justify your way of thinking. Creating a narrative that Christianity is evil indicates selective reasoning because Christianity does more for mankind that every other religion combined. Margaret Sanger comes to mind when I think of evil, and the that same movement still beats today which supports the eradication of people of color through the guise of "choice."
You don't seem to have understood a word of this thought provoking piece! So why don't you just keep quiet, instead of making a comment that is so absurd that you ought to be ashamed of yourself, - if you at least had a fiber of decency.
Thank you for confirming my comment, nothing about trying to rationalize killing an innocent human is thought provoking. You and your ilk who enjoy abortion as if it’s a pastime, a form of entertainment, a sport, a right of arms and a reason to celebrate is what lacks ZERO DECENCY.
Jorg - this "this thought provoking piece" flies in the face of rational thought. Hence the comments on her encapsulated, ultra left drivel. But, right up your alley, apparently.
Thank you Dr. Page, your are a much better voice for the teaching of Christ and religions that teach peace and love (which does not include many that call themselves "Christian") than the forced-birth, misogynist trolls who are the heaviest commentators on these pages.
Thank you so much, Dr. Page, for a very well written, informative, and above all, an honest opinion piece, - which some regulars on this site wasted no time exposing disagreement with, - unintentionally underscoring your very valid points! Speaking as someone who grew up in a very secular country like Norway, I would say women “over there” are freer and more respected as equals than just about anywhere else, except for the rest of Scandinavia.
If, for example, someone in high school would be stupid enough to do to a girl what Trump brags about doing routinely to women, he would have been beaten up beyond recognition, and cured for life! Having spent more than half a century in this country, I’m disturbed by so many men’s behavior towards women, - suggesting to me they are simply afraid of women, instead of appreciating their very important contribution, willingly securing mankind’s future, not the least. Wake up, guys! This is not a silly game of winning, it is working together as human beings, - for the benefit of us all!
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