Women In Islam versus Judaeo-Christian Tradition The Myth & The Reality

5. Female Education

The difference between the Biblical and the Quranic conceptions of
women is not limited to the newly born female, it extends far beyond
that. Let us compare their attitudes towards a female trying to learn
her religion. The heart of Judaism is the Torah, the law. However,
according to the Talmud, "women are exempt from the study of the
Torah." Some Jewish Rabbis firmly declared "Let the words of Torah
rather be destroyed by fire than imparted to women", and "Whoever
teaches his daughter Torah is as though he taught her obscenity" The
attitude of St. Paul in the New Testament is not brighter: "As in all
the congregations of the saints, women should remain silent in the
churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission as
the law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask
their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak
in the church." (I Corinthians 14:34-35) How can a woman learn if she
is not allowed to speak? How can a woman grow intellectually if she is
obliged to be in a state of full submission? How can she broaden her
horizons if her one and only source of information is her husband at
home? Now, to be fair, we should ask: is the Quranic position any
different? One short story narrated in the Quran sums its position up
concisely. Khawlah was a Muslim woman whose husband Aws pronounced this
statement at a moment of anger: "You are to me as the back of my
mother." This was held by pagan Arabs to be a statement of divorce
which freed the husband from any conjugal responsibility but did not
leave the wife free to leave the husband's home or to marry another
man. Having heard these words from her husband, Khawlah was in a
miserable situation. She went straight to the Prophet of Islam to plead
her case. The Prophet was of the opinion that she should be patient
since there seemed to be no way out. Khawla kept arguing with the
Prophet in an attempt to save her suspended marriage. Shortly, the
Quran intervened; Khawla's plea was accepted. The divine verdict
abolished this iniquitous custom. One full chapter (Chapter 58) of the
Quran whose title is "Almujadilah" or "The woman who is arguing" was
named after this incident: "Allah has heard and accepted the statement
of the woman who pleads with you (the Prophet) concerning her husband
and carries her complaint to Allah, and Allah hears the arguments
between both of you for Allah hears and sees all things...." (58:1). A
woman in the Quranic conception has the right to argue even with the
Prophet of Islam himself. No one has the right to instruct her to be
silent. She is under no obligation to consider her husband the one and
only reference in matters of law and religion.