Should a women work outside the home

SHOULD A WOMAN WORK OUTSIDE THE HOME?

                In recent years it has been observed that those societies where women work outside the home in the company of men have many serious social problems.  Some people believe that the work of a woman outside the home gives her equal rights with men, social independence, and financial freedom.  Perhaps each of these results seems to be true on the surface, but this point is actually very narrow and superficial.  It certainly does not take into consideration the serious social problems that are a direct result of women working who constantly compete with, come in contact with, and keep company with men.  Consider the religious view that all the heavenly books are quite clear about the woman’s place in the world.  The Bible and the Koran particularly state that a woman should stay home and do the housework.

            The basic fact is that women are not like men; both are different, naturally in physical stature and emotional capabilities.  God provided each with certain talents and features which help him or her in life.  For example, there are certain jobs which are suitable for each sex simply because of physical abilities and limitations.  Men can do work which needs great physical strength and endurance: bricklaying, working with heavy machinery, or doing other kinds of construction work.  On the other hand, there are other jobs more suitable for women:  nursing, raising children, and doing housework.  Women can do these jobs more efficiently because they are naturally fit for such work; they have patience and emotional endurance to do small tasks again and again without getting bored.  Emotionally, men are better equipped to make important decisions about serious problems.  Women, on the contrary, are much better suited for the patience and kindness involved in raising children, and the children develop better as a result of the mother’s kindness and understanding.

            Moreover, God made man to take care of woman; in fact, God made woman from a part of man and gave man the woman to keep him company.  Therefore, it is the duty of the man to provide a secure shelter for the woman, and he must also provide for her financially.  He does his duty by working in the outside world, thereby giving her the opportunity to stay home and be both physically and financially secure.  The woman, on the other hand, has to take care of the man and his children within the home.  She does this by cooking, cleaning, and keeping the household at its best.  This partnership between men and women is based on God’s law and has survived for hundreds, perhaps thousands, of years.

            However, today, as we see in the societies where women go to work, there are many problems which may destroy society as we know it.  First, many people, especially men, can not find jobs because women have taken those jobs.  Therefore, the men, with decreased job chances and unemployment, are pushed to commit crimes.  Children also take the wrong path because they have the feeling that their fathers and mothers ignore them; their parents push them off on babysitters, and these parents have no time to look after these children.  The fathers do not even know what the children do during the day since the mothers are absent from home, and so the fathers cannot discipline the children.  This breaking apart of the family is the cause of the high rate of divorce; as the women become financially independent, they flee the responsibility of being wives and mothers.

            Not only do crime rates and divorce rates in such countries rise; the morals of such a society are lowered or completely lost.  As women desert their natural jobs as the keepers of virtue and the teachers of culture, they too are influenced by the temptations of the world.  For instance, in the past when women stayed at home, it was rare that a woman committed a serious crime such as robbery or murder, but today it is not so unusual.  As women become more and more a part of men’s world, their association with men results in immoral acts.  The consequence being that many more women are becoming pregnant with an illegitimate child.  And at the present time, abortion for unmarried women is a common occurrence; sometimes it is even considered legal in these societies.  This last example gives sufficient proof of the utter degradation and loss of morals in a society where women work outside the home and bring themselves in contact with men.

            In conclusion, having women work outside the home is morally wrong from a religious point of view.  It is also a form of social injustice, for the consequences of having women in the work force create great social problems.  Finally, the long term effects of allowing women to work outside their homes will be a change in the character of women, which will eventually destroy societies and indeed whole nations.