Head scarves & Hijabs =/= Oppression

The final presentation was today. We ended with gender and religion. It was spilt into the three main sectors of religion: Hindu, Christian and Islam. Hannah asked me to speak a little about Orthodoxy, but I was caught off guard when I was considered a guest speaker. I just tried to emphasize that just because our faith hasn't really changed since its beginning does not mean that women are oppressed. True, most juristidions of Orthodoxy require women to cover their heads when they enter a monastery or church.
The reason this doesn't feel like oppression to us is because it was all that they knew so they didn't consider it oppression because they had nothing to go off of. Women cannot go behind the iconostasis ( a screen or wall which serves as a stable support for icons and marks the boundary between the nave and the altar or sanctuary) because all of the apostoles were men. And obviosuly, there are no women ministers. This is significant because Orthodoxy is an aposticistic religion meaning that it stems from the apostles. Traditionally, women and men are separated (women on the left with the Virgin Mary and men on the right with Christ) during liturgy. Women usually hold jobs of administration assistants, and maintenence of the church. Personally, I do not feel oppressed by my church because it is not about me. It is about our service and devotion to God. Individuality doesn't really matter when we are worshipping. This does not mean that God wants us all to be exactly the same; however, when we are in church, faith and heart matter, not a nice hairdo or a pretty dress. The only thing that does totally urk me is that women can never visit Mount Athos, one of the holiest places on earth. It seems unfair, but the rationale is that women would be a threat in the monastism and a distration to the pure. Personally, I believe that we should be allowed to be pilgrims just like males, and if monks are distracted, then they obviosuly are not as fully devout as they seem. And I am not judging, but I feel that if we piosly entered just as the rest, why should it matter what sex we are? Overall though, I don't feel any need to complain about where I and my fellow woman stand (literally) in the Orthodox church.
The Muslim women are also seen to the western world as oppressed by their dress. The Hijab for some does mean oppression, while for others it means freedom and liberation. One woman in an interview said that she can be seen for her internal qualities when she wears her hijab because she cannot be judged by her appearance. Just like in the youtube clip we showed in our presentation about culture and Opera was trying to encourage women to not wear them because they are oppressing themselves, oppression is seen in the eyes of the beholder.
So like in Orthodoxy, it is all that the Muslum women know, so they do not see it as oppression. Sometimes it is hard not to stare, but the least we can do is not judge. Everyone is fighting their own battle and we don't know anyone's story, so we can't judge.
One I feel like we can judge because it seems absolutely insane is the caste system. Truth though, we can't judge that either. Though the Love Commandos article was a little unnerving, there is plenty of research that argues that arranged marriages are sometimes more successful than marrying for love. Toria made a good point. Sad but true, a marriage is a legal agreement which has financial benefits. She mentioned that even though we marry for love here, it is still a financial agreement that may not be as balanced as the arranged ones. Love can't pay the bills. Arranged marriages have the potential to.