Religion and Women’s Roles North Africa and the Middle East

Three Major Religions  Islam  Christianity  Judaism

Islam  Monotheistic  Follow the teachings of the prophet Muhammad  5 Pillars  Faith  Prayer  Charity  Fasting  Pilgrimage

5 Pillars  Faith- “There is not God but Allah”  Prayer- Pray 5 times at day facing Mecca  Charity- Support the less fortunate  Fasting- Ramadan – sun up to sun down  Pilgrimage- Trip once in their life to Mecca

Islam  Muslim armies spread across three continents – Africa, Asia, and Europe  By the Middle Ages, a large part of the world was controlled by Muslim empires  North Africa and the Middle East have a large following of Islam today  Three major holy cities: Mecca, Medina, & Jerusalem

Sunni and Shi’ite  Two main branches of Islam  83% of Muslims are Sunni  Majority of Iranians are Shi’ite

CountrySunnisShiites & Offshoots Afghanistan84%15% Bahrain30%70% Egypt90% 1% Iran10%89% Iraq32-37%60-65% Kuwait60%25% Lebanon23%38% Pakistan77%20% Saudi Arabia90%10% Syria74%16%(Alawites) Turkey83-93%7-17% United Arab Emirates81%15% Yemen70%30% Source: Congressional Research Service

Judaism  Jerusalem is the center of their modern and ancient homeland  Modern Jews come to pray at the holiest site in Jerusalem which is a portion of the Second Temple known as the Western Wall or Wailing Wall  It is the only remaining piece of the Second Temple, which was destroyed in A.D. 700 by the Romans

Christianity  Jerusalem is sacred location of the final suffering and crucifixion of Jesus  Every year, Christians visit places such as the Mount of Olives and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre by the thousands

Women’s Roles North Africa and the Middle East

Women in the Middle East  In the Middle East, women cover their heads, hair, and sometimes their faces with a scarf or veil  This is in keeping with the belief that covering those parts of the body is pleasing to God  These roles have expanded in the 20 th century by more Arabic women becoming educated so that they are able to pursue careers in other nations  However, family is of high value, so many women stay at home to manage household affairs

Women in North Africa  In North Africa, households are centered around males  Recently, women have started to make gains outside the home  Growing numbers have professional jobs

Women in Tunisia  In Tunisia, having more than one wife at a time has been abolished  Tunisia has increased the penalties for spousal abuse  Either spouse can now seek a divorce  Tunisia no longer permits preteen girls in arranged marriages and requires equal pay for equal jobs  Women hold 7% of Tunisia’s parliamentary seats and manage nearly 9% of the businesses in Tunis

Diary Entry  On a separate sheet of paper, write a diary entry as if you were a woman living in North Africa or the Middle East  You can choose whether you write this diary in present time where the role of women is improving or in the past where the role of women was extremely difficult  You need to write a minimum of 1 paragraph (7 sentences)