This is a guest post by Dr. Ann Mary Madavanakkad, CMC, in response to Virginia Saldanha’s “Religio-Cultural Underpinnings of Gender and Reproductive Injustice and Their Impact on Women’s Agency in India,” which is a book chapter in the newly published Reproduction and the Common Good: Global Perspectives from the Catholic Tradition (Catholic Theological Ethics in the World Church book series in partnership with Journal of Moral Theology). Dr. Ann Mary Madavanakkad’s response is part of a series on Catholic Moral Theology. The first post by Dr. Simeiqi He can be found here, and the second by Dr. Taylor Ott can be found here. We invite you to share these links within your networks and send feedback to the co-editors via email.
India’s social fabric is a complex web of traditions, religion, and cultural values that play an integral role in shaping societal attitudes and behaviors. While rich in heritage, this intertwining of religion and culture often manifests in the regulation and control of women’s bodies, contributing to gender and reproductive injustice. This blog will explore how deeply ingrained religio-cultural beliefs continue to impact women’s reproductive rights, their bodily autonomy, and, ultimately, their agency in India.
Historical and Cultural Context of Gender Roles
India’s gender norms and expectations are deeply influenced by religious texts, patriarchal interpretations of traditions, and age-old customs. From the Manusmriti, a key ancient text dictating social and moral codes, to later-day religious interpretations, these scripts often positioned women as subservient to men. They have enshrined expectations of chastity, modesty, and motherhood, framing women primarily as bearers of children and custodians of family honor.
This historical conditioning has institutionalized patriarchal values into modern-day India’s socio-cultural and legal landscape. Practices such as child marriage, dowry, and preference for male children reflect these entrenched values. The preference for male offspring, for example, has long been rooted in cultural beliefs that a son brings honor and continues the family lineage, while daughters are considered burdens, leading to gender-selective abortions and a skewed sex ratio.
The Role of Religion in Shaping Reproductive Choices
Religious doctrines, both implicitly and explicitly, exert control over women’s reproductive choices in India. In Hinduism, for instance, motherhood is often exalted as a woman’s ultimate dharma (duty), linking her worth to her ability to bear children, particularly sons. In this context, infertility, especially in women, is stigmatized, and women who cannot fulfill the societal expectations of motherhood are frequently marginalized.
Islam, which also has a significant presence in India, contains specific views on women’s reproductive roles. While Islamic law allows for contraception and abortion under certain conditions, many Indian Muslim communities practice conservative interpretations that promote early marriage and discourage family planning. Women’s decisions about their own reproductive health are often overshadowed by the needs of the family or community.
Other religions like Sikhism, Christianity, and Buddhism, though less overtly restrictive on matters of reproduction, still exist within the larger patriarchal structure of Indian society, which often prioritizes male authority and control over reproductive decisions.
Reproductive Injustice and the Denial of Women’s Agency
The amalgamation of religious and cultural norms leads to a system where women’s autonomy over their bodies is diminished. Reproductive injustice manifests in several ways, including forced or coerced sterilization, limited access to contraception, and restricted abortion rights. Women, especially those from marginalized communities like Dalits and Adivasis, bear the brunt of these injustices.
In rural areas, where healthcare access is limited, women’s reproductive health is often neglected. The state’s family planning campaigns, particularly during the Emergency period in the 1970s, prioritized sterilization, and many women, especially from lower socio-economic backgrounds, were coerced into sterilization without proper informed consent. The legacy of these policies continues to affect reproductive rights today, particularly for poor and marginalized women who are often the target of such government programs.
Additionally, restrictive abortion laws, compounded by societal stigma, make it difficult for women to access safe abortion services. The religious belief that abortion is sinful can add to the guilt and shame women experience, making it even harder for them to make independent reproductive choices.
Intersectionality: Caste, Class, and Religion
Women’s experiences with reproductive injustice in India are not uniform. Caste, class, and religious identity intersect to exacerbate the challenges women face. Upper-caste women may have more access to healthcare, but they are often pressured to conform to traditional roles that glorify motherhood and self-sacrifice. On the other hand, Dalit and Adivasi women face not only gender-based discrimination but also caste-based oppression that limits their access to reproductive healthcare and bodily autonomy.
For Muslim women, religious conservatism and rising Islamophobia intersect to create a unique set of challenges. The focus on Muslim women’s fertility by the state and media often results in a two-fold oppression: from within their own religious community, which may emphasize traditional gender roles, and from the outside, where they are stereotyped and marginalized for having larger families.
Impact on Women’s Agency
The religio-cultural structures governing reproduction in India strip women of their agency by denying them control over their bodies. Women’s ability to make decisions regarding contraception, abortion, and childbirth are influenced by external factors such as family expectations, religious prescriptions, and societal norms.
When a woman’s body becomes a site for the state, religious leaders, and the community to impose their control, her personal autonomy is undermined. The state’s involvement in reproductive matters through policies like sterilization drives or limiting abortion rights further exacerbates this control, leaving women with little room to assert their agency.
Lack of access to reproductive healthcare and rights has a direct impact on women’s overall health, economic opportunities, and social standing. Women who cannot control their reproduction often have limited educational and employment opportunities, further perpetuating cycles of poverty and disempowerment.
Shifting the Narrative: Women’s Rights and Reproductive Justice
While the situation remains challenging, there are ongoing efforts to shift the narrative toward reproductive justice and women’s empowerment. Activists and organizations working at the intersection of gender, caste, and health are advocating for better reproductive healthcare, comprehensive sex education, and the protection of women’s reproductive rights, free from religious or cultural coercion.
Reproductive justice goes beyond the pro-choice narrative, encompassing the right to have children, not have children, and to parent the children one has in safe and healthy environments. It also recognizes the role that socio-economic factors, healthcare access, and social inequalities play in limiting women’s reproductive freedom.
Comments on Virginia Saldanha’s Chapter
Virginia Saldanha’s chapter in Reproduction and the Common Good: Global Perspectives from the Catholic Tradition offers a comprehensive and insightful exploration of the intersections between religion, patriarchy, and reproductive justice in India. It highlights the nuanced ways in which cultural and religious traditions can both uplift and oppress women, providing a balanced critique of Hinduism and Christianity. The use of a Catholic feminist methodology adds depth to the analysis, especially in addressing patriarchal interpretations of scripture and religious customs. The chapter’s focus on real-world consequences—such as sexual violence, poverty, and lack of bodily autonomy—makes its arguments compelling and grounded in lived experiences.
The chapter’s strength lies in its interdisciplinary approach, drawing from theology, sociology, and history to paint a vivid picture of the challenges Indian women face. By including voices like Anne M. Clifford and Kochurani Abraham, the paper thoughtfully engages with feminist scholars who offer pathways for social transformation within religious communities. Its call for religious traditions to evolve and support women’s dignity and agency is both timely and crucial, advocating for a more inclusive and justice-oriented future.
Additionally, Saldanha does an excellent job of situating these issues within the broader context of India’s political, legal, and social frameworks. The critique of dowry practices, sex-selective abortions, and the lack of laws against marital rape is powerful, underscoring the systemic nature of reproductive injustice. The emphasis on Pope Francis’s approach to gradual social change within the Church is particularly poignant, offering hope for a more compassionate, egalitarian world.
Conclusion
The religio-cultural underpinnings of gender and reproductive injustice in India continue to shape women’s lives and deny them full control over their bodies. By challenging these norms and advocating for women’s agency, there is potential to break down the barriers that limit women’s reproductive choices and, by extension, their full participation in society. Reproductive justice, informed by an understanding of the intersectionality of caste, class, and religion, offers a path forward to ensuring women in India can assert their agency and enjoy their rights to autonomy and dignity.
Dr. Ann Mary Madavanakkad belongs to the Congregation of the Mother of Carmel (CMC), Carmelodaya Province, Wardha, India. She holds a B.Sc. in Mathematics, a B.Ed., and an M.A. in Christian Studies from Madras University. Additionally, she completed a B.Th. from Dharmaram Vidya Kshetram, Bangalore, an M.Sc. in Counseling and Psychology, and earned a licentiate in Pastoral Management from Jnana Deep Vidya Peeth, Pune. Madavanakkad also holds a licentiate and a doctorate in Moral Theology from Dharmaram Vidya Kshetram, Bangalore. Over the years, Madavanakkad has served her congregation in various capacities, including as a member of the Central Renewal Team, Formator, Directress and Junior Mistress, Provincial Secretary, and Provincial Councillor for two terms. She is currently appointed as the Mission Formation Coordinator in the CMC congregation. Alongside her congregational duties, she lectures at several institutions and formation houses. Madavanakkad has also contributed extensively to academic scholarship, publishing numerous papers in edited volumes and peer-reviewed journals, and presenting her work at national and international conferences. She also published her doctoral thesis as a book titled A Good Christian Family Is the Image of Heaven: Family Ethics in the Chavarul of St. Kuriakose Elias Chavara.
