ACCEPT WOMEN AND UNDERSTAND THEIR WEAKNESSES AS DON CHALLENGED RELIGIOUS AND CULTURAL BIAS AGAINST WOMEN
A Professor of Sociology of Religion at the Ekiti State University, Ibiyinka Adesanya, has called for an end to religious and cultural bias against women as well as, accepting and understanding womens’ weaknesses as strength using a Socio-Religious Enquiry.
Adesanya made this recommendation while delivering the university’s 104th inaugural lecture titled: “Who Did Women Offend: God, Nature, Man or Society? A Socio-Religious Enquiry” where she challenged womens’ experience in the society, with special emphasis on the violence against women.
Professor Adesanya, maintained that women should not be viewed as secondary figures, but as equal partners in human existence, stressing that the persistence of patriarchal interpretations continues to shape attitudes across many societies. Drawing from experience, the educational expert recounted how cultural bias once prioritised the education of male children over the female fold, describing the trend as a reflection of deeply rooted traditions that still influence gender relations today.
Adesanya took particular aim at what she described as the misinterpretation of biblical texts often used to justify inequality. Referencing passages such as 1Corinthians,14:34-35 and Genesis 2:18, she argued that these scriptures are frequently taken out of context, resulting in doctrines that limit womens’ participation in religious life.
She maintained that, the description of women as “weaker vessels” in 1 Peter 3:7 should not be misconstrued as inferiority, but rather understood as a call for mutual respect, love, and shared responsibility between men and women, whom she described as joint heirs of divine grace.
According to her, having discussed the place of and nature of women, her social status is based on the misinterpretion the scriptural passages, her marginalized position, her subjugation, deprivation and forced silence in the society, various physical violence against her, I am curious to ask: who then has she offended: God, Man, Society or Nature?
She concluded by saying that women are special image of God made and created for a purpose. It is her uniqueness and uncelebrated personality in history and in the course of life that make one to feel that she has offended one principality/institution or the other. She further urged stakeholders across religious and societal institutions to adopt more inclusive and contextually grounded interpretations of doctrines that promote fairness and justice, warning that continued discrimination against women could stall broader societal advancement.
In his remarks, the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Joseph Ayodele, commended Adesanya for her brilliant presentation, describing her lecture as both impactful and intellectually enriching. He further stated that, the lecture is culturally, psychologically, politically, and religiously impactful and that, no image of God is to be subjected to ridicule and treated with disdain.
He concluded that, “women has not offended anyone as they are strong, unique and simple.
The event which took place on Tuesday, 14th April, 2026 at the University main Auditorium attracted a wide array of participants, including the , Principal Officers of the University, Traditional Rulers, Provost of Colleges, Deans of Faculties, Staff, and Students of the University including Friends and Family Members of the Inaugural Lecturer.