Well! May the Dark Ages return! Thank goodness for the Southern Baptists who have just taken us back 400 years. Yes, women are fluffy-headed and unprepared for moral responsibility. Why, they can only be led by men, who have proved over and over that they are the anointed, the ones chosen to lead women out of darkness and sin. By whom, I wonder? The Southern Baptists?

Isn't it interesting that throughout history, women have been asked to teach their children the moral traditions of society. When the American West was settled, there was a call for women to move West, to tame the wild frontier, to bring moral strictures to the renegade men of the mining and cow towns. But, of course, that didn't make them capable of leading any religious community, now, did it?

My goodness, should Mother Theresa be denied her bid for sainthood because she is merely a humble, and obviously, therefore, ineffective, woman? Should Joan of Arc be forgotten because she was a passionate, so clearly undeserving, female? According to the Southern Baptists, women are incapable of leadership. Eat your heart out, Margaret Thatcher. You were just an aberration in the constellation of mortal leaders, and one to be ignored at that.

It wasn't too long ago that this denomination told women to submit "graciously" to their husbands. Does this mean that they should smile if their husbands beat them or beg their husbands' permission to vote for the politician of their choice? Does it mean that they should not form opinions of their own or, heaven help us, advocate and defend them? Let's just shove half of the population into the kitchen (I love my kitchen, by the way) and make sure they aren't counted when the chips are down or the tough decisions need to me made.

What ever happened to the idea of marriage as a partnership? Or the idea that women are important participants in community service? What about the minds that women have used so effectively to better the lives of their families, their communities and their nations, not to mention their workplaces? I guess Marie Curie should have put her experiments on hold because the betterment of humankind couldn't possibly come from a woman.

Let's not even talk about the many thousands of women doctors, lawyers, day care workers, miners, construction workers and moms who make our lives better every day. Who give us guidance in courage, selflessness and leadership. Who show us how to care for others, persevere under extraordinarily hardships and make difficult ethical decisions. For sure, let's not mention the women whose intellects have electrified the world and improved our lives.

I thought we in the United States were beyond that era when half our population was denied its potential for leadership. Sadly, I seem to be wrong. While most Christian denominations recognize that women as well as men can offer spiritual guidance and moral strength, the largest denomination tells us that women aren't capable of leading a church.

Please don't tell me that Christianity places only one gender in charge of society. Or that women are not emotionally capable of moral leadership. Please don't tell me that one gender must submerge its talents and intellect to the other. Most of us know that simply isn't true. Men and women both have enormous capabilities for making our society better. Little boys and little girls should both be taught that they have an equal role to play in making the world a better place for all of us. Neither boys nor girls have the corner on spirituality or moral fiber. To teach our children the opposite is to do them, and all of us, a great disservice.

What makes America great is using the talents of all our diverse population. Our strength comes from encouraging every one of us to follow our calling and to build a better society, no matter who we are. Denying opportunity because of gender, or any other characteristic, for that matter, is anathema to the American dream. Let's not return to the Dark Ages where that dream could not see the light of day.