Ideas Anyone?

I'm thinking that those of you who have read my posts so far are as stuck as I am about how men will benefit from women achieving outward equality.  So this one starts with an extract from a letter written by the Universal House of Justice, the world governing body of the Baha'i community, addressed to The Peoples of the World, in 1985:

"The emancipation of women, the achievement of full equality between the sexes, is one of the most important, though less acknowledged prerequisites of peace. The denial of such equality perpetrates an injustice against one half of the world’s population and promotes in men harmful attitudes and habits that are carried from the family to the workplace, to political life, and ultimately to international relations. There are no grounds, moral, practical, or biological, upon which such denial can be justified.Only as women are welcomed into full partnership in all fields of human endeavour will the moral and psychological climate be created in which international peace can emerge."

Many people around the world want peace.  Everyone I have ever spoken with about it WANTS it.  There are varying levels of belief as to whether we can achieve it.  If it weren't for Baha'u'llah's assurance that it is inevitable, I would be one of the people who only believes peace to be possible on a good day.  Nonetheless, it is not only possible, but inevitable.  Since the above paragraph says that equality is a prerequisite for peace, it would seem that achieving outward equality between men and women is also inevitable, and must come first.

Note I say "outward equality".  This is an important distinction for me because the Baha'i Writings say that men and women are spiritually equal.  We don't have to work to attain that - it just is.  It is important to me because, knowing I am every man's equal, I don't have anything to prove to anyone.  The world may want me to prove myself, but all I have to do is remind myself that God says men and women are and have always been spiritually equal, and I let go of the urge to get into that battle.  What makes me sad is how so many women don't understand that basic fact about themselves.

However, the point of this blog is to look for ways that outward equality will benefit men.

As I said earlier, I struggle with this one myself, and the only thing I know to do is draw on my own life.  So let's make it personal:  How does my husband benefit from treating me as his equal?

I've asked him:  He's pretty abstract about it:  "You complement me.  I wouldn't feel complete if you were not my equal."  He also compared us to a mix of cement: the cement without the water is useless.  OK, I'm water.

I create a balance in his life.

On another level:  I help him to deal with his own insecurities.  If you've ever met my husband, you'd know he doesn't have many.

Guess what?  My dear husband can't come up with any concrete examples either. He ended his attempt to help me with, "Hmm.  That's a tough one."   I'll attribute that to him being one of the few men I know who functions more on heart and intuition than most men.  Any other explanation and I'd be tempted to hit him over the head with a baseball bat.

So, all we've got so far is the grander scheme of things:  men will live in a peaceful world when women have achieved equality.  There HAS to be some more immediate reason for men to encourage women to achieve true equality.  Will it be enough for most men that it's because it is what is just?  That is, treat women as their equals because it is the right thing to do?  Maybe it is that simple, but I'd like to think that there will be personal benefit for men to work for equality, that it isn't only about world peace.