a new atheist and marriage

[Astonished]

Being a stay at home mom/wife does not make someone inferior to the person who works outside the home. That's your own prejudiced opinion. Each couple is free to do what works for them and what they are comfortable with. There is no objective right or wrong here.

C_L, I think you'd have to admit that some religions do impose duties, positions and limit choices, particularly on females in the marriage. I think you'd also have to admit that some religions enforce marriage within the religion, particularly on females, or they are basically shunned.

Yes, that's part of it. Also notice how I specified someone who was 'brainwashed' into accepting those roles, not someone choosing them freely of their own volition in a completely informed consent situation with no social conditioning to favor that and not even entertain the other perspective. I'd be perfectly fine being a stay at home dad, as long as my partner was a good enough breadwinner that we'd all be comfortable, so why would I denigrate a woman who wants to do the same thing (provided it's her completely free choice, which, given indoctrination and religious upbringing being so ubiquitous, probably isn't the exact situation most of the time)? Even if you're a pretty fair-weather believer, those early lessons tend to stick around, and will affect you more than you think, so it's dubious that it has no effect on major decisions later on down the line.