At a conference in Cochin, a Sunni cleric reportedly declared that their religious texts teach women to remain inside their homes, and that bringing them into public spaces could cause great destruction.

I looked outside nervously.

Women were everywhere.

One was driving a bus. Another was performing surgery. A third was arguing a case in court. Several were teaching children, running companies, flying aircraft and administering districts.

Strangely, the buildings were still standing.

"Where is the great destruction?" I asked a gentleman nearby.

"It will come," he whispered. "A woman may soon become independent."

"Terrible," I said. "She may even start thinking."

He shuddered.

For centuries, women have struggled for the simple right to be treated as equal human beings. Yet whenever they move forward, someone reaches for a religious book, pulls out a convenient sentence, and throws it at them.

The book is rarely opened to discover its context. It is simply used as a brick.

"Stay at home," says a priest from the pulpit.

"Why?" asks the woman.

"Because God says so."

"Where?"

"Do not ask too many questions. That also causes destruction."

Many ancient instructions arose in societies where life was entirely different. Men hunted, fought wars, travelled through dangerous territories and earned outside the home. Women generally protected children and managed households. Those arrangements reflected the conditions of their age.

But today, wars are fought with satellites, computers, intelligence and technology. Women serve in armies, command aircraft, design missiles and lead governments. Physical strength no longer decides who can contribute to society.

Brains do.

And perhaps that is what frightens some men.

An educated woman can question. An independent woman can refuse injustice. A confident woman may ask why the man quoting scripture at her has never quoted the passages demanding that he practise kindness, justice, humility and self-control.

Religion should lift people, not lock them inside rooms.

Every faith has beautiful teachings about dignity, compassion and justice. But when scripture is pulled out of context and used to preserve male privilege, it does not strengthen religion. It makes religion look like an accomplice to bullying.

Such pronouncements are especially dangerous because they influence families where education is limited. A controlling husband hears them and imagines heaven has endorsed his behaviour. A frightened daughter is denied education. A talented wife is prevented from working. Oppression suddenly acquires a holy vocabulary.

If women entering public spaces causes great destruction, then perhaps what is being destroyed is not society, but male domination.

And that, dear reader, may be a destruction worth celebrating.

So, gentlemen, before telling women to stay at home, remember that the doctor saving your life, the judge protecting your rights, or the pilot flying your plane may be a woman.

And if that still troubles you, perhaps you should stay at home...!