"Trad" but not Traditional?

I saw a comment a year ago that remarked, "Calling #tradwives traditional is like calling Billy Graham a church father," and it has stayed with me since.

Over the past few years, there has been an obvious increase in the "#tradwife" movement. For those unfamiliar, #tradwife, a condensed version of "traditional wife", is a trend of wives showcasing their stay-at-home mom lifestyle while drawing from the 1950s housewife archetype. They can be found caring for their home, wearing a dress while kneading sourdough, and championing submission to their husband.

Given the prevalent promiscuity and liberal attitude towards sexuality in today's culture, it's unsurprising that there would be a small but vocal resistance that is instead clinging to the "traditions" of the past. But is the #tradwife movement traditional in any real sense? Or are people romanticizing or fetishizing an era of history because of nostalgia?

Embracing tradition can be good and beautiful. But that depends on how we define tradition. As someone who would love to be a stay-at-home mom, I admire striving for the freedom to devote time to raising children. However, we must acknowledge that this is not intrinsically more virtuous than being a working mom. I have seen too many videos online equating motherhood or marriage to "the most important job a woman can do". While motherhood and marriage are indeed beautiful, it's vital to remember that these roles, ordained by God, point to a greater reality—the relationship between Christ, the true bridegroom, and His bride, the church. Not all women will be mothers or wives, but all women can faithfully serve God, which is virtuous.

A woman's greatest role isn't confined to being a wife or mother. Our purpose and identity should not solely derive from earthly relationships but rather from God and glorifying Him. In Matthew 6 Jesus says to "seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness." From there, we can step into our secondary roles as wives, mothers, friends, mentors, etc. The #tradwife movement gets it backward, implying that women ought to embody the housewife caricature as a virtue in and of itself.

Taking care of one's home is important and is even prescribed in scripture.  However, it doesn't constitute a woman's highest calling. When we transform our house into a home we are dimly reflecting our creative God who brought order and beauty from nothingness. Homemaking is beautiful for this reason. Feeding one's family by cooking healthy food is great and admirable. But women do not need to wear vintage dresses or raise chickens to do so.

Submission to your husband is a good thing. God calls us to submit to our husbands, and our husbands to submit to God. The tradwives on the internet emphasize being a submissive, mild woman, but they fail to emphasize submission to God. It's interesting that many men who support this movement also identify as red-pilled and do not necessarily subscribe to biblical instructions on how to treat their wives- loving them sacrificially as Christ loves the Church. Also, it is worth noting that a biblical woman is not timid. Women can honor and uphold the roles and boundaries of authority and headship established by the Lord, while still being bold, vibrant women.

Though the #tradwife movement appears to be alluring to many young women, it makes promises that don't exactly align with reality. Mary Harrington writes about this with far more depth than I have, and I suggest you read her piece to explore this topic even further. Before dropping out of college to be a tradwife, reflect on whether the domestic and social dynamics of the 1950s are what you truly want. I suspect that for many of us, it isn't.