Nigeria has made tremendous progress economically and politically over the past few decades. Nevertheless, a cursory look at the advances made so far by women in these same spheres and within the same period leaves much to be desired. The need to redress the erroneous perceptions in relation to the relevance of a woman to nation building/economic development in Nigeria has never been so urgent. The Nigerian woman is buffeted by challenges that are enormous and varied in nature. The cultural inhibitions, gender based stereotyping, patriarchal system of the Nigerian society are but a few of her quandaries. This paper examines how customs, beliefs and laws that discriminate against women have been perpetuated by religion and how these have shaped their lives.