Man, woman and history

As a result of our modern dualism--relegating sexual difference to the merely biological, leads us to think of the significance of sexual differentiation as only relevant to marriage, sexuality and family issues.  I was struck by this quote in the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, quoting from John Paul II's Letter to Women: "To the 'unity of the two, God has entrusted not only the work of procreation and family life, but the creation of history itself." (147) That means, it seems to me, that every human reality is some way marked by sexual complementarity. So, if both men and women are active in the public arena, it is as complementary participants.  What that means exactly, I don't know.  We know Church life is marked by this--that is why priests are only men and why, as John Paul II says somewhere, celibacy is of the logic of priesthood (men can't remarry after being ordained).