This is a pretty large and detailed topic. I can make a general comment. Gilead is a theocracy, a government where church and state are combined. Religion has been twisted to fit a very conservative political viewpoint. Atwood uses Christian motifs and diction throughout her book. The character of Rita, for example, is from the New Testament. The Old Testament, is used to justify for many Gilead’s outward mysogeny and sexism. Consider Offred and the book's title. Offred’s job as Handmaid is based on the biblical story of Rachel and Leah: both were fertile servants who could bear children for their masters. Offred was forced into an adulterous relationships to allow infertile women, like the Commander’s Wife, to have families.