“Remember, women have NO obligation to get married and have children. So if a woman prefers learning to child rearing (not that the two are mutually exclusive either), there should be no reason why she shouldn’t follow the more spiritually fulfilling path. Especially in this case, a woman would be choosing between spiritual fulfillment and a lack of spiritual fulfillment, not between something that is assur or mutar. You are not talking about serving an idol because you find it spiritually uplifting – you are talking about avodat hashem (even when NOT obligatory).”
Although woman have no halachic obligation to marry and have children, I do believe that Chazal make it clear that this is a woman’s tafkid in life. If you want I can dig up some sources – the only thing that immediately comes to mind is “Noshim Bemay Zachyan….” Tell me if it needs elaboration, it is a pretty frequently quoted gemorah in my circles anyway.
you also write that if a woman “prefers” learning to child rearing than there is no reason that she shouldn’t choose “the more spiritually fullfilling path”. My point was exactly that preference and feelings have nothing to do with spiritual fullfillment!!! Spiritual fulfillment has to do with retzon hashem. And if what HE wants (even if you can’t find a mishna brura or shulchon oruch that brings it down as a halacha) is something different than 1) all your preference and feelings have no basis in reallity and 2) if you have the right attitude you will be able to find spiritual fullfillment in the task that you dismissed as not spiritually fullfilling.