The man is, biblically, supposed to lead the family in religious matters, including discipleship and righteousness.
Ephesians 6
There was some logic behind that. I have seen a study done that show children are much more likely to continue to go to Church as they get older if Church is an important part of Dads life. If Mom is the one dragging the kids off to Church, they tend to drift away from Church later. The same study was done about prayer.