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| <~~~ BACK Questions Q: �I have a friend who won�t even read the Bible because she feels it�s so anti-woman. How might I respond to her?� A: First, I�d encourage your friend to read the Bible herself, instead of relying on others to tell her about it. (I recommend that she not use the King James version, simply because the language is outdated and can be easily misunderstood. Instead, try NAS [New American Standard]. I don�t recommend NIV [New International Version] anymore, because the latest versions use politically correct wording, which strays far from the original Biblical texts. I highly recommend a �study� Bible, which contains historical notes that help readers understand passages much more fully.) I�d also stress the importance of taking all parts of the Bible in context. Most of the people I�ve known who find fault with the Bible don�t do this. For example, they might point to the text that tells a wife to submit to her husband and say �See! Ah ha! The Bible is sexist!� However, if they read that verse in context (reading at least the entire chapter, and preferably the entire book), they�ll discover that all Christians are instructed to submit to each other, and that husbands are specifically instructed to love (agapao) their wives as Christ loves (agapao) us. (Remember, the meaning of agapao is �to totally give yourself over to.� And how did Christ love us? He described Himself as our servant. That�s submission!) In addition, the Bible later says �There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus� (Gal. 3:28), making it clear that God doesn�t value any one of us more or less than the other. (Indeed, Jesus never treated women with anything less than respect and never neglected to show them concern. Neither did he ever show favor to men over women.) You can also talk to her about the status of women in Old Testament times. Point out that the Bible actually gave women a much higher standing in society than the laws of almost any other culture. (For a website with a good overview of ancient women�s lives, you might direct your friend to http://www.womenintheancientworld.com/index.htm .) For example, under ancient Roman law, women couldn�t hold office; they couldn�t be legal witnesses; they couldn�t make contracts. In the courts, accused women could successfully plead ignorance, since the court honestly believed that their mental capabilities were miniscule. The status of women in other countries was similar. On the other hand, women in the ancient Hebrew culture enjoyed a higher status; they had legal rights and were protected under the law. They could becomes heirs to property. The Bible insisted they be treated not as mere chattels, but as human beings. At the same time, they couldn�t hide behind their skirts. Unlike women in many other ancient cultures, they couldn�t plead dumb if they failed to meet their obligations; they were considered as capable as men. Unlike girls in most other nations, Hebrew girls were educated in much the same way as Hebrew boys. Their fathers taught them Hebrew history and made sure they understood spiritual matters. This was considered just as important for girls to know as it was for boys; in fact, many women in the Bible were spiritual leaders�including Deborah (Judges 4:4), Huldah (2 Kings 22:11-23:14), Miriam (Exodus 15:20), Anna (Luke 2:36) and Phoebe (Romans 16:2). Fathers who followed the Bible�s teachings were commanded to love their daughters just as much as their sons. (By contrast, girl babies were considered trash in some nations, and unfortunate accidents in most others.) Indeed, when Nathan wished to describe the relationship between a father and child, he described a daughter in her father�s arms. (2 Sam. 12:3). Next week, I�ll cover some common objections about the Bible and women, with suggestions about how to respond to them. GOT A QUESTION? I invite you to ask it. What stumps you? I'll do my best to find an answer! To ask a question, email me at [email protected]. (c) Copyright 2003 by Kristina Seleshanko |
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