1/4 of Women are Subservient Debate
"Oh joy! Another post about women!" Yeah guys, the Bible is overflowing in regards to sexism. It really isn't surprising given that it was written about 2000 years ago. It is surprising, however, that a book divinely inspired by God (and the opinion of God) tells us that women should submit to their husbands, as well as submit in general. Reasoning for this conclusion will be explained throughout my post, and forgive me if I don't analyse certain passages too deeply; I have literally TEN passages that tell us women are to submit to the stronger sex, and a limited amount of space. I do want to note that most of these passages also tell men to love their wives and treat them as they treat themselves. However, this changes nothing about the status and role God and the Apostles impart upon women.
I want to kick start our journey into righteous sexism with 1 Corinthians 14:34-38. This is my favorite passage of them all because when I was reading it, Paul actually DIRECTLY stated my mindset for this entire topic! It's going to sound repetitive given that I've said it before, but this time when you ridicule my stance, you also ridicule Paul's! The part about women is you're typical "women should be silent in churches" because it's shameful for a woman to speak in church. The part I absolutely love is what he follows up his sexist statement with:
"36 Or did the word of God originate with you? Or are you the only ones it has reached?)37 Anyone who claims to be a prophet, or to have spiritual powers, must acknowledge that what I am writing to you is a command of the Lord.38 Anyone who does not recognize this is not to be recognized."
This is what I've been saying for the last month or two! Of course, Paul straight up pulls the "God told me so and you defy God's commandment" card. So when reading through the rest of my post, remember: These are God's commandments to all of us. Paul knows because he is divinely inspired by the Holy Spirit, as are the rest of the Apostles. Disagreeing with them is LITERALLY disagreeing with God. See why I love this passage? It's no longer "just my opinion/interpretation". Now it is plainly stated that this is God's opinion-God's command.
I want to get a lot of analysis on a few particular passages, so I'm just going to dump a bunch of verses and summarize what they mean.
Genesis 3:16 tells us that the husband is to "rule over you". Ephesians 5:22-24 also tells us "Wives, be subject to your husbands as you are to the Lord." and "Just as the church is subject to Christ, so also wives ought to be, in everything, to their husbands." Colossians 3:18:"Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord." It's quite clear from these passages, ladies: The husband is to rule over the wife, and the wife to accept the husband's authority over her.
Furthermore, women are to be silent in church and be modest in the way they dress. They aren't supposed to adorn themselves by doing their hair, wearing gold/fancy jewelry, or by wearing expensive clothing, but rather with good works. Women also are not permitted "to teach or have authority over a man". The reasoning behind all of these commands is fantastic:
" For Adam was formed first, then Eve; 14 and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor. 15 Yet she will be saved through childbearing, provided they continue in faith and love and holiness, with modesty."
The passages we gather this knowledge from are 1 Timothy 2:8-15, 1 Corinthians 14:34-38, and 1 Peter 3:1-6.
There we have it! Women were deceived, not men! Therefore, women are to be modest in dress and actions as well as show no authority over/teach a man. Women are instead primarily for pumping out babies! Thank you Apostles, for God's infinite wisdom!
More rationale for the submissive role of women is presented, of course. We are told that this state of submission serves to glorify God and ultimately win people over to the religion through strict obedience to the husband. My guess is that the ploy went something like this: "See how obedient my wife is, Gentiles? See how she obeys me in everything I do and is always respectful, dressing modestly and acting righteous? Well, it's because Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior! Sign up now and you're wife will be just like this!" (Titus 2:3-5 and 1 Peter 3:1-6)
The subservient state of women just wouldn't be complete without some primitive justification...wait a second, how about "women are inferior"? For this, I'll go back and use some previous verses. In 1 Timothy 2:13-14, for example, women are inferior because "Adam was formed first, then Eve; 14 and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor." I might be jumping to conclusion by using this as evidence for female inferiority; I mean Paul only used it to justify female subservience, modesty, and role of baby-maker. We need a "better" example of female inferiority. Let's go to 1 Peter 3:7:"7 Husbands, in the same way, show consideration for your wives in your life together, paying honor to the woman as the weaker sex,[a] since they too are also heirs of the gracious gift of life—so that nothing may hinder your prayers.". That's pretty direct, dare I say? "woman as the weaker sex," can't really be misconstrued unless you're ready to pull off some big-time mental gymnastics. Yet another display of women's inferiority is in 1 Corinthians 11:7-9 (context is speaking about whether to wear head coverings or not): "7 For a man ought not to have his head veiled, since he is the image and reflection[a] of God; but woman is the reflection[b] of man. 8 Indeed, man was not made from woman, but woman from man. 9 Neither was man created for the sake of woman, but woman for the sake of man.". Women are reflecting man's image, men are reflecting God's image. Also, women are made for the sake of men. Once again, EXTREMELY self-explanatory. So it's hopefully pretty clear now that women are inferior to men, which is why they are divinely ordered to remain subservient to men (on top of the argument about attracting members to the religion).
God's direct words and actions can also back up the Apostles' statements. I only have two references for this, but I'm sure more exist that I simply haven't found yet. The weaker of the two is shown in Job 38:3:"Gird up your loins like a man". I find this statement pretty weak, but I see it as God saying "Toughen up, like a man." which is sexist to the same level as saying, "Oh, be a man!" to a friend. Once again, this interpretation is really weak, especially after typing it out and reading it aloud (lol).
An extremely strong reinforcement of what the Apostles taught is seen in God's treatment of the women of Zion in Isaiah 3:16-24. I love this passage almost as much as I love 1 Corinthians 11:34-38 because it completely validates my position. Basically, the women of Zion are waaaay too proud. They walk with upheld chins, look around with seductive eyes, sway their hips when they walk, and wear ornaments on their ankles. For these heinous crimes, God will inflict scabs on these women's scalps which will make them bald, take every bit of fine clothing and jewelry away from them, and make them smell foul. Why? Because God won't be having these evil women walking around like they are "people"! But seriously, God is condemning these women for things women now-a-days do on a daily basis. It correlates with the Apostle's role and status for women and really shows us what a "sinful woman" looks like: Any woman in a 1st world country. Seriously, guys. People in Saudi Arabia are following God's commandments better than us. I thought this was a Christian country...?
Ok ok, enough jokes. This position designated by God for women is obviously absurd. If it doesn't sound familiar enough already, then allow me to tell you that it is very similar to the Middle East and their view of women. With this knowledge, we can also see why women were kept down for such a long time in the United States. The Bible specifically designates the role of women as that of a home-keeper subservient to her husband and obedient to him in all circumstances. To most of us, this is a sexist and backwards mindset. One that cannot exist in the future, and one that is directly at odds with modern feminism and women's rights. Of course, if you're a firm believer in God and his righteous commandments, then these are matter-of-fact statements. Women are inferior, subservient to men, to dress modestly, be obedient, be silent in church, not teach/show authority over men, and be home-keepers. These are all based on the biblical commandments of the Apostles and God, most of which are New Testament. Disobeying these commandments puts you against the intentions and will of God.
God's direct words and actions can also back up the Apostles' statements. I only have two references for this, but I'm sure more exist that I simply haven't found yet. The weaker of the two is shown in Job 38:3:"Gird up your loins like a man". I find this statement pretty weak, but I see it as God saying "Toughen up, like a man." which is sexist to the same level as saying, "Oh, be a man!" to a friend. Once again, this interpretation is really weak, especially after typing it out and reading it aloud (lol).
An extremely strong reinforcement of what the Apostles taught is seen in God's treatment of the women of Zion in Isaiah 3:16-24. I love this passage almost as much as I love 1 Corinthians 11:34-38 because it completely validates my position. Basically, the women of Zion are waaaay too proud. They walk with upheld chins, look around with seductive eyes, sway their hips when they walk, and wear ornaments on their ankles. For these heinous crimes, God will inflict scabs on these women's scalps which will make them bald, take every bit of fine clothing and jewelry away from them, and make them smell foul. Why? Because God won't be having these evil women walking around like they are "people"! But seriously, God is condemning these women for things women now-a-days do on a daily basis. It correlates with the Apostle's role and status for women and really shows us what a "sinful woman" looks like: Any woman in a 1st world country. Seriously, guys. People in Saudi Arabia are following God's commandments better than us. I thought this was a Christian country...?
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| They think they're people! TORTURE THEM FOR THIS MISTAKE |
Ok ok, enough jokes. This position designated by God for women is obviously absurd. If it doesn't sound familiar enough already, then allow me to tell you that it is very similar to the Middle East and their view of women. With this knowledge, we can also see why women were kept down for such a long time in the United States. The Bible specifically designates the role of women as that of a home-keeper subservient to her husband and obedient to him in all circumstances. To most of us, this is a sexist and backwards mindset. One that cannot exist in the future, and one that is directly at odds with modern feminism and women's rights. Of course, if you're a firm believer in God and his righteous commandments, then these are matter-of-fact statements. Women are inferior, subservient to men, to dress modestly, be obedient, be silent in church, not teach/show authority over men, and be home-keepers. These are all based on the biblical commandments of the Apostles and God, most of which are New Testament. Disobeying these commandments puts you against the intentions and will of God.
Daniel, first of all, this may be your best-written blog yet. The topic is, of course, controversial and your opinion false, but you did argue very well and use many sources. Nevertheless, I must refute your post less eloquently than Phillip did, so here we go. It is true that God puts men in positions of authority in these passages that you quote, but this does not mean that women are therefore lowered. Rather, by putting men in authority, God is actually challenging men, saying “It’s on your shoulders, okay? Everyone is looking up to you, so don’t blow it!” (I’m paraphrasing here by the way.)God commands men to love their wives and commands like everyone to “Love your neighbor as yourself.” This is roughly translated to “Treat others how you would want to be treated.” So, God is putting men in authority, largely as an organizational structure in Christianity. And again, you CANNOT ignore the cultural context of these quotes. It was normal and expected for men to be in positions of authority, and not only authority, but on an entirely different plane of existence from women. There were men way up here…
ReplyDelete… and women way down here. Women were not educated at the time, and were largely seen as inferior housewives. Jesus, in His time on earth, actually advanced the position of women by talking to the Samaritan woman at the well, saving the woman caught in adultery (guilty of sin) and trusting Mary Magdalene and her sister (Martha?). Anyway, I digress. So back to “Treat others how you would want to be treated.” God is putting men in authority, familial authority, but only in an organizational, earthly way. He is also saying to love your wife as yourself, or in other words, make her equal to yourself. So in reality, God is putting women equal to men, as He sees all as equal. “There is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” God gives different roles to different people as part of the body of Christ, and all are equal in His eyes, even if we do not see the equality between a plumber and a teacher and the President of the United States.
Now, I could go on and talk about how the secular worldview is also generally sexist, has double standards, and believes women are the weaker sex (Blurred Lines, “A woman can hit a man, but a man can’t hit a woman,” any James Bond movie, etc.) and that would be a fun exercise too, but I don’t feel like relentlessly attacking another worldview that is different from my own. So to conclude, you did write a good post here, with evidence to support your claims and a nice narrative to tie them together, even though I disagree with those claims. Continue with your questioning because it allows for honest discussion which is the best way to resolve major issues in life and such.
Women were not called inferior but rather weaker and even that is not delivered in a negative sense. Yes women are weaker physically and in Eve’s case can be lured. You can under that someone with compassionate and desire for connection that can lead to being swayed, and that can be positive or negative.
ReplyDeleteWhat we know is that women are exempted from time-bound commandments because the spirituality of women was recognized as being inherently more intact and because women are closer to caregiving for young and old. Throughout the teachings, those closest to producing life and those caring for the most vulnerable in life are considered to be in the most holy state. Therefore it is not necessary to obligate women to pray in a minyan or to build a sukkah as she may be consumed with duties related to sustaining life and is already fulfilled with more connection.
I am not writing to say that there are not examples of sexism but merely to reframe and rebalance some of the points above.