Christianity
5
Sexism in the Bible: Is Christianity Sexist?
Introduction
The claim is often made that the Bible is sexist and that Christianity demeans women and makes them into second class citizens. While I do agree that sexism exists in Christian churches and that portions of scripture have been used to perpetuate sexism, the Bible does not condone discrimination in any manner. Men have cited verses about submission of women to keep believing women "in their place." Get out your Bibles and let's see what the Bible really says about women, submission, and equality.
Created in the image of God
Most people know that the Bible says God created man in His own image. However, many do not know that "man" includes both males and females. Both males and females are created in the image of God:
And God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. (Genesis 1:27)1
This verse implies that the "image of God" encompasses traits found in both males and females and that the physical sexual differences between the sexes are not important characteristics in terms of how mankind was created in God's image.
Women as just helpers?
The story of women in the Bible begins in Genesis 2, where God says that it is not good that man should be alone.2 So God made a woman as a "helper suitable for him." Some would say that making woman as a "helper" is sexist. The Hebrew word translated "helper" is ezer, which occurs 21 times in the Old Testament. In 2 instances in Genesis, ezer refers to the woman Eve. In 16 of the other 19 instances the word is used to describe God Himself!3 Obviously, the term cannot be said to represent some sort of subservient role. An interesting sidelight to the phrase "helper suitable for him" is that the translation "suitable" is not the most common translation for the Hebrew word. In fact, the most common translation is "opposite." Anyone who is married knows that their spouse is often completely opposite from themselves.
Women in the Bible - not just mommies
The women described in the Bible are not always homemakers and mothers. Obviously, the biological function of women is to produce and care for children. However, Deborah was both a judge and leader of Israel.4 Other women were involved in ridding Israel of her enemies.5 Quite a number of women are described as being prophetesses.6 Other women in the Bible were involved in teaching the Word of God7 or serving as deaconesses in the early Christian church.8
There are a number of other very strong women of faith described in the Bible. In fact, two books of the Bible are specifically about women, as indicated by their titles, "Ruth" and "Esther." Ruth is the story of the compassion and redemption of the gentile woman, Ruth. Naomi, Ruth's mother-in-law, fell into the unfortunate circumstances of losing both her husband and her two sons, one of whom was Ruth's husband. With nobody to provide for her and Naomi being "too old" to be remarried, she chose to go to Israel, where the laws and traditions required the Israelites to take care of widows, even if they were strangers. One of Naomi's daughter-in-laws chose to stay in the land in order to find another husband. But Ruth chose to go with her mother-in-law, even though this meant that she would probably never be married. However, Ruth was "redeemed" by Boaz, who married her despite the fact that she was a gentile. The line of Ruth and Boaz led directly to King David, and, of course, eventually to the Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth.
The book of Esther is the story of the rise of a young Jewish woman who found favor9 in the eyes of the Persian king, Ahasuerus (Xerxes), and became the queen of Persia. The former queen, Vashti, had refused to appear before the court when called by the king, and had been removed from the royal position. The king's prime minister, Haman hated the Jews and sought to destroy all of them through a plot of getting the king to unsuspectingly sign a decree calling for their execution. However, through the actions of the righteous Jew Mordecai, and the bravery of Esther in confronting the king, the decree was revoked and the conspirator, Haman, hanged. The Bible says that Esther had "come to royal position for such a time as this"10 - destined by God to save the Jews.
Other strong women of the Bible included Sarah, the wife of Abraham, who was preserved by the Lord despite the cowardly actions of Abraham in saying that she was his sister,11 and thus allowing her to enter into the courts of two kings (as a potential wife). Hannah is another example of a woman who had a strong spiritual walk.12 She was a woman of prayer and faith. Although she was childless for years, she had faith in God and her prayers were answered in giving birth to her son Samuel. She promised to give him back to the Lord, which she did by taking him to the priest as soon as he was weaned. Probably the strongest woman in the New Testament was Mary, the mother of Jesus. When the angel Gabriel told her she was to give birth to a son although a virgin, her response was, "May it be to me as you have said." A famous prayer of praise from Mary is recorded in the book of Luke.13
The ideal biblical wife
The book of Proverbs (which records the wisdom of Solomon) describes the ideal wife in its last chapter.14 She is, by no means, a weak woman who grovels at the feet of her husband. Instead, she takes charge over the care and needs of her family, and, in addition, the needs of the poor. She also manages her servants. In addition, she maintains her own business and from her own earnings buys land and plants vineyards. She is described as being wise, strong, and dignified, yet able to laugh. She is praised by her husband and children, who appreciate her hard work and commitment.
How Jesus treated women
When we look at how Jesus treated women, we discover the difference between the way God wants men to treat women and the way they were (and still are) treated by men in societies. The woman at the well is a prime example. When Jesus asked her for a drink, her first reaction was disbelief that he would even talk to her.15 When Jesus' disciples came back, they were surprised that He was talking to a woman.16 Jewish customs had become so legalistic that men (and especially rabbis) did not associate with women who were not their wives. Even now, orthodox Jewish men and women are prohibited from touching members of the opposite sex.17
In contrast, Jesus touched many women and allowed them to touch Him as He healed them.18 Although this was in direct opposition to the customs of the time, it reveals the nature of the personal God who directly touches people's lives. Jesus was compassionate to sinners and ministered to prostitutes and adulteresses. In a well-known example, some of the religious leaders brought a woman to Jesus who was "caught in the act of adultery." Obviously, the man involved in the adultery would have been there also, but they didn't bring him. As Jesus alluded to their own sins, the woman's accusers left. Jesus did not condemn the woman, but admonished her to leave her life of sin.19
Although all of Jesus' twelve disciples were men (there is good reason for this20), there were a number of women who were loyal followers and who ministered to Him and His disciples.21 The gospels record that the women were the first to hear the news of Jesus' resurrection from the angels22 and the first to see Him23 (since the men had gone into hiding or back to their original jobs after Jesus was crucified). In contrast to the gentleness and kindness with which Jesus treated women, He reserved His more scathing comments for the arrogant male religious leaders of His time. These He labeled as "serpents," "brood of vipers," and "whitewashed tombs."24
That "S" word - biblical submission
Many women don't like what the Bible says because it calls wives to "submit to their husbands."25 However, submission is not limited to wives submitting to their husbands. We are told to submit to God,26 governmental authorities,27 our boss,28 and leaders in the church.29 We are also told to submit to one another, which includes men submitting women and vice versa.30 God is a God of order. In a sinful world, submission to those in authority is the only way to maintain order. What form does this submission to authority take? In every instance where submission is called for wives, it is conditioned with the phrase "as to the Lord" or some other reference to Jesus Christ. The submission takes on the form of being in the will of God. If the husband asks the wife to do something outside the will of Christ, she is under no obligation to follow him. Accompanying each command for wives to submit to their husbands is the command for the husband to love his wife.31In the book of Ephesians, this love is to be "just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her." Such a love is not one that dominates and subjugates another person, but a self-sacrificing love that will give up its own life for another's.
The Christian Church is female!
This is going to come to a shock to most non-Christians (and maybe even some Christians), but God's people are referred to as female, not male. In the Old Testament, God's people are the "daughters of Zion."32 The Church or body of Christ (including us men) is referred to as the "bride" of Christ33 and God is said to be our "husband."34 Whenever referred to by sex, the Church is described as "she" or "her."35 In addition, the Greek word for church is a feminine noun.36
Conclusion
The essence of biblical equality can be summed up in Paul's letter to the Galatians:
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. (Galatians 3:28)37Even though the world does not treat humans as equals, as members of the body of Christ, all are equal spiritually in the eyes of Jesus. In fact, those who exalt themselves (which includes many men) will be humbled and those who serve others (which characterize many women I know) will be exalted to a higher status in the kingdom of heaven.38 It seems likely that heaven will be a place that will be run by caring mothers and women who will have served others while living on earth.
Objections
On "headship" - This was probably more of a concession to culture than anything else. In first century Israel, women didn't have many rights or much opportunity for independence, so the husband was a sort of "covering" for her. Since he was legally and morally responsible for pretty much everything his wife did (Numbers 30:6-16), it made sense that she would defer to him in domestic matters. Besides, submission doesn't mean becoming a doormat - it means voluntarily laying aside one's own rights for the sake of the other, and husbands are instructed to love their wives sacrificially as well: "just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her." (Ephesians 5:25)31
On "keeping silent in church" - Women are more verbal than men, and when they get together, they tend to move from subject to subject. In the synagogues, the women were segregated from the men. If they had any questions on the worship or the teachings, they would have had to shout them over to the men, or discuss them among themselves, which would have resulted in an inability to maintain order. In addition, Paul emphasizes that his rules for church are given so that everything would be "done in a fitting and orderly way." (1 Corinthians 14:40)39 Disorderly communication, such as uninterrupted speaking in tongues, was also prohibited.40
On "not being permitted to teach" - Some interpret this passage to mean that women should never teach in the assembled church. However, commentators point out that Paul did not forbid women from ever teaching. Paul's commended co-worker, Priscilla, taught Apollos, the great preacher (Acts 18:24-26).41 In addition, Paul frequently mentioned other women who held positions of authority in the church. Phoebe worked in the church (Romans 16:1).8Mary, Tryphena, and Tryphosa were the Lord's workers (Romans 16:6, 12).8 Paul was very likely prohibiting the Ephesian women, not all women, from teaching. To understand these verses (Ephesians 2:9-15), we must understand the situation in which Paul and Timothy worked. In first-century Jewish culture, women were not allowed to study. When Paul said that women should learn in quietness and full submission, he was offering them an amazing new opportunity. Paul did not want the Ephesian women to teach because they didn't yet have enough knowledge or experience. The Ephesian church had a particular problem with false teachers. Evidently, the women were especially susceptible to the false teachings (2 Timothy 3:1-9), because they did not yet have enough Biblical knowledge to discern the truth. In addition, some women were apparently flaunting their new-found Christian freedom by wearing inappropriate clothing (1 Timothy 2:9). Paul was telling Timothy not to put anyone (in this case, women) into a position of leadership who was not yet mature in the faith (1 Timothy 3:6). The same principle applies to churches today.
http://godandscience.org/apologetics/sexism.html
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