What Feminism is about for me (3) A Look at Biblical Women who could be called Feminists
Although the word feminist is not found in the Bible, there are women in
the Bible we could consider to be feminists. They had their own opinions,
overcame great difficulties, and questioned the status quo around them. Although
they lived in a patriarchal culture, they were women like you and me, who
wanted to be able to make their own decisions. These women took the initiative
and used their intelligence to make an impact or change the circumstances. They took charge of their fate
and lives in a society where that was nearly impossible
A patriarchal interpretation of the Bible usually blames women for anything
bad that happens. Eve is blamed for Adam’s sin, Bathsheba for tempting David, and Sarah for being impatient with God about bearing children. There are also
horrific crimes committed against women by men like the rapes of Dinah and
Tamar. These women had no chance to defend themselves or protect their lives.
Let’s look at some women of the
Bible from a feminist viewpoint.
Adam and Eve were created as equals and the story proves that she regarded
herself as having the right to act and think by herself, making her own
choices. Of course, it didn’t go so well. And Eve has been used for thousands
of years to prove that women are inferior because she was created from Adam's
side and was called his helper.
Zelophehad’s
Daughters: Machlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milkah, and Tirza
These five sisters demanded justice as they came forward to Moses and the
other leaders of the Israelite people. Their father had died in the desert and
they wanted to be granted the right to inherit his property. These
self-confident women asserted their claims in public and Moses brought their
case before the Lord, who said, “What Zelophehad’s daughters are saying is
right. You must certainly give them property as an inheritance among their
father’s relatives.” Because of their initiative, the laws of inheritance were
changed for the whole nation.
Vashti
Vashti was the Queen of Persia. She was hosting a party for the women of
the land at the same time as her husband, Xerxes, hosted the men. It was a
week-long celebration with lots of drinking, and on the final day, he demanded
that she come to his party and entertain his friends. She refused to go. The
Bible does not give us a reason for her refusal, but it could have been because
she did not want to display herself as a sex object in front of her husband and
his intoxicated colleagues. She was removed as the queen but her actions citing her
disobedience. This was a woman who stood up against her powerful husband and
made her own decisions.
Esther landed in the king’s harem, but when her Jewish people faced
extinction, she risked her own life to save the Jews. She struggled for three
days to find the courage to present herself to the king without being summoned.
Her carefully devised plan succeeded. Esther is still celebrated as a feminist
heroine during the Purim festival for having saved the Jews in Persia.
Deborah was a prophet among
the ancient Israelites and the only female judge mentioned in the Book of
Judges. As the judge, she would have been the political head of the state of
the time as well. When Barack came to seek her advice, he refused to go to war
against the Canaanites unless she would go with him. That would also make her
the commander-in-chief of the army. She supported him by going along but told
him that a woman would be honored for the victory. This is a good example of
how teamwork involving women and men can be successful.
Yael
After the battle, the Canaanite military commander Sisera escaped and was
welcomed to rest in the tent of a woman named Yael who played along as a good
host until Sisera fell asleep in her tent. She then killed him by driving a
tent peg into his head. She was no submissive woman.
Ruth also made her own decisions and went her own way, although it was not
expected of her. She supported herself in a community that was foreign to her. Ruth
was smart, innovative, and downright courageous to do the things she did as a
single woman living in those times. That sounds pretty feminist.
Mary Magdalene was one of the disciples of Jesus in the New Testament. She
first encountered Jesus when he cast out seven devils from her. She and some
other women belonged to the group of disciples that followed Jesus starting in
the early days in Galilee. In all four gospels, she's described as being with
Jesus when he was crucified, and when Jesus rose again, it was Mary Magdalene
and a group of other women who found the empty tomb, making her one of the
first witnesses to the resurrection, and an important figure in the early
church, one who represented the women in early Christian communities. She is
mentioned by name 12 times in the gospels, more than most of the apostles. And
to this day, she is still one of the most well-known women of the Bible. Mary
Magdalene was a strong supporter of what she believed in. She is an example of
a strong feminist. It is thanks to the early church fathers that her character
has been distorted to make her a prostitute, which is not supported by the
Bible.
Miriam, Moses’ sister, saved baby Moses through her quick thinking and
ensured that he could grow up with her family even after he was adopted by an
Egyptian princess. Miriam stood by her brothers, Moses and Aaron, and helped
bring the Hebrews out of slavery in Egypt. She is best remembered as the person
who led the women in singing, playing the tambourine in joy after the crossing
of the Red Sea. The Bible also includes her among the prophets.
There are many more women we could take up in this group of Biblical
Feminists: the Caananite woman who argued why Jesus should help heal her
daughter; the little maid who told Naaman's
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