Author: Pat Liberty

Last week I wrote about the book of Job. This is part two. Forty-two chapters and one thousand fifty-nine verses weave a complex tale about the dealings of God with humanity and humanity with God.  Job’s tortured life gives us lots of clues about how we can meet our own trials.

Far from answering the question about why the innocent suffer, why tragedy befalls human kind and just what kind of God is in charge of this old universe anyway, the book of Job compels us to the murkier waters of what it means to have an honest relationship with God and with each other.  The context of the exploration is both set and sharpened by unspeakable suffering and wrenching pain.

Whatever it is that we think we know about God and each other is honed by human pain.  That’s not to say that we get to make up our own notions about God out of the stuff of our days. It means that life challenges our shallow notions about everything, including God, in ways nothing else can. 

The biggest gripe Job had with his friends is that their academic theology and perfect doctrinal constructs were spiritually bankrupt.  If they were seminary trained, their transcripts would reflect good marks in systematic theology and failing grades in pastoral care. 

The major theme of the book of Job is the invitation to authenticity: spiritual and relational.  It begs the question of how we move from the faith of our childhood to an adult faith; how we move from what we think we know to what we believe; how we integrate head, heart and soul.

The witness of Job suggests that one way, perhaps the most powerful way, is through the things that cause us the most pain, the deepest distress and the greatest anxiety.  Without asking or answering the question “why,” Job invites us to meet God on the other side of silence, protest, despair, emptiness and loss.  Job invites us to meet God on the other side of our pain, bearing witness to a promise that we will not be left on our own, even as Job was not finally left on his own. 

Faith is tempered by the stuff of life.

On the other side of Job’s railing and wailing, God shows up. In a Cecil B. DeMille kind of moment God shows up in a whirlwind and call’s Job name. And after all Job’s questioning, God has a few questions for Job. “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?” And it goes on from there. You can read it in Job 38. It’s some of the best poetry in the Bible.

And when God is done, Job repents in dust and ashes. And the text says he despised himself. This is not about self-hatred or self-loathing. It is about true humility. And humility is not to be confused with humiliation. It means an accurate accounting of who one is, neither self-aggrandizing nor self-deprecating. Job understood something new about himself and it opened the door to an authentic relationship with God.

You may remember Job’s three friends.  Rather than enter Job’s struggle they stayed at the edges and tried to pull Job back to familiar, safer ground.  Their comments reiterated tired notions of three themes: 1) it really is your fault, 2) you must have done something wrong, and 3) you know how God works, Job; it’s an eye for an eye kind of world.  

And when the day of reckoning comes, it’s the friends who are in the hot seat. God says to the friends; “you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has. It’s an ironic twist.  Job gripes, groans, wails, moans, protests, screams and demands. His friends are horrified at his cheekiness. They are sure God will come along any moment and finish Job off as punishment for his bold speech.

After God shows up and shows Job a thing or two, God pretty much says, “Well done Job.”  You get it, now pray for these bone heads who don’t.

I’d love to know what Job said in his prayer, but we aren’t privy to that in the text. Suffice it to say Job probably prayed from the new place of his humility and authentic relationship with God.

It seems to me that suffering does one of two things. It either makes us bitter or it makes us better. We can work it through and come to a new place, an authentic faith and a deeper understanding of what it means to be human. Or, we can become angry, bitter, cut off from ourselves and closed down to others.   

If Job had swallowed his rage, sadness and anger, bitter probably would have won out over better. Instead, Job was honest. He didn’t hesitate to take God on. He was authentic with his friends and called them on their theological mumbo jumbo. And when all was said and done, he didn’t hesitate to come to a deeper more honest understanding and faith on the other side of his encounter with God.

The book of Job is, for all its quirkiness, a wonderful invitation to sort through our own trials and traumas with a willingness to be honest with ourselves and with God. Don’t worry; God can take it. Just look at Job.

Job is my hero. He is mouthy, scrappy and doesn’t take any crap from his friends. I find those admirable traits. Mostly I love the biblical book of Job because it mirrors some of what happens in our own lives.

Job is a book for when life comes totally unraveled. In the blink of an eye Job loses everything: home, possessions, livelihood, family and health. He is the poster child for human pain. Beyond the obvious losses was the deeper, eviscerating wreckage that comes from severed relationships, broken dreams, shattered hope, and any sense of a bearable future.

Job’s path is not unfamiliar to us.  The capricious path of illness and disease can change our lives in a heartbeat. A random act of violence or carelessness can shred our hold on security in a flash.  So many things intrude into the fragile worlds we construct for ourselves and those we love.  And much of it is beyond our control.  Then there is, of course, all that we manage to do to each other.   

Job’s story unfolds as a play in several acts.  The first act introduces us to Job and serves as an off-stage character development narrative.  Job is a good guy. The second act takes place independently of Job, and is essentially a conversation between God and an under-schlep angel known as the Satan.  Contrary to our popular images of the little guy with the pitchfork and long tail dressed in red, which is a construct of Dante not Scripture, the Satan was an important part of God’s cadre of under-schleps.  It was the Satan’s job to spot unrighteousness and bring it to God’s attention.  The second act ends with God and the Satan agreeing to send a host of misfortunes Job’s way to see how he acts when all his blessings evaporate into thin air.

The image of a God who has to play games with Job and his family as a means of proving that Job will remain faithful doesn’t sit easily with our image of God.  It was, however, the God image of the post-exilic period, when the book of Job was most likely written.  Going along with that was a cosmology that tied suffering to retribution.  In other words, awful stuff was believed to be the consequence of sin.  It was a tit-for-tat world. 

And this sets the stage for act three, which unfolds in numerous scenes, each involving the friends who visit Job in his affliction.  The Reader’s Digest version of their visit is, with friends like that, who needs enemies.  The highlight of their time with Job is the three days they spent in silence.  When they open their mouths it’s pretty much downhill. 

To say they are misguided but well-intentioned is generous. These friends meet Job in his misery and try to talk him through it, talk him out of it or talk him to death. They assault Job in his misery with their particular variation on the theme…if stuff is happening in your life, it’s your own fault.  And for good measure they each add to their own peculiar version of buck up, shut up, and get on with it. 

We have all been on the receiving end of such well-intentioned but unhelpful advice. 

And Job, for all his distress and trauma, holds on to his own faith and says a resounding, “no” to all of it.  Job had to find his own way and he wasn’t about to acquiesce to something that didn’t ring true in his own soul.  One of the great messages of Job is that it’s okay to rail and make complaint against God, say exactly how we feel, and trust that God will hear and understand.  In moments of deepest distress, honesty brings more comfort than easy answers. 

Job’s friends were so busy trying to explain away his suffering and answer the question “why me” that they failed to recognize that wasn’t Job’s question.

Job is not asking, “Why me?”  Job is asking, “Where is God?”  It’s a very different question.  As the third act unfolds and Job’s distress deepens, it is partly out of frustration with his clueless friends. It is more because he cannot find God in his pain.

Job laments God’s apparent absence.  It seems to Job that God has caught the last train outa town…and the silence is almost as unbearable as his friends who can’t stop talking. 

In moments of great struggle, often the question is not whether or not God exists, but whether or not God cares. Job wasn’t totally sure what to believe about God, but he believed God existed and that God’s existence mattered. He believed enough to trust God cared about his unraveled life.

And sometimes that is the best we can do…trust that God cares about our unraveled lives, believe that God journeys with us in what Joan Halifax calls the “hell realms.” 

Sometimes the best we can do is rail at God and trust that’s enough.  Sometimes the best we can do is say no to the answers that are too easy, too shallow or too stupid to honor the places of our pain even though we don’t have any other answers ourselves.

And there, in the moments of emptiness between what we have always believed and what we don’t yet know, God comes.  If you are in the waiting moments, know that this dark night does not last forever.  If you are on the other side of the dark night, reach to someone whose journey is in that realm.  Do not answer, just wait.  Do not speak, honor the silence.  Reach with the heart and not just with the head. 

If you have never known this place…you will.  The dark night of the soul visits us all.  It is a stop along the journey, not a final destination.

Richard Bach writes, “When you come to the edge of all the light you have known, and are about to step out into the darkness, faith is knowing one of two things will happen.  There will be something to stand on, or you will be taught to fly.”  

Recently, during a John Kabat-Zinn meditation, I had what I believe was a visit from, get this, the Holy Spirit! I totally freaked out!! It was awesome: an upwelling of love like I had never felt before. I didn’t really hear any words, like God talking, but there was surely a message. And here it is: God, Holy Spirit, Jesus, the Force, Nature or whatever you want to call it loves us. I mean really, really loves us and cares for us. I have been hearing that my entire life, but this was real at a whole different deeper level. I sat up and thought, “Holy crap!”

I was overcome with a desire to praise and thank God because it was such a freaking wonderful thing that happened. I felt incredibly blown away and it was great!! I also had an overwhelming desire to get the message out there. Sooo, I sent my pastor a barely readable email asking to see her as soon as possible.

I felt like the Holy Spirit spoke to me and gave me a message. What was I supposed to do with that!?! I didn’t want people to think I was a whack job, but I had this overwhelming feeling that I had to tell people.

 I felt really energetic and decided to mow the lawn (after blowing it off for days). I guess I got a little overzealous and tripped on a little stick and pulled my hamstring. My pastor thought this might be significant. I agree; I think it was God reminding me that you can have an awesome experience and still live in the real world where f-bombs and people live.

During the week I met with my pastor. She listened to my story. She confirmed that it seemed I really did have a religious experience and that the Holy Spirit came to me! I kept reading the books she gave me and they’re helping. (Holy Spirit Here and Now by Trevor Hudson, Forty Days with the Holy Spirit by Jack Levison)

I shared my story with my wife. My wife’s first reaction when I told her about it was “hmmm.” No big reaction. She always knew her husband was a little weird, a little offbeat but okay. She wasn’t blown away like I was. I also shared it with my son and we discussed the “are you a whack job” question I had been asking myself.

The following Sunday morning on the way to church I had an incredible sensation of exuberance: of praise God and holy s*** don’t drive off the side of the freaking road! I was yelling at the top of my lungs, hallelujah Lord, praise God! It was awesome and incredible! I couldn’t f****** believe that this was happening to me. It was like a whole choir singing in my head!

Once at church, I jumped out of the truck and started yelling, “hallelujah praise God! Oh wonderful! I can’t believe this!” I still wondered if I was crazy. A friend helped me get to the pastor’s office because we were both afraid somebody might call 911. Frankly, I was a little scared that I was having some kind of a mental blow out! So I sat down with my pastor and we talked about what was happening. She said I was definitely sounding a little manic and I could frighten people. I realized I needed to dial it down a bit; and my pastor needed to make sure I wasn’t having a mental health issue.  

But, I also thought, what if this isn’t the Holy Spirit? I had been having a lot of sinus headaches and was glad to see I had a doctor’s appointment at the end of the week. What if it wasn’t sinus headaches and there was something going on in my brain? All this excitement would be for nothing. But after talking to people, I was still thinking this was the real deal. I guess if it turned out to be a mental health issue or a brain tumor, I would turn to my church to help me through it. Or if it turned out to be the real deal, they would be there to encourage and support me.

Some may still think I am a whack job and that’s okay. I know that what happened to me was real. It showed me the love of God in a whole new way and it was wonderful. I decided to share my experience in the hope that it might encourage others in their faith.

Editing Out takes: I tried to take out a few things that didn’t advance the narrative and tighten it up a little bit. I changed tenses for uniformity and edited for reading instead of speaking. It’s down to 700 plus words which is about the length of my posts. If you are not happy with the edits, let me know what isn’t working for you and make some suggestions. Then I will work on it some more.

If possible, I would like this to run on October 6^th, which means I need to have it finished by October 2^nd. I am having ankle reconstruction surgery on the 4^th and I think I will be a loopy mess for a while. 

I knew that something incredible was happening. I felt alive and super aware of everything around me. Something drew my attention to the deck behind my house I looked out and saw four mourning doves just hanging out, resting not perched or standing, but flat out laying down. They were looking at me, and I was looking at them. I could not believe it! I felt incredibly honored that these birds would grace me with their presence. I know it was something special. I took a video of them and first thing I did was question my sanity, as I imagine anyone would. Someone else might see the video and say, “so what, birds do this all the time” which would really make me question my sanity, but it doesn’t change the fact that this was an incredible moment for me.

Luckily, on my way to church I saw one of our deacons was walking. I think I locked up on the brakes pulled over to the side of the road; probably scared the s*** out of him. I demanded he jump in the truck with me, which was very brave on his part cuz at that point I’m  going crazy yelling “hallelujah, oh my God I can’t believe this! Oh please help.”

After a week at (boy) Scout camp, I was feeling tired and a little achy, but I went to church to help with the online broadcast. Before I left I decided I would do a body scan meditation by John Cabot Zinn. It was the best body scan meditation I ever did. I usually have trouble with it; I fall asleep, my mind wanders and blah blah. So I did this body scan meditation but I did it a little differently, I kept my eyes open, and it was easy. It just worked.

It’s no secret that we have broken every promise to the Native American community since the beginning of the colonial period. We have stolen their lands and confined them to reservations. We have not supported the infrastructure that allows for clean running water and proper sanitation. Lack of resources has resulted in soaring drug and alcohol abuse rates and disproportionate unemployment rates.

There is another, even less reported truth in Native Communities: the disappearance of Native women and girls. According to the Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women website, “as of 2016 the National Crime Information Center has reported 5,712 cases of missing American Indian and Alaska Native women and girls. Strikingly, the US Department of Justice missing persons database has only reported 116 cases. The majority of these murders are committed by non-Native people on Native owned land. The lack of communication combined with jurisdictional issues between state, local, federal and tribal law enforcement make it nearly impossible to begin the investigative process.”

It is important to note from the outset that this is not only a problem on reservation lands, but in cities across the United States. According to the report, Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls: a Snapshot of data from 71 Urban Cities in the United States, 506 cases from 71 cities from Boston to Seattle were identified. Fifty-six percent were murdered, 25 percent were classified as missing and 19 percent had an unknown cause. This likely is severe under-reporting due to the limited resources of urban Indian health institutes and poor data collection by numerous cities. Seventy-one percent of American Indian and Alaskan Native women and girls live in urban areas. This includes LGBTQ, non-binary and Two Spirit individuals who suffer disproportionately higher degrees of violence, just as they do in white communities.

Beyond all the statistics there are other, more troubling reasons that missing Native American women and girls are under-reported. One is what the late Gwen Ifill called “Missing White Woman Syndrome.” This refers to the disproportionate coverage given to white women who go missing or are murdered, as compared to people of color. The recent coverage of Gabby Petito is a good example. As I noted last week, blond hair and blue eyes make the news cycle every time.

A second reason is the overall invisibility of Native people in our culture. Our cultural stereotypes of indigenous peoples stretch back to colonial days. The only positive image many people have of indigenous peoples is that they helped the early settlers and shared the first Thanksgiving meal. Unfortunately this is mostly myth. But it helps us feel better about ourselves as white people. Beyond this historic myth, images of Native peoples are portrayed in barbaric and violent images and stories, which are largely hyperbolic. This means that our images of Native peoples are hugely distorted. And since people of color do not sell news stories and newspapers, there is little opportunity for correction.

A third and perhaps most troubling reason is indifference. As long as Native American women and girls remain invisible we do not have to deal with the horrible reality of skyrocketing rates of violence, rape and murder against them. It may flit across our news screen for a nanosecond, but we are able to easily dismiss it as something that is “reservation business” despite the fact that many Native American and Alaskan Native women live in urban areas. It has to do with who we see as fully human and who matters. People of color matter less in our culture, no matter what the color of their skin.

The crisis of disappearing Native Women and Alaskan Native women and girls is a social and a theological problem. It is social because it rests on institutional racism that protects white privilege. It is theological because it denies the essential personhood of individuals who are created in the image of God and have inherent dignity and worth. It is important to note that the religious or spiritual practice of the women is irrelevant. For those of us who claim the Abrahamic faiths (Islam, Judaism and Christianity) each person, regardless of belief, is endowed with worth and value by the Creator.

It is the action of the Creator and not the result of any action, behavior or belief of the individual. The truth is that God loves all people regardless of creed, skin color, gender, sexual orientation/identity or ethnic identity. God’s love and worth are bestowed upon all people (and creation too) regardless of our approval/disapproval, understanding/lack of understanding or judgement.

There are things we can do. Find out if your state keeps statistics on violence against Native women. If not, lobby for it to do so. Educate yourself about Native communities and the unique dynamics that impact factors that cause violence. Mostly, dig deep for compassion and awareness.  Our ancestors of the land need our voices and our action. Let’s not break yet another commitment to this marginalized community.

It was a story for about a minute. It never made the national news. The networks were too busy carrying the story of Gabby Petito. This is, of course, its own tragedy; a young woman was apparently murdered by a controlling and abusive boyfriend while on a cross country camping trip. Blond hair and blue eyes win the day for news stories.

The story that did not make the national news is that of Jurnee Hoffmeyer, a bi-racial seven year old girl who attends a Mount Pleasant Public school in Michigan. It began when a classmate of Jurnee cut her hair. It happens; kids play with hair styles and make up. Jurnee’s haircut by a fellow student was a prank and her father did not pursue it after notifying the school because the cutter was a child. Following Jurnee’s unfortunate haircut her father took her to a professional stylist to have her hair cut in a dissymmetric style.  

The trouble started the next day when Kelly Mogg, the school’s librarian, and Kristen Jacobs, a teacher’s assistant, took it upon themselves to cut Jurnee’s hair without the parent’s permission. The story only became news when Jurnee’s father filed a lawsuit for $1 million dollars alleging racial discrimination. According to the Daily Mail the suit also alleges ethnic intimidation, intentional infliction of emotional distress and assault and battery. The suit further alleges that the teachers violated Jurnee’s constitutional rights. While the teachers’ actions were in violation of school policy, the lawsuit states that school personnel met the father’s complaint with deliberate indifference. A note was placed in each of the employee’s files, but no further disciplinary action was taken. The principal was, according to the Daily Mail, only interested in what she could do to make it “go away.” Other teachers were aware of the incident but failed to report it, even though it went against school policy.

According to the Daily Mail, “The school board said the independent investigation found no racial bias and included interviews with district personnel, students and families and a review of video and photos including posts on social media. District administrators also performed an internal review of the incident.”

But Jurnee’s father said “the district never questioned him or Jurnee.”

This is classic white privilege at work. The white principal and white school employees were given a pass for their behavior. Code words like “investigation” and “proper procedure” hide the reality that they did nothing. There was no genuine accountability for anyone. When people of color are victimized, often the only redress available is the legal system, which may or may not proffer a better justice. This story would not have become news at all if it were not for the lawsuit.

Let’s be clear; this never would have happened if Jurnee were a white girl.   

The “it’s only hair” argument holds no sway. In Black culture, hair is of great significance. Allowing their hair to be natural is a reminder to some that they are descendants of enslaved people. According to the BBC, “in early African civilizations, hairstyles could indicate a person’s family background, tribe and social status.” “Just about everything about a person’s identity could be learned by looking at the hair,” says journalist Lori Tharps. According to CRResearch.com, every Black woman has “their own personal stories, experiences, and journeys with their hair.” Jurnee’s journey with her own hair was decided for her by clueless teachers.

This was as much a violation of Jurnee’s personhood as unwanted touch or sexual assault. The trauma of a person in a position of power and authority is not mediated by others’ evaluation of the seriousness of the event. Trauma is trauma. And given the cultural issues related to hair in the Black community the trauma is clear and unmistakable.

The Michigan school district where the incident took place is about 4% Black. There are 25,000 students in the district. In a predominantly white environment it is likely that little cultural sensitivity taught. There certainly is none expected.

Jurnee will have years of work ahead of her to absorb and process this experience. The violation of personhood is not something easily left behind. This is its own tragedy. A young girl was traumatized by insensitive teachers and school administrators whose main concern was making it go away.

It is a whole different tragedy that there is such cultural insensitivity, lack of compassion, understanding and lack of accountability for those who acted out of their privilege and judgement about what would “look better.”

Second, educators are in a position of power over their students. Whenever there is a power imbalance, it is the responsibility of the person with more power to use it in service of the one with lesser power. The good intentions of the teachers were irrelevant. They misused their power and authority to impose their will on a young child.

Without specific training and the unvarnished addressing of white privilege followed by accountability, there are probably countless more incidents that will never make the news because the next blond hair blue eyed woman who goes missing will make the headlines.

Those of us who are outraged by recent legislation in Texas having to do with voter suppression, women’s reproductive rights and the move toward vigilantism have some reason to be hopeful. Some of the hopefulness lies in the legal battle these new laws will face; however, a more immediate source of hope is the power of the purchase.

As consumers we have far more power than we imagine. Corporations understand the bottom line which is the profit margin. When we exercise our power as consumers we can impact that bottom line in negative ways. We can boycott companies that contributed funds that helped pass the legislation. We can refuse to do business with companies that are based in Texas. Is it going to hurt? Probably. Is it going to be inconvenient? Most likely, but imagine how much it will impact women who do not have access to reproductive health care and people whose vote is marginalized because of district gerrymandering. Using the power of the purchase is a concrete way we can express our disdain for Texas politics. This becomes much more powerful when we write to the CEOs and let them know why we are boycotting their company.

Here are a few companies that supported the Texas legislation limiting women’s reproductive health care:

• AT&T
• Charter Communications
• USAA Insurance
• Farmers Insurance
• United Healthcare
• Anthem
• General Motors
• CVS Health
• Comcast/NBC Universal
• State Farm
• Berkshire Hathaway
• Chevron
• Union Pacific

According to Newsletter, Popular Information, these companies have also held themselves out as champions of women’s empowerment and equality.

Texas is offering numerous incentives for companies to do business there. Tax breaks, signing bonuses and promises of lower operating costs are just a few things corporations and the state of Texas are doing to entice businesses to relocate.  Here are businesses already located in Texas:

• Pizza Hut
• AT&T
• Keller Williams Realty
• Dell
• American Airlines
• Tenet Healthcare
• JC Penney
• Whole Foods
• Southwest Airlines
• Shell Petroleum
• Exxon Mobil
• Social Security
• Sysco
• Frito-Lay
• Kimberly Clark
• 7 Eleven
• Texas Instruments
• Michaels
• USAA Insurance
• GameStop
• Sally Beauty Holdings
• Dr. Pepper/Snapple
• iHeartMedia
• Chuck E. Cheese
• Pier 1 Imports
• The Container Store
• Valero Energy
• Six Flags

The list goes on and on and more companies will be moving to Texas to take advantage of the favorable business climate. Being an informed consumer can bring some pressure to bear especially when letters are attached to petitions and boycotts are publicized to engage more people.

Boycotts do have a successful track record. They contribute to progressive social change, as well as succeeding with more immediate goals. Reaching back to 1791, the English boycott of sugar produced by slaves caused the sale of sugar to fall between a third and half. Indian sugar, which was not produced by slaves, rose ten-fold in two years. It was one of the earliest examples of fair trade consumerism.

More recent examples of successful boycotts include:

• Twitter permanently suspended Donald Trump’s account due in large part to the threat of an advertising boycott of the social media platform by #BanTrumpforDemocracy.
• Following a ten year battle waged by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, Fortnum and Mason decided to stop selling foie gras. The campaign involved thousands of letters, advertising and widespread boycott of the product.
• After nearly ten years of campaigning by Palestinian human rights activists, Ben and Jerry’s announced it would stop selling ice cream in grocery stores in illegal Israeli settlements on Palestinian land.   Vermonters for Justice spearheaded the boycott call by meeting with Ben and Jerry’s officials, letter writing campaigns and boycotting Ben and Jerry’s ice cream.
• Mexico’s president cancelled the construction permits and water rights held by brewing company Constellation Brands. Mexicali Resiste called for a boycott of Constellation Brands in 2018 after it gained access to the desert region’s drinking water supply and threatened to use up to 20% of the city’s water.
• Multiple companies severed ties with the National Rifle Association citing ongoing gun violence and the stonewalling of meaningful gun control laws by the organization.  Delta Airlines, United Airlines, Hertz, Budget, Avis, Best Western and Wyndham Hotels all stated they would no longer offer discounts to NRA members. In addition First National Bank of Omaha announced it would end a Visa credit card it offered with NRA branding. All the companies faced boycotts for their links to the NRA after the association called for arming teachers and speaking out against student gun control activists in the wake of the Parkland school shooting.

There is power in the purchase. Choose a few companies you have supported and commit to boycotting them. Encourage your friends to do the same. Start a petition. A quick online search will give the name and address of the CEO. Write that person a letter and tell them why you are boycotting.

Put your money where your values are.

Resources

The Houston Chronicle

The Ethical Consumer

Wikipedia

News about women is dominating the headlines, and most of it isn’t good.

• Texas has just passed the most restrictive abortion laws in the country and other states have vowed to use their example to pass similar laws.
• The Taliban is wasting no time rolling back the rights of women and girls under its repressive regime in Afghanistan.
• A new document about the military reports 6,290 instances of sexual assault during FY 2020. This resulted in only 50 sexual offense convictions under the Uniform Code of Military Justice
• Mike Richards, Executive Producer of Jeopardy and guest host, steps down under fire for offensive comments about women (and Jewish people and the nation of Haiti).
• Governor Andrew Cuomo resigns amid multiple sexual assault and harassment allegations.
• Despite being accused by over 60 women, Bill Cosby’s sentence is vacated by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
• Other men accused of sexual harassment and assault include: Matt Lauer, Harvey Weinstein, Tony Robbins, Neil Degrasse Tyson, Brett Kavanaugh, Morgan Freeman, Tom Brokaw, Charlie Rose and the countless men who have not been held accountable for their offenses against women.
• Internationally 1 in 3 women have experienced physical or sexual violence. According to the World Health Organization that statistic has remained steady for the last decade.
• United Nations Executive Director for Women in Global Health, Phumzile Nerambo-Ngeuke, says it is “the most widespread and persistent human rights violation in the world.”
• Every 68 seconds an American is sexually assaulted; 90% are women.

This all translates into a war on women that is as old as time.

The Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) have historically been more a part of the problem than the solution. The tendency to proof text (take particular verses of Scripture out of context) has given a lop-sided view of how the Holy sees humanity and our responsibilities to one another. There are stories of violence against women in the First or Old Testament such as Dinah (Genesis 34), Levite’s concubine (Judges 19), Tamar (2 Samuel 13) and Jepthah’s daughter (Judges 11).

In the Second or New Testament there are verses about wives being subject to their husbands (Ephesians 5:22) and women remaining silent in the church (1 Corinthians 14:34-35). These verses taken out of context have had the historic effect of diminishing women’s agency over their own lives and putting religion in service of patriarchy rather than the Holy One.

Muslim Scholar and activist Sharifa Alkhateeb says the most abused verse of the Koran is ayah 34 of Surah 4: “Men are protectors and maintainers of women because Allah gave more to the one than the other…. Concerning women whose rebellious disloyalty you fear, admonish them, then refuse to share their beds, then hit them; but if they become obedient, do not seek means of annoyance against them. For Allah is Most High, Great.”

Yet there are narratives throughout the Testaments and the Koran that celebrate the strength and agency of women. These texts have long been ignored and it is time to lift them up as part of the witness of women in sacred texts.

The witness of Esther is about a woman’s resilience and resolve to not be humiliated and taken advantage of by her husband. The witness of Puah and Shiffra in Exodus 1 is a narrative of two women who refused to obey Pharaoh’s command to kill all male Hebrew children (Exodus 1:15-21). The account of the widow and the unjust judge (Luke 18:1-8) shows the determination and tenacity of a woman to not quit until she received what was rightfully hers. The account of Susannah (Daniel 13) is about the vindication of a woman wrongly accused by powerful men in her community. This book is not included in the protestant canon of scripture and may be unfamiliar to some. It’s worth finding a bible with the Apocrypha to check it out.

What the Abrahamic traditions have in common is that the entire message (not just those plucked out verses) speak to the integrity of all people. Standing against social norms to witness to the value of all people is a powerful message of the First and Second Testament and the Koran.

In Luke 4:18-19 Jesus quotes Isaiah 61: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (Italics mine)

The account of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10 puts forth a message that it is our responsibility to stop and care for the victim.

Many Muslim scholars argue that the word translated “to hit” in the above verse is an error. Alkjateeb concludes:

“The wording of this verse emphasizes the woman’s obedience to Allah’s desires, and not to those of another human being, but those who misinterpret this verse would assign men the duty of being eternal surveillance police over their wives…. In short, this verse has been used as a tool of control and abuse completely opposed to the Islamic foundation of marriage and family.” (Journal of Religion and Abuse 1 (4):49-59)

For too long religion has been part of the problem and not part of the solution. As the war on women enters a new phase of escalation across the world, women and men of good faith and courage are needed to speak truth to power, to advocate for the powerless and to use the language of our faith to counteract poor translation, inaccurate interpretation and proof-texting.

Resources

The New York Times

The Journal of Religion and Abuse

National Electronic Network on Violence Against Women

Violence Against Women: A Christian Theological Sourcebook, Pamela Cooper-White, editor (1995)