Does the Bible Oppress Women?
Rusty Miller
Is the Bible misogynistic? That is, does the Bible (and particularly, the New Testament) suppress women?
That is certainly a key accusation that Dan Brown makes in The Da Vinci Code. Putting his argument succinctly, after the death of Jesus, two parties arose against each other. One, the "Mary" party, viewed Jesus as a great teacher, but not divine, and worshiped a female goddess as well as a male god. The other, the "Peter" party, supported the idea of a divine Jesus, and suppressed, not only the worship of the female goddess, but also women in general. With the help of Roman Emperor Constantine, the "Peter" party won out, and the teachings and writings of the "Mary" party were suppressed.
The divine nature of Jesus and the canon of scripture are dealt with in other articles in this issue, but what of Browns charge that the New Testament, and in particular the gospels, are misogynistic? There is only one way to find out, and that is to take out our Bibles and look for ourselves. First, let us focus on the writings of Luke, because he provides us with an account of the life of Jesus, plus a history of the early church.
From the very beginning, Luke writes things no one would write if a key interest were to suppress women. Consider that the first person in the New Testament to be "filled with the Holy Spirit" is a woman (Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist, Lk. 1:41). Further, as Jesus begins His ministry, Luke records that it is women who help to support Him and the apostles (Lk. 8:1-3).
A great proof against Browns thesis is found in Luke chapter 10, when instead of praising Martha, who is seen doing "womans work," Jesus praises Mary for sitting at His feet, learning what is truly necessary (vv. 38-42). And, as in all the gospels (Matt. 28:1-10; Mk. 16:9; Jn. 20:11-18), Luke records that women are the first to see the resurrected Jesus (Lk. 24:1-10).
The problems for Browns accusation continue in the early church. When the gospel spreads to Europe, it is Lydia, a woman, who is the first convert there (Acts 16:11-15). And in the best example that the charge cannot stand, Luke actually records a woman, Priscilla, helping to correct a powerful, influential gospel preacher (Apollos) in Acts 18:24-28!
Luke is by no means alone. In addition to the resurrection passages noted above, Matthew 1 records the names of three women (besides Mary) in the genealogy of Jesus (Rahab, v. 3; Ruth, v. 5 and Bathsheba, v. 6). Mark has Jesus praising a poor woman for her sacrifice (Mk. 12: 41-44). John records a great teaching session by Jesus in which the only other person present is a Samaritan woman (John 4).
Besides the gospels and Acts, the epistles do not support Browns thesis either. For instance, Paul makes the following statement: "For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 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. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abrahams descendants, heirs according to promise" (Gal. 3:27-29). While some have tried to make too much of this passage, this much is clear: in Jewish tradition, the three classes of people who could not receive an inheritance were Gentiles, slaves and women. Paul makes a point of including all of these among the descendants of Abraham and heirs of Christ.
In addition, Peter and Paul both make an argument regarding Christians being true descendants of Abraham, basing that argument in part on also being children of Sarah (Gal. 4:21-31; 1 Pet. 3:5-7). And it is Peter who cautions husbands that mistreatment of their wives will keep God from hearing their prayers (1 Pet. 3:7).
Rather than suppress women, the New Testament affords them great honor. They can be children of God without meeting any requirements that men arent required to meet. They will be rewarded on the basis of their faith in Jesus, just as men will be.
Browns accusation against the New Testament is silly. It cannot stand when placed against the truth of scripture.