Tonight I'm thinking about the role of women in society, both traditionally and non-traditionally. I recently read a post by a fairly prominent and extremely evangelical and conservative pastor. His post stated that he would never allow his daughters to engage in any armed combat or serve in any of the military branches. His reasoning, of course, was Biblically based. He went on to state that the men always went off to war while the women stayed home in the Bible. He is entitled to his opinions just as I am entitled to mine. I have a daughter who would make an excellent warrior. In fact, I believe in many ways she is already a warrior. She is physically very strong and quite proficient in martial arts. I pity the fool who would try to mess with her. When she was younger, I took her rock wall climbing. She happened to be there on a day when a boy scout troop was also there. She could out-climb any of them. I doubt she will join any armed forces because she has many other talents and gifts as well. But it could be a possibility and it would never be something I would deny her simply because she is female.
There have been great warriors in history who were women. Saint Joan of Arc, in the 1400's, was certainly a warrior and a martyr. Deborah and Jael were warriors mentioned in the Bible. All you have to do is google women warriors in history to see just how brave women can be and have been.
I also feel that being a warrior is more than just being physically strong and able to fight. Many women are warriors of the mind. Many are spiritual warriors. Women can and should do what they are called to do, even if that is to fight for their country. In this lifetime, I have only been female. I have only had female children. One thing I can tell you is that the women in our family are strong. We are strong of mind, we are spiritually strong, some of us (well, okay, maybe one of us if we're talking immediate family) possess great physical strength.
I guess what I'm trying to say is for women to be all the wonderful things they can be and not be diminished by men (and women) who think women are inferior. We are not. I would have gone crazy in this lifetime if I had been told that I shouldn't seek a career, but that I should have focused my time on learning to cook, clean and sew. I don't find much satisfaction in doing any of those three things, but I find great satisfaction working with my students and with music. And I find great satisfaction in being a mother and raising strong daughters.
And there's nothing wrong with being called to be a woman who cooks, cleans and sews. I certainly have much admiration for women who do that, especially since those domestic endeavors were never my calling. We are all different. Sometimes it's the men who are called to cook, clean or sew. That's also something to be celebrated. We are all unique and it is our differences that make this world a wonderful place. You don't have to fit into a cookie cutter mold. Be you! Be yourself! Do what it is that YOU do! If that means you will be a warrior, then be a warrior.
I am not going to tell my daughters what they can or cannot do with their lives. Why would I limit them when their opportunities in this world are limitless?
And when we are referencing the Bible when deciding how we should live our lives, I believe we need to remember the historical context in which the Bible was written. There are many, many things in the Bible which we would not think of doing today. Why? Because times have changed. Things are different now. The Old Testament is full of things for people to do to help them to be spiritual (rituals, things to eat and not eat, etc.), The New Testament is all about what Jesus said and did. And one of those things Jesus said was that we no longer had to do all those rituals anymore.
I once read a book called "The Year of Living Biblically". It was very funny and interesting as the author spent a year living according to Old Testament laws. What I found interesting is that by the end, the author (who was atheist at the beginning of his writing) actually started to feel spiritual stirrings by the end of the book as a result of living "Biblically". It was not easy and many of the things he had to do would be considered to be ridiculous by many today, but there is something about ritual that stirs the soul. So, do we perform religious ritual because we have faith, or do we have faith because we perform religious ritual? That's something to think about.
Have I given you enough to ponder on this late Monday evening with the snow and wind blowing outside? Let me know your thoughts. I'd love to hear them. Be strong! Be you!
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