Are you sure?
This bookmark will be removed from all folders and any saved notes will be permanently removed.
Women IN THE Bible AND today—A SPIRITUAL LINK
COUNTLESS BOOKS have been written about women in Bible times. And most people know how the story goes: Ancient Hebrews, like their neighbors, were intensely misogynistic; women had legal status somewhere at or below the level of cattle; and only a few of them rose above their station to gain even name recognition in Scripture. "And that's the way it was in ancient Israel. ..."
But over the centuries, things have changed. Well, sort of. While some cultures in the world do hold to old traditions relegating women to second-class citizenship or even according them no citizenship at all, many other cultures have undergone an attitude adjustment fueled by the phenomenon called feminism. I decided to look up the word, remembering how, in the 1970s, it used to be "fighting language," certain to arouse strong feelings, fury, and tears—and that was just around the dinner table at my house. According to the online encyclopedia Wikipedia—hardly an intellectual resource, but a pretty good mirror of contemporary culture—feminism is defined simply as "an ideology focusing on the equality of both sexes." Nobody argues with that very much anymore. Today, it's a "given."
About the author
Contributing editor Elaine Follis is a Christian Science practitioner as well as the executive manager of The Mary Baker Eddy Library. She lives in Quincy, Massachusetts.

October 22, 2007 issue
View Issue-
LETTERS
with contributions from ERIC THACHER, ANNE COOLING, TAWNY CLEVELAND, WANDA RICHARD
-
A reason to rejoice
MAIKE BYRD, CHILDREN'S EDITOR
-
ITEMS OF INTEREST
with contributions from Joann Pan, Subodh Jain
-
Seeking womanhood
Warren Bolon with contributions from LOIS RAE CARLSON
-
Women IN THE Bible AND today—A SPIRITUAL LINK
BY ELAINE FOLLIS
-
Thinking about women
Justin Byrd with contributions from Kevin Henneberger, Chet Manchester
-
Grateful for progress, women strive on
BY ROSALIE E. DUNBAR, NEWS EDITOR
-
BE KIND TO YOURSELF [A BALANCED VIEW OF BODY IMAGE]
BY MELISSA KONETCHY
-
AN OASIS OF CALM
SUSANNAH H. SNOWDEN,
-
GOD'S GUIDANCE ALL THE WAY
TIMOTHY THORNDIKE
-
MORE THAN JUST STORIES
COURTENAY RULE
-
DISASTER—FAR FROM 'NATURAL'
DAVE HOHLE
-
PRAYER HELPED ME BREAK FREE FROM ASSAULT
ALLISON J. DERUSSY
-
THE PROTECTING POWER OF GOD'S LOVE
ANDY ROCKWOOD
-
PRAYER COMPLETELY HEALS INJURY
ANGELA SAGE LARSEN