Persecution Of Women

Under Pressure
No I do not mean to reference a Queen song, but this title says it all. There has been a sect of the populace that has been brought own time and time again. Throughout time and history this sect has been looked down by all of the other sects. This sect is the race of womankind. At times women have been actively sought out to displace. At other times women have been passively attacked. Women have been viewed as being below men since the dawn of time. In today's world it is slightly better for women, but the “glass ceiling” is still overhead and as present as ever. Women struggle to make a name for themselves in the police force, fire department, medical fields, law fields, and military, to name a few. Even though women can vote, the road for true freedom is one that takes us on a longer road.

Jewish culture is a unique, different way of life that arguably shaped the world.

Originally chosen as the “children of God”, by God. Originally a theocracy, these bedouins overcame much to live in small stretch of land that is just slightly bigger than the state of New Jersey. This small nation of people were constantly persecuted throughout history. In the beginning of their history thy were persecuted by the Egyptians, where they were kept as slaves for roughly four hundred years until they were led to freedom by Moses. For the next millennium or so, the jews were captured and freed in a repetitive cycle that became overbearing. Whether it was Rome, the Philistines, Babylon, Persia, or the Greeks, the children of Israel always seemed to make it through the torture unharmed by some greater

power.
In present times, to be a Jew means that being looked down upon in some ways is not uncommon. A most notable anti-Jewish movement occurred in the early 1900s with the creation of the Pogroms. A pogrom, by definition, is an organized series of destruction or massacres against a body of people. These were prevalent in Russia at the turn of the century. After this rash of violence, the Jews fell victim to the Third Reich's reign of terror. Sweeping across Europe, the German Wehrmacht crushed all opposition. When the dust ha settled, the S.S. Division crept in and began initiating policies to exterminate the Jewish race from the Earth. This series of horrific events became know as the Holocaust. After the Reich's defeat, the Zionist movement made a move for a Jewish state and was awarded the stretch of land that Moses himself led the to. After all of these events took place, you would think that the Hebrews would catch a break? No, after the great war, the war on social just began to heat up. People would judge you if you were a jew. In New York City, in the early 1950s, it was a heated melting pot. Irish versus Italian, Italian versus Irish and German, and everyone against the Jews. Things are different now in todays world, the only hate we have for each other is held in our hearts and not in the bloodied clubs our forefathers wielded in the streets. One would think that years of racial hatred would warp the Jewish people.
To the Hebrews the word of the Lord was Law. Contrary to popular belief, the Jewish peopled did not just uphold the Ten Commandments. No, they had the Laws of Moses, the Torah, and the Ten Commandments to uphold among other things. These laws were not only “Love thy neighbor as thyself” or “Do not murder”, they were also about menstruating women and what to do if one was to touch you. In Leviticus 15:19 we read “When a woman has her regular flow of blood, the impurity of her monthly period will last seven days, and anyone who touches her will be unclean till evening.” One may ask: “So there were laws that singled one measure of the populace?” Oh yes, and that realization is only beginning.
In Jewish culture women have a rather low role in authority. In fact women were rather restricted. If you were a female you could not pray without covering your head. You could not date whoever you wanted; as a matter of fact it you could not speak to other men without your father's permission. Here is a list of things that are ill advised to do if you are a young woman in ancient jewish culture: you had to wear a veil if you left your residence, you could not leave your house without your father's permission if you were unmarried, you could not talk to strangers, you could not testify in a court of law, and you could not attend a public gathering or venue. These are just a few of the laws that their own religion placed upon them. Noticed how I said “religion”. Religion is the practice of works to worship, whereas the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob wanted a relationship. If we look back we may see the possible reasons for why the Jewish placed such laws on their women.
“In the beginning”, we have all heard this phrase if we attended Sunday school or private school. This phrase means everything to unlocking the mystery as to why women were looked deemed the weaker sex in ancient Hebrew culture. In Genesis Chapter three of the Bible, the tory of the fall of man is detailed. In summary, the Lord says to eat of any tree in the garden, except for the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The serpent tempts woman and she gives it to her husband Adam. God banished them from the garden, lest they become immortal from the tree of life as well. From this we can deduct that Eve is the thorn of her race; or is she? Eve was created to assist mankind and be his helper. In Genesis 2:18 we read: “Then the LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper who is just right for him.'” I believe Eve was acting out as she was supposed to. The serpent said that this tree will make mankind know the things of God. She wanted to assist her husband as it was her job. God punishes Adam for eating of the tree, but in turn Adam turns around and throws God's helper into the crossfire and says “the woman you gave me, gave me this fruit”. Was Eve's intentions wrong? No, I believe they were sincere. I do believe that since the punishment fell upon the shoulders of man, mankind in turn holds the blame and resentment towards the woman. This may seem like blasphemy to some, but it is a concept rarely looked upon.
Fast forwarding a few millenia, we come to the story of Jesus Christ, Mary, and her sister, 21Martha. Mary is believed to have been the woman of ill repute that washed Jesus's feet with her hair and expensive perfume. Their brother Lazarus was raised from the dead by Jesus, as well. In this story we find that Jesus has come to visit and he brought the twelve disciples. In the day, a woman's place was serving the men; Martha assumed her role, cleaning and preparing for the guests. Jesus was known as a rabbi, and for a woman to speak to one was unheard of. So when Martha returned to the scene where she witnessed Mary speaking to Jesus, she was shocked. Not only had Mary shirked her duties as a woman, as a sister, as a humble servant to the “master”, she was now conversing and listening to him. Jesus calmed her down, and said things were right.
What makes this scene different from all of the other times women had tried to intermingle with men? According to Jesus in Revelation 21:5, “He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!" Then he said, "Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.'” He was not only talking about saving the world, healing the in-firmed, and rescuing the populace from their sins; I believe he was speaking about changing social policies of the day. Setting things back ti the way they were originally designed in Genesis. Allowing Mary to speak with him, forget about her duties, and converse truly as equals was his way of making an example. Think of it like this, for many, many years all women had been looked down upon in a possible misunderstanding. All of a sudden, this backwoods man from Nazareth, who claims to be the Messiah, is now giving me freedoms that I have never had before. Would you not linger in the presence of this man? This man who has changed everything for the possible good?
Jesus is seen as a religious icon. He is seen as the Son of God, God Himself, the great Priest, a good teacher, a man, one that found enlightenment, and one who has crossed over and returned from the “Great Sky”. I see him as one of the greatest revolutionaries that has ever walked this planet. I see him as greater than Che Guevara, Mao Tse Tung, Vladimir Lenin, or even Brutus. He came to right a wrong that so many had overlooked. He taught peace, patience, and kindness. He taught to follow the guidance of heaven and those that heaven had set upon the Earth. Finally he showed compassion to those that had been scornfully looked upon for so many years of hurt. He came to restore women to their place; a helper, not slave, mankind.
In todays world things have gotten better for Jewish women and women in general. Women are serving in the military in Israel. In America, women are holding political office, praying how they want, and meeting, dating, anyone they please. Things have changed in a few thousand years, but the battle is still being waged on multiple fronts. One way that one might combat the prejudice, is by fighting the lies of the ancients that may be embedded in our hearts.