The Womans Bible and Elizabeth Cady Stanton on Genesis

In 1895, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and a committee of other women published The Womans Bible. In 1888, the Church of England published its Revised Version of the Bible, the first major revision in English since the Authorized Version of 1611, better known as the King James Bible. Dissatisfied with the translation and with the failure of the committee to consult with or include Biblical scholar Julia Smith, the reviewing committee published their comments on the Bible. Their intent was to highlight the small part of the Bible that focused on women, as well as to correct Biblical interpretation which they believed was biased unfairly against women. The committee did not consist of trained Biblical scholars, but rather interested women who took both Biblical study and womens rights seriously. Their individual commentaries, usually a few paragraphs about a group of related verses, were published though they did not always agree with one another, nor did they write with the same level of scholarship or writing skill. The commentary is less valuable as strictly academic Biblical scholarship, but far more valuable as it reflected the thought of many women (and men) of the time towards religion and the Bible. It probably goes without saying that the book met with considerable criticism for its liberal view on the Bible. An Excerpt Heres one small excerpt from The Womans Bible. [from: The Womans Bible, 1895/1898, Chapter II: Comments on Genesis, pp. 20-21.] As the account of the creation in the first chapter is in harmony with science, common sense, and the experience of mankind in natural laws, the inquiry naturally arises, why should there be two contradictory accounts in the same book, of the same event? It is fair to infer that the second version, which is found in some form in the different religions of all nations, is a mere allegory, symbolizing some mysterious conception of a highly imaginative editor. The first account dignifies woman as an important factor in the creation, equal in power and glory with man. The second makes her a mere afterthought. The world in good running order without her. The only reason for her advent being the solitude of man. There is something sublime in bringing order out of chaos; light out of darkness; giving each planet its place in the solar system; oceans and lands their limits; wholly inconsistent with a petty surgical operation, to find material for the mother of the, race. It is on this allegory that all the enemies of women rest, their battering rams, to prove her. inferiority. Accepting the view that man was prior in the creation, some Scriptural writers say that as the woman was of the man, therefore, her position should be one of subjection. Grant it, then as the historical fact is reversed in our day, and the man is now of the woman, shall his place be one of subjection? The equal position declared in the first account must prove more satisfactory to both sexes; created alike in the image of God -The Heavenly Mother and Father. Thus, the Old Testament, in the beginning, proclaims the simultaneous creation of man and woman, the eternity and equality of sex; and the New Testament echoes back through the centuries the individual sovereignty of woman growing out of this natural fact. Paul, in speaking of equality as the very soul and essence of Christianity, said, There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female; for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. With this recognition of the feminine element in the Godhead in the Old Testament, and this declaration of the equality of the sexes in the New, we may well wonder at the contemptible status woman occupies in the Christian Church of to-day. All the commentators and publicists writing on womans position, go through an immense amount of fine-spun metaphysical speculations, to prove her subordination in harmony with the Creators original design. It is evident that some wily writer, seeing the perfect equality of man and woman in the first chapter, felt it important for the dignity and dominion of man to effect womans subordination in some way. To do this a spirit of evil must be introduced, which at once proved itself stronger than the spirit of good, and mans supremacy was based on the downfall of all that had just been pronounced very good. This spirit of evil evidently existed before the supposed fall of man, hence woman was not the origin of sin as so often asserted. E. C. S.

Liberation Theology Essay - 646 Words

Liberation Theology Liberation theology is situational. The emergence of liberation theology and the interpretation of the Bible under liberation theology stems directly to the participants place in society. As the title suggests, liberation theology interprets the Bible as a document of hope that will give strength and validity to a struggle against an oppressor. Liberation theology rises out of a new political consciousness. The oppressed people have to realize they are oppressed and that the Bible text can be used as a tool to overcome their oppressors. In regards to South Africa, there was an awakening when the black people realized their lack of influence in politics, the huge economic disparity between rich and poor, and their low†¦show more content†¦State theology is controlled by the same people who control the political parities, the economic situation, and the agents of oppression. In this theology, money talks, and the people without money have no voice. Apartheid was like a religio n in that it was something people strongly believed in, it used the Bible as justification, and it was practiced every day. The important item to remember is that apartheid was created by humans. It was flawed (obviously) and actually worked in direct opposition to the Church’s teachings. As Boesak points out, â€Å"Can a Christian in a Christian country with a host of Christian churches speak and preach about the sanctity of family life and about the responsibility of parents and children and at the same time vote for a government and sustain and aid a system that gives theological justification to laws that maintain that black people cannot live together as husband and wife.† (120) the hypocrisy here seems so blatant. As liberation theology has moved on in the post Apartheid era, there has been several problems in its adaptation. The South African liberation theology movement was based almost solely on racial equality and the end to apartheid. When apartheid was dismantled, the movement had no direction, even though several social issues still remained. The focus of the movement was so specific that it made it difficult to transition to anything more inclusive. Another problem with liberation theology is that the text it usesShow MoreRelatedLiberation Theology Essay1157 Words   |  5 PagesIntroduction According to Enns (2008), liberation theology attempts to infer the holy writ through the plight of the poor. This movement originated from South America in the early 1950s when Marxism was the most popular theory among the poor. It was a response to the ill-treatment and poverty facing the ordinary people. It dealt with the issue of distribution of wealth among people in order to upgrade the economic status in life. This movement had strong Romanian Catholic roots bolstered in ColombiaRead MoreBlack Liberation Theology Essay1864 Words   |  8 PagesBlack Liberation Theology can be defined as the relationship that blacks have with god in their struggle to end oppression. It sees god as a god of history and the liberator of the oppressed from bondage. Black Liberation theology views God and Christianity as a gospel relevant to blacks who struggle daily under the oppression of whites. Because of slavery, blacks concept of God was totally different from the masters who enslaved the m. White Christians saw god as more of a spiritual savior, theRead MoreBlack Liberation Theology Essay1819 Words   |  8 PagesBlack Liberation Theology can be defined as the relationship that blacks have with god in their struggle to end oppression. It sees god as a god of history and the liberator of the oppressed from bondage. Black Liberation theology views God and Christianity as a gospel relevant to blacks who struggle daily under the oppression of whites. Because of slavery, blacks concept of God was totally different from the masters who enslaved them. White Christians saw god as more of a spiritual savior, theRead MoreAfrican Women s Liberation Theology Essay2365 Words   |  10 PagesDISSERTATION AFRICAN WOMEN IN LIBERATION THEOLOGY Literature Review Liberation theology is the fulfilment and deliverance of theology from the instance of positioning it in real situations in life into the centre of the battle. Liberation theology desires to bring excessive religious zeal which fails to identify the quality of declaring God who created all man equal but is disinterested about their existence. McCall says â€Å"Liberation theology represents attempts to move theology from the abstract to practicalRead MoreLiberation Theology Essay1076 Words   |  5 Pagestouching on the ideas of James Cone’s ideas on Liberation Theology and the relationship between the Cross and the Lynching Tree, our group decided to focus the topic of our presentation around Liberation Theology. However, in order to create a counter argument to stimulate further discourse, we introduced the Theology of Prosperity, as an opposing theological concept, to our presentation. Hence, we came up with the topic of Liberation Theology vs. Theology of Prosperity. Firstly, it was necessaryRead MoreEssay about Liberation Theology796 Words   |  4 PagesLiberation Theology I see [liberation theology] as a theology of the people, rather than of professional theologians; rising out of the cries of the oppressed; refined in the experience of those who may not even be able to read and write; clarified in thousands of base communities; embodied in lives that risk everything to be faithful to the good news that God hears their cry, sides with them in their distress, and works with them for liberation- a liberation in which they play a central roleRead MoreEssay on Oscar Romero, Liberation Theology and the Catholic Church3831 Words   |  16 PagesOscar Romero, Liberation Theology and the Catholic Church In the post-World War II era, the globe was polarized by two idealistically divergent superpowers; the United States and the Soviet Union, two nations that strived to promote capitalism and communism, respectively, throughout the globe. Nowhere was this struggle more apparent than in developing countries with shaky political and economic backbones. Specifically, in Latin America the old, corrupt and often totalitarian regimes were threatenedRead MoreAnalysis Of Gustavo Gutierrezs Theology Of Liberation1850 Words   |  8 PagesLiberation theology calls followers of Jesus to work together to create a just society that brings change and align themselves with the oppressed. All of my sources Gustavo Gutierrez, Paul Farmer, and Sohail Hasmi place defending the rights of the poor as a central aspects of their arguments. Which is why I am led to believe that my sources could come together, even if they have different point of views. In Gustavo Gutierrez’s Theology of Liberation, he argues this theology is about committing toRead MoreEssay on Liberation Theology in Latin America1734 Words   |  7 Pagesgroups of individuals in an attempt to change the social structure of their respective countries. In turn, these popular movements led to the rise of dictatorships aimed to control the people and protect the desires of the country (Introducing Liberation Theology). The social, political, and economical atmosphere of this time proved prime for religious change and new ideals. In the early 1960’s, the churches in Latin America experienced a much-needed sense of revitalization. The church eagerly soughtRead MoreHistory Of South American Poverty And The Development Of Liberation Theology1451 Words   |  6 PagesLiberation Theology â€Å"But the poor person does not exist as an inescapable fact of destiny. His or her existence is not politically neutral, and it is not ethically innocent. The poor are a by-product of the system in which we live and for which we are responsible. They are marginalized by our social and cultural world. They are the oppressed, exploited proletariat, robbed of the fruit of their labor and despoiled of their humanity. Hence the poverty of the poor is not a call to generous relief action

Modern World Things Fall Apart Free Essays

string(239) " that has happened to our people\? Why have they lost the power to fight \(\*7\)\? † Okonkwo was so flabbergasted about how his once perfectly traditional south african village had changed into a government controlled christian village\." â€Å" We cannot leave the matter in his hands because he doesn’t not understand our customs, just as we do not understand his. We say he is foolish because he does not know our ways, and perhaps he says we are foolish because we do not know his. Let him go away† (*1). We will write a custom essay sample on Modern World: Things Fall Apart or any similar topic only for you Order Now This quote shows the major theme of the book which is change vs tradition. The quote shows the theme perfectly; basically it shows the ignorance of most of the Umuofia clan and their fear of the white peoples culture taking over theirs. They are dealing with the question of whether change should be privileged over tradition.The people of Umuofia want a little change but at the same time they have fear of completely losing their way of life, the people are divided on the subject at hand at what the right and wrong thing to do is, and how much is to much change. When the first white men was seen there was controversy already. The man was seen in Abame, the elders immediately went to see their oracle out of fear. The oracle told the elders that â€Å" the strange man would break their clan and spread destruction among them† (*2). So the people killed the white men immediately out of fear.Then a few weeks later out of revenge three white men went to the Abame market and shot everyone except the people that weren’t there. The Abame people were foolish they should have known â€Å" Never kill a man who says nothing† ( * 3). But regardless of why the shooting happened at the Abame market the gossip had started and the fear had set in for the white men. After the Abame incident, other white people began to show. The white missionaries went to Umuofia and had begun building churches there and began getting converts.Not everyone was fond of the new religion though, but the leaders of the clan were not scarred because they believed that the weird faith would not last. Missionaries also arrived in the village of Mbanta. The missionaries begun telling the people of the villages about the new religion â€Å" We have been sent by this great God to ask you to leave your wicked ways and false gods and turn to Him so that you may be saved when you die† (*4). The missionaries started to have the people of the villages question their religion and culture, and to make them think am I just worshiping false gods of wood and stone?Is all the rituals and killing and destroying innocent children actually right? Many questions began to stir. One person in particular who was captivated by the new religion was Nwoye, Okonkwo’s son. Nwoye became one of the first converts, but because of this change with his life that meant that he was no longer part of Okonkwo’s life or ever be considered his son. Even though this hurt Nwoye, he felt a relief in his life, so he thought that he could find other people within his new religion that would love him more then his father ever had.As the missionaries kept on spreading the word of their new religion and changing peoples life’s, they decided to ask for some land to build their church. So the clan decided to give them as much land somewhere as they wanted. The missionaries were very happy that they were getting the land, but what they didn’t know was the land they were getting was called the â€Å"evil forest† because it was alive with sinister forces and was evil. The â€Å" evil forest† was where the clan had buried everyone that died from evil diseases.There was a so called curse that was set on the forest, so the people of Mbanta expected the missionaries to all be dead within four days. Not knowing of the curse the missionaries begun immediately clearing out the forest and building their church, and as each day went by and no one was dying the people of Mbanta were questioned about why the curse wasn’t working on the white men. The church in Mbanta kept getting stronger and stronger as each day passed and was getting more converts. Okonkwo remained angered at the new changes in Mbanto, â€Å" until the abominable gang was chased out of the village with whips there would be no peace† (*5).Although some did not mind the changes â€Å" It is not our custom to fight for our gods, let us not presume to do so now† (*6). Although everyone had their own opinions of the matter at hand, the assembly out of fear decided t o exclude the christians from the privileges and life of the clan. Even though the new faith had only a few converts at first, the christians quickly grew and had became a small community and they were not going to be easily shut down. After the seven years of Okonkwo living in Mbanta, he was finally able to go back to Umuofia after being exiled.Although things had been changing in Mbanta, Okonkwo was unaware that Umuofia had also been changing. He still expected to just go back and have everything still be the same, even though that was the total opposite. The new church was not the only thing that had changed since he was gone in Umuofia; the white men also brought a new government to the village. The men of power were no longer the high titled men, chief priests, and the elders, the men of power were now the District of Commissioner, and the court messengers.The District Commissioner had become the head of the government in Umuofia who judged cases ignorantly, then there were the court messengers who guarded the new prison, which was filled with citizens who would not listen to the white man’s laws. Okonkwo was very confused about what has happened to the village he once had some power over. â€Å" What is it that has happened to our people? Why have they lost the power to fight (*7)? † Okonkwo was so flabbergasted about how his once perfectly traditional south african village had changed into a government controlled christian village. You read "Modern World: Things Fall Apart" in category "Papers"So many things were changing, not only did the white men bring a new religion, and a new government, but they also brought trading to the village, which helped the village have more of a money flow and schools were beginning to be built. The clan had become barely recognizable to Okonkwo anymore, it was falling apart in his eyes. The village had not only begun to fall apart in Okonkwo’s eyes but in others soon to follow too. On the annual worship of the earth goddess day, one of the egwugwu’s masks were accidentally torn off by Enoch, which was one of the greatest crimes a man could commit.Enoch showed everyone that that the egwugwu’s were merely men impersonating spirits, therefore Enoch had basically killed an ancestral spirit. From Enoch doing that he helped the missionaries falsify the Umuofia’s religion and show that it was all superstition, but he also re-sparked the conflict between the christian church and the clan. That was the last straw for the clan with dealing with the christians, â€Å" Tell him to go back to his house and leave us alone†¦ But this shrine which he built must be destroyed. We shall no longer allow it in our midst† (*8).The clan came in agreement to burns down the church; which makes Okonkwo very happy for once. The men in Umuofia finally begun to take back the village that was once theirs, so the next few days the men were armed and stayed aware. As the men were on cloud nine thinking things might end up going back to the traditional ways, they forgot to remember that their was still a government. The district commissioner was at a tour when the clan decided to burn down the church and not follow the laws. But when the District Commissioner did come back from his tour, Mr.Smith, who was the head missionary ,immediately caught the Commissioner up on what had happened while he was away. After finding out what had happened the Commissioner got his messenger to round up the leaders of Umuofia for a meeting. When all six leaders, including Okonkwo, met up at the commissioners headquarters they were asked what had happened, before they even had a chance to explain what had happened then they were immediately arrested. â€Å" I have brought you here because you joined together to molest others, to burn people’s houses and their place of worship† (*8).The six leaders were fined with two hundred bags of cowries and were sentenced to prison and would not be released until they paid the fine, and if they choose not to they would be taken to Umuru to be hung. Thankfully each one of the leaders paid the fine, and were set free. Okonkwo was so incredible angered when he was let out of the prison. Later that night when he went back to his hut he could barley even sleep. All he could think about was revenge, and how no matter what he was not going to back out of his plan.The next morning he went to the meeting place, which was the marketplace where he was going to meet Obierika. â€Å" All our gods are weeping. Idemili is weeping, Ogwugwu is weeping, Agbala is weeping, and all the others. Our dead fathers are weeping because of the shameful sacrilege they are suffering and the abomination we have all seen with our eyes† (*9). Okonkwo decided that enough was enough he was not going to stand by and watch his clan fall apart any longer. â€Å" We must root out this evil. And if our brothers take the side of evil we must root them out too.And we must do it now. We must bale this water now that it is only ankle deep†¦ † (*10). And that is exactly what Okonkwo did. He stood by his word, and he did what he felt was right. He shot and killed a messenger at the market place, where every person witnessed with their own eyes. Shortly after this the District Commissioner arrived at Okonkwo’s compound to retrieve him to be killed because of the sin he had just committed, but the commissioner along with a few other people had realized he was to late the deed had been already done.Okonkwo was found hanging dead on a tree behind his compound; he committed suicide. When Okonkwo was found dead Obierika turned to the District Commissioner and said, â€Å" That man was one of the greatest men in Umuofia. You drove him to kill himself; and now he will be buried like a dog† (*11). So rather then wait to be killed and humiliated, Okonkwo took matters into his own hands and killed himself. In the book Things fall apart the main character Okonkwo ended up both losing and winning at the end.He lost in the sense of the new religion, and government, and basically just the overall change ended up winning over tradition. Which was what he feared all along. But in a sense he won because the last thing he did before he died was something he completely believed was the right thing to do, so he never gave up or stopped trying, even though he knows that he did all that he could and tried. But In the end it was just unbearable for him to live any longer with all that had changed in his village, so he did what he wanted to do, which was killing the messenger, then he killed himself.He killed himself because he understood that since he killed the messenger he was then going to be killed for the sin he had committed. But he he didn’t want to be killed by someone else and be made as an example, and he didn’t want to give the satisfaction to the District Of Commissioner by letting himself get killed by him. So in the end he just gave up and realized their was nothing else he could do about the situation at hand. â€Å"The world has no end, and what is good among one people is an abomination with others† (* 11). That shows that no matter that people will always see things differently, what is good or bad or what is right or what is wrong. No matter what, the world will never be agreeing on the matter at hand, there will always be fighting and arguing as long as their is something to be argued about. So in the end through all the fighting and heartache Okonkwo’s death symbolized the tradition dyeing out and change taking over. How to cite Modern World: Things Fall Apart, Papers

Common Ground Over Rocky Road free essay sample

I believe in the equality of man, and I believethat religious duties consist in doing justice, loving mercy, and endeavoring tomake our fellow creatures happy. Thomas Paine I am the most interesting person in my class. My father and I once cycled throughthe battlefield of Little Bighorn in Montana, pretending we were Custers SeventhCalvary and our bikes were horses. Last year, I attempted to drink an entiregallon of milk in one lunch period. I am the only person in my school, and maybethe world, who has been pulled over by the Highway Patrol for driving too slowly.Although I cant run three miles in less than half an hour, my entire fallschedule revolves around cross-country. While the other girls motto is RunHard. Run Long. Finish Fast. Finish Strong, mine is Dead Last butDead Sexy. I fell madly in love for the first time this summer,only to learn that my Romeo is gay. I drive a brown 1984 Chevrolet Capricestation wagon, complete with Gore-Lieberman bumper sticker and Cleveland Indiansdecal. Affectionately known as the shaggin wagon, I have doneeverything from 360-ing it onto the sidewalk to backing into a telephone pole.Nothing, however, has shaped my life more than growing up in a communitydominated by the Christian right. And nothing illustrates this better than theday I went through the hell door. It was Halloween, and I wanted to bescared. My friend Carrie suggested we attend Hellstop, which I thought was ahaunted house. So we paid the five bucks and waited in line for over an hour. Atlast, the grim reaper led our group into a tent. A man dressed like Jesus stoodbehind a translucent wall. A girl knelt in front of him begging formercy. Please, Jesus, she cried. Forgive me. Pleasedont leave me. Jesus turned away from her, and suddenly strobelights flashed and a man dressed in KISS make-up ran in and carried her away asshe screamed. This reminded me either of a really bad disco or a cut scene fromthe Rocky Horror Picture Show. Somehow I had envisioned Jesus to be,I dont know, compassionate. This could be you! yelled thereaper as we left the tent. Wait a second, that voice sounded familiar. Mr. Freshwater? I asked. Whats it to you?he shouted back. I couldnt believe it my eighth-grade science teacher, whodidnt believe in evolution and warned us that the end of the world would comefrom China, was the reaper. This was unreal. After being forced into alarge cage and screamed at by the devil, we finally reached the last tent. There,we listened to a real Southern Baptist minister preach about meeting God. Inorder to leave the tent, we each had to go behind a curtain and choose an exit. There were three doors: one marked heaven, one marked hell, and one witha giant question mark. If you had been saved, you went through the heaven door,and if you hadnt been saved, you went through the question-mark door (wherepeople were waiting to save you). The only other choice was the hell door. Trulyhoping to be scared, I chose the hell door. Nothing reached out and grabbed me.No chain saws or vampires. Nothing but the parking lot. What a rip-off. I hadjust wasted five bucks. Katie, did you go through the helldoor? Carrie and her friend Josh gawked in horror as they saw me comingfrom the direction of the damned. Yeah, I replied.Carrie, you said this was a haunted house. I wasnt scared atall. These two fundamentalists then gave me a five-minute speechabout the Bible. I simply told them that although I had a deep respect for theirbeliefs, I didnt translate the Bible literally. Having been raised Catholic, itwas an explanation I was used to giving. I just dont want you to goto hell, Josh said. He really did care, and I respected him forthat. Dont worry, I assured him. God likes me toomuch. They raised their eyebrows, but as I inhaled the cool autumn air, Ithought of my family, my friends, my running, my school, all the beautiful placesI had been and I knew I was right. God liked me a lot. As trivial as itmay sound, going through the hell door was a tremendously significant experience.My disappointment at nothing being there, and Carries horrified reaction to mygoing through it, illustrated just how different our religious beliefs are. I wasforced to make a choice: join the born-agains and appease many of my friends;make fun of them and judge them for their seemingly zany beliefs; or, finally, Icould accept and respect even love them for who they are and hope they woulddo the same for me. I chose the latter. Religious tolerance starts with theindividual, and it cant really be practiced unless differences exist and one isconfronted by them. Although I became infamous for going through the helldoor, I think many of the die-hard Christian kids are amused by me. I was alwaysthe funny, outgoing, outspoken eccentric whose religious views werent based on abook and they liked and respected me for that. Even though I never fit in withthe evangelical crowd, its part of who I am. Its made my beliefs stronger, andits taught me to appreciate people for who they are and not what their religionis. Hellstop reinforced how different we are. Its up to us to celebrate, ratherthan fight over, those differences. Do you want to go out for icecream? I asked Carrie as we got in my car. My treat, Ioffered. No, she insisted. My treat. I donot understand why people wage war over religion. There is always common groundover Rocky Road.