You may not be aware but tomorrow, 8th March is International Women’s Day. This day is part of a movement which exists to highlight the ongoing inequalities which exist between men and women both nationally and globally, and of course to effect change. International Women’s Day is also a day to highlight the unheard and elevate those who suffer injustice.
As a midwife I am continually concerned with the inequalities faced by women which on a global scale often go unheard. One place where women do not go unheard however is the Bible. ‘El Roi’ is the God who sees, and time and time again, the ‘case for women’ is seen in our beautiful book. Far from being unseen, women are valued, honoured and redeemed at a time when they were often seen as second class citizens.
The un-named concubine in Judges suffered awful atrocities and though she did not personally see justice in her time, her story remains as one which displays in terrible detail what happens when people are out of alignment with God’s wonderful plan for humanity. But if we pause here and only see the story for casting a light on what society and history would prefer to leave unseen, we miss so much of the redeeming beauty of Gods message for humanity. Being seen by God is beautiful but it is only the start. There is more!
In Genesis 38 we read the story of Tamar, a women so dishonoured by the family she married into that she had to take matters into her own hands. While some have doubted her methods, even Judah, her father-in-law declared her “more righteous than I” because his dishonouring of her brought dishonour on himself and even more than that, God restored Tamar’s honour by establishing her as a named part of Jesus’s family tree. The Samaritan woman by the well, often seen as the woman ‘of many husbands’, though in more likelihood a victim of multiple widowhood and thrown into desperate and isolating poverty — was given time and honour by Jesus. Her didn’t dismiss her, he gently showed her what it meant to really live and receive living water which would wash her clean and give her everything she ever needed. She went on to be one of the first evangelists. What a saviour!
Being seen is wonderful. But being welcomed into God's family and experiencing restoration and honour is even better. God’s message of hope and restoration for women who feel unseen because of their experiences is a beautiful message of hope this International Women’s Day.
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