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| The women we know from translations and interpretations of Bible texts are servants, prostitutes or saints, seen dancing for a king or kneeling to kiss Jesus' feet |
Tired of
seeing their holy texts used to justify the subjugation of women, a group of feminist
theologians from across the Protestant-Catholic divide have joined forces to
draft "A Women's Bible".
As the
#MeToo movement continues to expose sexual abuse across cultures and
industries, some scholars of Christianity are clamouring for a reckoning with
biblical interpretations they say have entrenched negative images of women.
The women
we know from translations and interpretations of Bible texts are servants,
prostitutes or saints, seen dancing for a king or kneeling to kiss Jesus' feet.
But while
many feminists have called for The Bible, Christianity and religion altogether
to be cast aside, an eclectic group of theologians instead insists that if
interpreted properly, the Good Book can be a tool for promoting women's
emancipation.
'Feminist
values'
"Feminist
values and reading the Bible are not incompatible," insisted Lauriane
Savoy, one of two Geneva theology professors behind the push to draft "Une
Bible des Femmes" ("A Women's Bible"), which was published in
October.
The
professor at the Theology Faculty in Geneva, which was established by the
father of Calvinism himself in 1559, said the idea for the work came after she
and her colleague Elisabeth Parmentier noticed how little most people knew or
understood of the biblical texts.
"A lot
of people thought they were completely outdated with no relevance to today's
values of equality," the 33-year-old told AFP, standing under the towering
sculptures of Jean Calvin and other Protestant founders on the University of
Geneva campus.
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Geneva
theology professors Elisabeth Parmentier (L) and Lauriane Savoy
pose under the
Reformation Wall with a copy of "A Women's Bible"
|
In a bid to
counter such notions, Savoy and Parmentier, 57, joined forces with 18 other
woman theologians from a range of countries and Christian denominations.
The
scholars have created a collection of texts challenging traditional
interpretations of Bible scriptures that cast women characters as weak and
subordinate to the men around them.
Parmentier
points to a passage in the Gospel of Luke, in which Jesus visits two sisters,
Martha and Mary.
"It
says that Martha ensures the "service", which has been interpreted to
mean that she served the food, but the Greek word diakonia can also have other
meanings, for instance it could mean she was a deacon," she pointed out.
Overturning religious orthodoxy
They are
not the first to provide a more women-friendly reading of the scriptures.
Already
back in 1898, American suffragette Elizabeth Cady Stanton and a committee of 26
other women drafted "The Woman's Bible", aimed at overturning
religious orthodoxy that women should be subservient to men.
The two
Geneva theology professors say they were inspired by that work, and had
initially planned to simply translate it to French.
But after
determining that the 120-year-old text was too outdated, they decided to create
a new work that could resonate in the 21st century.
"We
wanted to work in an ecumenical way," Parmentier said, stressing that
around half the women involved in the project are Catholic and the other half
from a number of branches of Protestantism.
In the
introduction to the "Women's Bible", the authors said that the
chapters were meant to "scrutinise shifts in the Christian tradition,
things that have remained concealed, tendentious translations, partial
interpretations."
'Lingering patriarchal readings'
They take
to task "the lingering patriarchal readings that have justified numerous
restrictions and bans on women," the authors wrote.
Savoy said
that Mary Magdalene, "the female character who appears the most in the
Gospels", had been given a raw deal in many common interpretations of the
texts.
"She
stood by Jesus, including as he was dying on the cross, when all of the male
disciples were afraid. She was the first one to go to his tomb and to discover
his resurrection," she pointed out.
"This
is a fundamental character, but she is described as a prostitute, ... and even
as Jesus's lover in recent fiction."
The
scholars also go to great lengths to place the texts in their historical
context.
"We
are fighting against a literal reading of the texts," Parmentier said,
pointing for instance to letters sent by Saint Paul to nascent Christian
communities.
Reading
passages from those letters, which could easily be construed as radically
anti-feminist, as instructions for how women should be treated today is insane,
she said.
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