Sunday, April 7
Readings: IS 43:16-21; PHIL 3:8-14; JN 8:1-11
It just so happens that I am preaching on these readings at church, so I have had a little extra time to reflect on them (but I’ll keep my thoughts here a bit briefer!).
In the gospel a nameless woman is brought before Jesus. The Pharisees who bring her claim that she has been “caught in adultery” and “according to the law” she should be stoned. They seek to trap Jesus and are using her as a pawn in a larger game. But they also do it publicly – which is meant to pigeon hole Jesus but also to send a message to any other woman (or so-called “law breaker”) about what happens when you cross them.
Jesus draws on the ground (so much speculation over the years has gone into this) and then offers his famous saying, “Let the one among you without sin cast the first stone….”
Jesus knows that the law they are citing is being cited incorrectly, so he does not even engage it. He finds another solution, but in doing so, aligns himself with the woman. It reminds me of the martial art of aikido where one learns to use the energy of the attacker against them. The harder they try to hit you, the harder they will get hurt.
There have been many commentators throughout the years (especially women) who have called Jesus a feminist because of how he consistently took stands in favor of women and engaged them as equals. I’d have to generally agree, and I think that’s one of our take aways from this reading.
While we have made progress, we know that sexism and patriarchy still exist. Women (and anyone who does not fit the gender binary or present in gender consistent ways) are targets of violence. Rebecca Solnit who has written extensively on the subject says that, “Women worldwide ages 15 through 44 are more likely to die or be maimed because of male violence than because of cancer, malaria, war and traffic accidents combined.” She draws upon the work of Nicolas Kristof for these stats. But she also says that women’s voices, experiences, perspectives, knowledge, leadership, etc. are routinely silenced or dismissed and that this silencing is part of the continuum of violence.
If we’re going to stop the cycle of violence against women (and non-binary people) we must first learn to notice it in the world around us. Then we must interrupt it. We witness Jesus doing both today.
For today just try to notice who speaks, how often they speak and with what authority they speak. Notice who gets interrupted or talked over. Notice who’s voice carries more weight, who’s idea gets amplified, and who gets the important roles. But don’t stop there…interrupt it.