Book Review - Nobody's Mother, Sandra Glahn, IVP Academic

 

One of the most confounding, complicated, and confusing passages in all of Scripture is 1 Timothy 2:11-15. Scholars and theologians have long debated its details and application regarding women in ministry. 

I'm not taking this space to dissect all of the issues at this time. But like the final boss of a video game, the paragraph ends with Paul making the statement that "women will be saved through childbearing". This would be the same Paul famous for developing and proclaiming salvation by faith in Christ. One steeped in modern-day vernacular might be tempted to ask, "what in the world bruh???"

While "Nobody's Mother" does touch on the wide variety of issues in 2:11-15, this book has its greatest relevance on that final gender-role-specific statement. Make no mistake, as cloudy and confusing as these verses are, Dr. Glahn offers critical clarity based on what we know about first century cultural context (I apologize for all the 'C' words). 

This book outlines the various levels of difficulty in interpreting 2:15. But after diagnosing the problems, the author surgically goes to work offering solutions and interpretive answers. She takes advantage of the under-studied world of first-century Ephesus and the cult of Artemis. Good bible students will recognize from passages like Acts 19 that the worship of Artemis was a formidable and popular cultural identification marker in Ephesus. But Dr. Glahn expands upon that premise using historical and extra-biblical records that still exist from that time period. Even architecture and art that remains from that world helps us understand just how entrenched the cult of Artemis was at that time and in that place. 

What I found fascinating was how much additional information we have from discoveries from just the past few decades and how that new information is just now being connected to biblical scholarship. This book puts the pieces together to see a more-coherent picture, offering an very reasonable explanation as to why Paul might tell Timothy and his Ephesian church that "women will be saved through childbearing."

I highly recommend any interested party purchase and read this book for themselves. But here is a summary of what I learned based on her research and conclusions:

• Artemis was among other things a celibate goddess of the hunt and goddess of midwives and childbirth. 
• Against what some have often assumed, she was not a fertility goddess and her temple was not grounds for sacred prostitution. Her cult was not anti-male but it was female-led. 
• Artemis is often called “savior” as protector and warrior who specifically could help deliver women through the childbearing process. 
• Sex and pregnancy were viewed in a somewhat negative or dangerous light by her devotees. This negative impression was based on women's mortality rates during childbirth combined with Artemis' own mythic backstory. The legend states that she was the first born of a set of twins and as an infant observed how her mother strenuously and painfully died to give birth to her twin brother. 
• Her goddess mission then was to help women in the birthing process or provide a quick and painless death if the birth was headed to a tragic end.

As it relates to 1 Timothy 2, I'm convinced of Dr. Glahn's conclusion that can be stated this way:

• Paul's confounding “saved through childbearing” statement is a direct counter to the Artemis myth. Artemis is not a real “savior”. Women Christ-followers can have confidence that Jesus is their hope with respect to the sometimes-dangerous and difficult process of childbirth. Jesus will deliver them, not Artemis. Pregnancy is not a curse, it is a good thing. And our security lies in faithfully following Jesus. Childbirth is not something to fear, for those in Christ have a true Savior.

The book offers other additional relevance for both 1 Timothy 2 and other parts of the New Testament, but I'm especially appreciative of the clarity it brings to a notoriously strange part of Paul's letter.

Sermon Snippets - The Woman at the Well

See if you can spot the lie:

• Bats aren't actually blind. Some can see better than humans.
• Napoleon was above-average in height for his day.
• We don't have five senses, we have closer to twenty.
• The woman Jesus interacts with at a well in Samaria was a promiscuous relationship-addict who went from one man to another looking for the right guy.

If I haven't made it obvious, it is the last bullet point. Don't believe me about the first three facts? I refer you to this resource. Don't believe me about the last one regarding the story from John 4? Let me refer you to this article (and/or the Sandra Glahn-edited book "Vindicating the Vixens" which features that same article as one of it's chapters).

The article makes a compelling case that when we study the marriage practices of the Biblical world, we'll see this woman in a very different light. 

During her famous discussion with Jesus, he reveals that he supernaturally knows she has been married five times and is living with a man who isn't her sixth husband. It doesn't indicate she was divorced that many times - which would be unheard of when we compare it to other ANE (Ancient Near East) records we have. And even if she had five divorces on her marital resume, in their world, it was rare for a woman to divorce her husband. Women had next to no legal rights and would have to find a male advocate to initiate these proceedings. Men on the other hand could find lots of excuses to divorce their wives. Though they would suffer dowry loss for any reason other than adultery. A dowry was the material wealth a woman brought into the marriage. It was the only lifeline a woman had to protect her if her husband decided to abuse the system. 

So that brings us to this woman in John 4. which is more plausible? That she was the town tramp who hopped from bed to bed looking for love in all the wrong places? Or that she had husbands who died and/or husbands who had divorced her? That her current living situation was one of illicitly co-habiting or one where culturally they were seen as married? Or maybe it was a situation of bigamy, where she was like Hagar, essentially a second (class) wife. Her townspeople receive her testimony without reservation when she tells them of her interactions with Jesus. The eager reception and the lack of skepticism or hesitancy help convince me that she wasn't wearing some 'scarlet letter' in their minds.

John 4 is a lot less scandalous when we understand the historical context. Her theological curiosity and insight rise to the surface upon deeper reflection too. Maybe she wasn't thirsty for love but rather thirsty for healing and the truth. 

What is also unmistakable is the fact that Jesus satisfies her longings. She didn't even fully understand what she was searching for, but Jesus provided it in abundance. He reached across social barriers and sidestepped needlessly distracting controversies. And he did it all to bring salvation to that woman and her town. 

The beautiful thing is, that previous paragraph also applies to you and me. He quenches our thirst and he compels us to disregard the barriers and reach out to those around us with the offer of living water found only in Christ.

Sermon Snippets - Tamar, the Righteous Prostitute

A little over a year ago, I read and reviewed "Vindicating the Vixens" edited by Dr. Sandra Glahn. I really enjoyed this survey of prominent women in Scripture who have been misunderstood and misrepresented in our common evangelical interpretations.

I decided to use it as a guide for this summer's sermon schedule. I usually try to come up with a series that will work through the summer when people often miss more often. This way, they can still glean a lot out of a specific week's sermon, but not feel lost or behind in the overall series.

Yesterday was my first sermon based on the characters featured in this book. We took a look at Tamar in Genesis 38, who is both described as a prostitute and righteous.

It was one of my favorite sermons I've preached in awhile.

The audio will be up on our website later this week here, but one of the pieces of evidence that she's a righteous hero in this complex story is how the Bible refers to her in other places.

Not only is she described as "righteous" in 38:26 for her actions, but King David names a daughter after her (2 Samuel 13). Absalom names his daughter Tamar as well, though I'm more inclined to see that as a tribute to his sister (2 Sam. 14:27).

Tamar also comes up in the story of Ruth. Ruth's story is another unorthodox account of love and family and God's redemption. In the concluding chapter, the people of Boaz's community give him their blessing, saying,

Moreover, may your house be like the house of Perez whom Tamar bore to Judah, through the offspring which the Lord will give you by this young woman.”

On the surface, one could accuse Tamar just being a scheming femme fatale, going to great lengths just to start a family.

In reality, we see Scripture honoring her for her bold steps to seek what was right. Labels like "righteous" aren't given out to everybody in the story of God. And naming children after an ancestor was a way to show admiration for their character.