(part 3 of a series in response to the renewed interest in feminism in the UK)
In a recent conversation with my son he expressed surprise when I said I liked Lily Allen.
“But why? Do you know some of the things she believes in?”
“Yes” I replied, “but I don’t have to agree with everything someone says to like them.”
I feel like this about the African American poet and civil activist Maya Angelou. If you ever heard her recording of ‘Still I rise’ you cannot help but be moved by her portrayal of the nobleness of the human spirit, a glorious celebration of hope. She provided inspiration to many women.[1] Those who met her discovered someone who exuded joy. She lived with the maxim, ‘life is brief and frail, and if you don’t take ownership of it nobody else will’.[2] She embodied the spirit of independence.
It is interesting that the journey from discrimination and inequality leads us to autonomy and a celebration of self. Having experienced oppression freedom is grasped at and restrictions dismissed. The Women’s Rights movement has as a central tenet the right of women to have control of their own bodies. Set in the context of liberation from sexual violence and physical abuse this is good but pushed to the extreme it ignores that the fact that we are not isolated individuals living in a void.
We live in the context of relationships. The first and foremost of these is our relationship with our creator. Many of us ignore Him but He has given us life itself and He has a right to rule us. That sounds so harsh to modern ears but ancient texts describe this beautifully as ‘fear of the Lord’ which leads to ‘a tree of life to those who take hold of her'.[3] The poetry in Proverbs employs stunning metaphors to describe the experience of living with reference to God as our creator as like coming to a feast that the woman wisdom has prepared for us as opposed to ignoring God and following the woman folly who offers only stolen water in the realm of the dead.[4] Acknowledging God is the beginning of wisdom seeking fruitful life without Him is utter foolishness.
Not only do we live as created people made in the image of God but we live as people in relationship with one another. This must challenge our cry for self-determination.
Another poet John Donne famously wrote:
‘No man is an island,
Entire of itself,
Every man is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main.’[5]
Am I free to define myself as a woman without any consideration of others? I am a wife, a mother, a daughter, a sister, an aunt, and a friend – surely how I live must take into account those relationships? Do I have the right over my own body if that conflicts with the needs of my unborn child? Do I have the right to pursue my dreams and neglect others? When we talk about equality and freedom we have to take into account relationships.
The bible does talk of freedom and equality but in a far more dynamic way than we usually talk about it. Biblical equality is understood in the context of relationships, our relationship with God and our relationships with others – it is powerful and liberating.
To be continued …
[1] www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqOqo50LSZ0
[2] http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/may/28/maya-angelou-american-titan-died-86-appreciation
[3] Proverbs 3:18 (ESV)
[4] Proverbs 9 (ESV)
[5] Meditation XVII by John Donne