Women.

Feminists today are claiming that they are being and have been oppressed throughout the centuries. And for the most part, they have been. They have been exploited and neglected. If we simply look at historical archives and see how often women are mentioned, we are grossly offended at the neglect of even their names.

Today the war has been pressed against Christianity. That is to say that Christians have been accused of being intolerant of women and oppressive. Notice this quote from www.rwor.org:

“…it is an undeniable fact that the Christian Bible promotes the oppression of women and gay people, and if anyone insists on acting according to a literal reading of the Bible, that person will certainly be joining in "oppress[ing] women and homosexuals."

Before we say things like this against Christianity, have we really considered what MTV, E!, Howard Stern, or any of pop-society has done to women? All over the world we find pornographic literature, websites, and stores that are telling women what they are worth to men. Do you know that the pornography industry generates more money every year than any other business in human history? Did you know that that majority of porn stars are women?

Just look around and see who is really oppressing women. The contemporary marketplace that tells them they have to be a certain height, certain weight, and do certain things with their bodies in order to be considered “valuable.”

This is oppression.

A teenage girl is somewhere in your town right now making herself vomit whatever she just ate in order to be even skinnier. Do you know why? Magazine covers, movie stars, and talk shows are all pointing at the few who look a certain way, and miraculously, make the cut…and are saying that the dominant majority should join them in their vain endeavor to be more skinny, more busty, and more wealthy.

This is oppression.

Christianity serves however, to offer liberty to these women. That is to say, Christians value women’s bodies. Christians value the roles of women in society. Christians do not believe that they should be exploited as HBO, Cinnemax, and Showtime exploit them. The Hooters restraunts, Abercrombie ads, Seventeen magazines to name just a few are who should be called out.

I don’t know where you see it, but I personally see it everywhere.

The first witnesses at Jesus’ tomb were women. This is significant because the writers of the Bible were more concerned with truth than they were with promoting a Patriarchal worldview. Jesus had women disciples and followers. Jesus healed women. Jesus spoke to women of other races (which was strongly condemned), even in public. He risked his own reputation for the betterment and respect of women.

It is strange that the very book (the New Testament) is being condemned for the very thing itself condemns. The New Testament tells women to dress modestly, to have upright character, and to engage culture with genuine worth and value. That is to say that these characteristics are not earned in the bedroom or on a magazine cover, but rather, it is given freely by a God of grace who declares women “worthy” and “valuable” as they stand in Him and with Him against those very practices.

Please, tell me, is this really oppression?