Rewritten from e-mail, 01/20/2006, in support of "Fog's" assertion"
Were Jesus' Views on Women
and Sex Quite Different than
We've Been Led to Believe?
It would appear so -- even after the early efforts to expunge the role of women from early Christian scriptures.
A number of Bible quotes could be cited, but we'll just recount one story.
You many remember the account of the woman who poured perfume on Jesus' head and feet. Although the gospels contradict each other on the details, the basics (except for the account in John) remain somewhat the same.
n a very sensual act the woman washes Jesus' feet with her tears and dries them with her hair.
And interesting act, but possibly not totally remarkable, until you consider the historical context.
n Luke it is stated that this was "a woman of the city," or apparently a prostitute.
Her actions (especially in the context of the times and Jewish culture) were viewed as being highly sensual, clearly provocative, and totally out of bounds for any woman of the time.
The act described in these gospels becomes even more bizarre when you consider that in that day a woman (especially an "unclean" woman, as she supposedly was) was simply not to touch a man in public.
Thus, the men present immediately jumped up and soundly condemned her. Considering the power of Jewish tradition, we get the impression that they may have even thrown her out if Jesus had not intervened.
W
e all know that at this point Jesus defied the strong Jewish tradition in which he was raised, as well as all the men and women in attendance, and defended her act as "a beautiful thing."
Keep in mind that Jesus knew that his response would clearly damage his credibility and standing in the Jewish community.
I
t would seem that Jesus did not share the strong anti-woman, anti-sex bias that is so clearly stated in the scriptures and that subsequently became a part of fundamentalist Christianity.
John's Account Raises an Interesting Possibility
T
he gospel of John's account of this, which some people think is the most "authentic gospel," differs in some key ways and this introduces an interesting possibility.
In John's gospel it's Mary, Martha's sister, that does the anointing and she is neither a stranger nor a prostitute. In this gospel her act seems to generate no scandal or rebuke; in fact, it seems to pass with little notice.
So where did all the strict patriarchal Jewish rules about proper conduct by a woman suddenly go?
Despite the fact that the women's role in early Christianity appears to have been "downplayed" -- some researchers put it much stronger -- we are left with many indications that Mary Magdalene apparently played a significant role in early Christianity.
Recently discovered ancient scrolls strongly suggest that Mary was Jesus' number one disciple, the "most loved" disciple, and the one with whom that he shared the greatest number of spiritual secrets.
She has been referred to in these scriptures as "the disciple who understood."
