Do you wonder why the words and deeds of Christ are not given more attention in the current gender debate? If all of scripture points to Jesus, and if Jesus' treatment of women was radically different from his culture, even his religious culture, how do the life and words of Christ inform us today? For clearly Christ not only opposed abuse and patriarchy-the devaluation of women-he also found opportunities to promote women's ultimate destiny as bearers of God's image and joint-heirs of God's eternal kingdom. Perhaps that is one reason women were so drawn to Jesus. Here is one example, though there are many more.
The religious taboos of Christ's culture viewed female bodies as impure and inferior. This worked to exclude women from spiritual service and support-a practice Jesus opposed. By allowing an "unclean" hemorrhaging woman to touch him-which according to Jewish tradition made Jesus unclean as well-Christ brought physical as well as spiritual healing! By announcing that this hemorrhaging woman was ill, not unclean, Christ welcomed regular contact with women and made it possible for them to share in his work along with his disciples (Mark 5:25-34). As John Dehousaye observed in the Spring 2006 issue of Mutuality, Jesus made it clear that it is not what the body touches or what comes out of the body that makes us unclean (Mark 7:8). Rather it is what abides in our hearts: "evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit
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