Jesus and #MeToo

By Jeff Long

It was an unusual thing for a first-century C.E. Jewish man not to own land nor to have any descendants. Success in life in early Palestine was measured largely by those two mileposts. When it comes to Jesus of Nazareth, however, this is apparently the case. Landless, childless, and largely penniless. Ergo, before he opened his mouth to teach, before performing any of his miracles or healings, Jesus would have already been regarded as a bit of oddity by the standards of the time.

His attitude toward women equally made him stand out. By the laws of primogeniture, women could not inherit land nor wealth of any tangible kind in Jesus' era. Gratefully, we live in a time when those nonsensical standards have been all but eliminated. A vestige survives, however, in a way that most people find innocuous. I do not. To wit: in so many weddings, you will hear these words: "Who gives this woman to this man?" I have officiated weddings since 1991 and have steadfastly refused to ask that question. The question harkens back to a time in which women were considered property, to be handed off from father to husband, along with a dowry. Women could not be expected to support themselves financially, or so it was believed. In my weddings, more than 200 at last count, I ask a different question: "Who presents this woman in marriage?" Dad still gets to give his daughter away but in a fashion that puts aside a bit of historical claptrap.

In a household in which the lion's share of our family's income is now earned by the woman, I'm glad to put the lie to all of that thinking.

It is sometimes argued that Jesus was gender-conventional in his attitudes about men and women. After all, it is posited, he didn't call any women as his disciples. Nonsense. The writers of the New Testament gospels, all men, didn't designate women as such, but let it be known, Jesus had women disciples. Mary Magdalene was just as much a Christ-follower as Peter, James, and John -- the inner circle of the original Twelve. Bowing to convention and the inability of women to hold any public role in the first century, women did not officially represent our Lord. That's true. But after his death, it was the women who went to prepare him for burial. The men, scared out of their minds, were locked in a house, fearing they were next.

When the woman at the well was ostracized by her peers for allegedly scandalous behavior, forcing her to gather water in the blazing heat of midday, it was Jesus who went out to converse. (John 4:7-26) Jesus embraced the morally-compromised and in so doing, forfeited the endorsement of some. He turned away an angry crowd armed with rocks, determined to stone to death a woman accused of adultery, with the words: "Let him who is without sin, cast the first stone." (John 8:7)

Jesus is not here to speak for himself, so this columnist will go out on a limb. Knowing what the New Testament teaches us about Jesus, I have a strong notion that Jesus would have been foursquare behind the #MeToo movement. He empowered women and stood up for them, even to the risk of his own reputation and standing.

The #MeToo movement is a little scary for us men, frankly. No one likes to be accused. But it's long past due that men get a taste of this bitter medicine. My dear wife tells me that in recent months, men in public life are finally getting a taste of the vulnerability to which women have long been subjected. She also tells me that throughout history, the pendulum has had to swing far in the other direction in order for it to find a new normal. That's what the #MeToo movement can bring us: a new normal, one pushed in the direction of better honoring and respecting women.

Yes, based on his recorded words and deeds, it seems to me the Lord would say, #MeToo.