It seemed to me that the time had come when women should know for themselves what the Bible teaches for them and what the pulpit has upheld; and although I cannot soil my lips nor your ears with much of
it, there is enough, I think, that I may use to make any self-respecting, pure woman blush that she has sustained it by word or act.
The Bible teaches that a father may sell his daughter for a slave, [Ex.xxi. 7.] that he may sacrifice her purity to a mob, [Judges xix. 24.] and that he may murder her, and still be a good father and a holy man. It teaches that a man may have any number of wives; that he may sell them, give them away, or change them around, and still be a perfect gentleman, a good husband, a righteous man, and one of God's most intimate friends; and that is a pretty good position for a beginning. It teaches almost every infamy under the heavens for
woman, and it does not recognize her as a self-directing, free human being. It classes her as property, just as it does a sheep: and it forbids her to think, talk, act, or exist, except under conditions and limits defined by some priest.
If the Bible were strictly followed, women and negroes would still be publicly bought and sold in America. If it were believed in as it once was, if the Church had the power she once had, I should never see the light of another day, and your lives would be made a hell for sitting here to-night. The iron grasp of superstition would hold you and your children forever over the bottomless pit of religious persecution, and cover your fair fame with infamous slander, because you dared to sit here and hear me strike a blow at infinite
injustice.
Every injustice that has ever been fastened upon women in a Christian country has been ";authorized by the Bible"; and riveted and perpetuated by the pulpit. That seems strong language, no doubt; but I shall give you an opportunity to decide as to its truth. I will now bring my witnesses. They are from the ";inspired word"; itself, and therefore must be all that could be desired.
I will read you a short passage from Exodus xx. 22; xxi. 7-8:22 And the LORD said unto Moses, Thus thou shalt say unto the children of
Israel, Ye have seen that I talked with you from heaven. * * *
7. And if a man sell his daughter to be a maid-servant, she shall not go out as the men-servants do.
8. If she please not her master, who hath betrothed her to himself, then shall he let her be redeemed: to sell her unto a strange nation he shall have no power, seeing he hath dealt deceitfully with her.The Lord doesn't object to a man selling his daughter, but if any one thing makes him angrier than another it is to have her go about as the men-servants do after she is sold. On a little point like that he is absolutely fastidious. You may here notice that God took the trouble to come down from heaven to tell the girl what not to do after she was sold. He forgot to suggest to her father that it might be as well not to sell her at all. He forgot that. But in an important conversation one often overlooks little details. The next is Joshua xv. 16-17:16 And Caleb said, He that smiteth Kirjath-sepher, and taketh it, to him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife.17 And Othniel the brother of Caleb [and consequently the girl's uncle]
took it: and he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife.Please to remember that the said Caleb was one of God's intimates -- a favorite with the Almighty. The girl was not consulted; the father paid off his
warriors in female scrip. The next is Gen. xix. 5-8 5 And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us that we may know them.6 And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him.7 And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly.8 Behold now, I have two daughters * * * * let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes; only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof.These men had come under the shadow of Lot's roof for protection, it seems, and Lot felt that his honor demanded that he should shield them even at the cost of the purity and safety of his own daughters! Do you know I have always had a mild curiosity to know what his daughters were under the shadow of his roof for. It could not have been for protection, I judge, since Lot was one of God's best friends. He was on all sorts of intimate terms with the Deity -- knew things were going to happen before they came -- was the only man good enough to save from a doomed city -- the only one whose acts pleased God and this act seems to have been particularly satisfactory. These men were ";angels of God"; who required this infamy for their protection! If it takes all the
honor out of a man when he gets to be an angel, they may use my wings for a feather-duster.
Now here is a little property law. Num. xxvii.6 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,8 And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a man die,and have no son, then ye shall cause his inheritance to pass unto his daughter. And our law works a little that way yet; being the result of ecclesiastical law it naturally would.
Next we have Num. xxxvi.:8 And every daughter that possesseth an inheritance in any tribe of the children of Israel, shall be wife unto one of the family of the tribe of her father, that the children of Israel may enjoy every man the inheritance of his fathers.9 Neither shall the inheritance remove from one tribe to another tribe;
but every one of the tribes of the children of Israel shall keep himself to his own inheritance.10 Even as the LORD commanded Moses, so did the daughters of Zelophehad.That is all the women were for -- articles of conveyance for property.Save the land, no matter about the girls. Now these silly women actually believed that God told Moses whom they had to marry just because Moses said so!
I tell you, ladies and gentlemen, it is not safe to take heavenly
advice fpound in the inspired scriptures. |
