Women all over South Africa are the subject of praise and celebration in this month. “Women’s Month“ is a big deal on TV, for example, to highlight their importance in the eyes of the public.

Why should an entire month be dedicated to women? Does it mean that society finally recognises the worth and role of wives and mothers in our world. It’s an anomaly since there is a phenomenon called GBV that is eating away at the female population in our country. So why have a women’s month when there is little real evidence that many husbands and boyfriends honour and respect their women? Why is it necessary for women to dangle their importance under the noses of men, and push for quotas in government and business? Does it mean that they must highlight something that doesn’t really exist to make it happen?

I know I speak in generalisations. However, the evidence is there that society’s treatment of their women needs attention.

Religion can be a powerful indicator of some of the world’s attitude. There are nations controlled by a single religious system that treat women as nothing more than possessions to be used and abused at will.

Despite what men think of their women by the way they treat them, there is one man who showed the world their worth by setting them free from the shackles of their own culture.

Jesus rises above all other men who ever lived by elevating the women He encountered and all women since, to the position and role God intended at creation. Helper, taken, not from man’s foot or his head, but from man’s side! Partner, not possession! Honoured, not abused! Treated with compassion and respect, not with cruelty or contempt! Every story of His encounter with women peels another layer off the burden their culture and religion placed on them.

In the gospel record, Jesus gave three Mary’s the “thumbs up” by deliberately removing from them their cultural taboos.

The name, Mary, has deep meaning and significance for three Mary’s in the gospel record. Written into their lives is some part of the meaning of their name.

“Meaning:Star of the sea; Bitterness; Beloved; Wished for a child. The quintessential girl’s name, Mary, is of Latin and Greek origins and means “drop of the sea,” “bitterness,” “beloved,” and “wished for a child.” The old-world name is the anglicized version of Maria, originating from the Hebrew Miriam or Mariam.”

The first Mary is Jesus’ own mother. Although Jesus had to untie the mother-bond in His public ministry He, nevertheless, never failed to honour the woman who brought Him into the world. At her request, for example, He stepped in to help a family out of an embarrassing situation when the wine ran out at a wedding in Cana in Galilee. Again, moments before He died, He gave her into the care of a beloved disciple, John.

Jesus, by His example, elevated motherhood to the level of a divine calling. He honoured Mary as His mother. He endorsed the Father’s choice of Mary to be the mother of His Son in His earthly role as a man.

The second Mary, Mary Magdalene, Mary of Magadala, that Mary, was the object of Jesus’ compassion. She was enslaved, probably through a sinful lifestyle, by seven demons who tormented her day and night. We are not told her details but, somehow, somewhere, she encountered Jesus. He saw her plight and drove the devils out of her, setting her free to become a faithful follower and the first witness to His resurrection.

It was Luke, the Gentile, who often records stories that reveal Jesus’ attitude to women.

Luke 8:1-2 NLT
[1] “Soon afterward Jesus began a tour of the nearby towns and villages, preaching and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom of God. He took his twelve disciples with him, [2] along with some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases. Among them were Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons… “

Why did Jesus chose to reveal Himself to this Mary first after He rose from the dead? Was it because women, in Jewish culture, were not trusted to give evidence in court? What a slap in the face for that idea!

Luke 24:1, 3, 9-11 NLT
[1] “But very early on Sunday morning the women went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared….
[3] So they went in, but they didn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus….
[9] So they rushed back from the tomb to tell his eleven disciples—and everyone else—what had happened. [10] It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and several other women who told the apostles what had happened. [11] But the story sounded like nonsense to the men, so they didn’t believe it.”

The third Mary, Mary of Bethany, was part of a trio of siblings who lived together in a small village outside Jerusalem. How did this Mary manage to break another cultural taboo with Jesus’ approval?

Jesus often visited this home, perhaps as a refuge from the clamouring public and the incessantly hostile religious leaders. Here He was welcome and His times of teaching valued.

On one occasion, the familiar group of Jesus and the Twelve turned up for a respite. Martha, the busy one, set about preparing a meal for their guests. Mary settled down at Jesus’ feet, among the disciples, to listen to Jesus, an unheard of and unacceptable action in Jewish culture. When Martha tried to call her away to help in the kitchen, Jesus rebuked her and affirmed Mary’s break with protocol.

Once again, Luke tells the story…

Luke 10:40-42 NLT
[40] “But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.” [41] But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! [42] There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”

This same Mary, distraught by her brother’s death and disillusioned by Jesus’ failure to arrive in time to save him, had to learn to let Jesus finish what He started before she mistrusted and judged Him. The outcome…

John 12:1-8 NLT
[1] “Six days before the Passover celebration began, Jesus arrived in Bethany, the home of Lazarus—the man he had raised from the dead. [2] A dinner was prepared in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, and Lazarus was among those who ate with him. [3] Then Mary took a twelve-ounce jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard, and she anointed Jesus’ feet with it, wiping his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance. [4] But Judas Iscariot, the disciple who would soon betray him, said, [5] “That perfume was worth a year’s wages. It should have been sold and the money given to the poor.” [6] Not that he cared for the poor—he was a thief, and since he was in charge of the disciples’ money, he often stole some for himself. [7] Jesus replied, “Leave her alone. She did this in preparation for my burial. [8] You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.”

Where was Mary of Bethany in this event? At Jesus feet in worship and adoration acceptable to Him! Her story is forever recorded in God’s Word!

Three Mary’s, living proof of what
Jesus thought and how He treated women.

We don’t need a “Women’s Month“ to remind us of God’s intention for women in His scheme of things. If humans would only read and heed God’s Word, women would receive the respect and honour He gave us at creation.

Women need to step down from their “high horse” of feminism and step up to their place of partnership with men God gave us to share in the role of managing the earth in all its departments, for His glory.

When men and women step outside of God’s order, chaos reigns. When men and women honour God’s order, harmony prevails.