A sermon preached at Kowloon
Union Church on Sunday 18 November 2018, the twenty-sixth Sunday after Pentecost, by the Rev. Phyllis Wong. The scripture
readings that day were Psalm 16; 1 Samuel 2:1–10; Mark 13:1–8.
In the early 1990s, I was a social worker and worked with abused
wives who suffered from domestic violence in a women’s shelter.
In the late 1990s, together with other friends, we set up an
organization concerned with sexual violence against women, and we gave birth to
the first rape crisis centre in Hong Kong in 2003. We named the centre RainLily.
Moreover, in my childhood, I had encountered different forms of
sexual assault.
With all of these past experiences, the issue of violence against
women has been a concern to me and very close to my heart for more than 20
years. My personal experiences led me to bring this concern to the church as a
minister.
Violence against women is not only a women’s issue; it is not only
a social issue. It is an issue important to both men and women. It is an issue
close to the Christian faith and to the church community.
We human beings are created in the holy image of God. We are God’s
beloved children, and God is embodied in us. Violence against women is a
violation of one’s body and dignity. It is also a violation of God’s holiness. If a woman is physically assaulted and
raped, God is assaulted and raped too. Thus, violence against women is a
great sin that the church cannot ignore.
In today’s Gospel reading taken from Mark, it is a text talking about
the destruction of the temple foretold by Jesus to his disciples. For the
Jewish people, the temple is the foundation of their religion and tradition. The
temple is an important sign of their dignity, identity, power and a source of
security. Therefore, the destruction of the temple was a great shame and a great
loss to the Jewish people, including the Christian Jews.
In 1 Corinthians 6:19, the scripture says, “Do you not know that your
bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received
from God?”
The human body is the temple where the Holy Spirit lives within. A human
being is a temple of God. We need to protect and respect everyone’s body and
its dignity.
When Jesus foretold about the destruction of the temple to his disciples,
he warned them to be alert and to let no one deceive them. He said many will
come in his name and say I am he!
I have found that Jesus’ warning about people, including religious
people, who try to confuse others by using his name has, indeed, occurred when
we try to address the problems of violence against women, for there are
Christians and pastors who have justified violence and who prolong women’s
suffering from abuse.
Many years ago I spoke to a pastor’s wife. She had been beaten up by her
husband, but she said something I found really horrible. She quoted from the
Book of Genesis, saying that because women sinned at the beginning of Creation so
they have to submit to their husbands and bear all the consequences, including
the violent behaviour of their husbands. It is terrible to hear such
internalized oppression with such a misinterpretation of God’s word. I have also
heard some Christians advise women suffering from abuse to stay in the marriage
because no one should separate according to the vows they had made before God.
Just be patient and forgiving and give time to their husbands to change.
The Gender Justice Group of the Hong Kong Christian Council did an
online survey on sexual harassment within church settings. The results showed
that victims had difficulty to bring forth their complaint because of the
teaching of love and forgiveness. When victims tried to bring up their case,
they were advised to reconcile for Christ’s sake and to preserve the name of
the church.
Love, forgiveness, reconciliation and unity are good qualities and good
teachings of Jesus Christ; but if they are used out of context and if such
values are applied at the wrong time, in the wrong place and in the wrong
relationship, an abusive relationship, it could be a disaster. I would call it
religious violence. It would be a great humiliation to the abused. Love without
justice is not love. God is justice. When
justice is not found in the church, there is no God.
There are also cases in which church leaders do not believe the
complainants because the accused are in a position of power and/or are very
well known. The recent sexual harassment incident in the Willow Creek Community
Church in the United States is a classic case in which the elders did not believe
that their strong and popular senior pastor sexually harassed other colleagues,
but the allegation was confirmed after a thorough investigation years later.
The nature of sexual harassment is always related to the misuse of power
in an imbalanced power relationship.
In the drama dance Frieda performed earlier, she demonstrated to us the
suffering and pain of victims. The pain is not just physical, but also
psychological and spiritual. The self-blaming and self-doubt of the victims
brought to themselves a lot of stress. Blaming the victims created a second
traumatization.
In sexual violence, women are easily judged by their behaviour and how they
dressed.
Protesters
across Ireland took to the streets this week, chanting, “It is not consent,” and
carrying thongs after a 27-year-old man was found not guilty of rape in a trial.
He won the case because his lawyer cited the lacy underwear worn by his
17-year-old accuser. The defence lawyer said, “You have to look at the way she
was dressed. She was wearing underwear with a lace front.”
The verdict
incited outrage. It reflected also how gender stereotypes and bias against
women work so unfairly.
Ireland’s
prime minister, Leo Varadkar, responded to the case by saying, “Nobody asks to
be raped. And it’s never the victim’s fault. It doesn’t matter what you wear. It
doesn’t matter where you went, who you went with or what you took, whether it
was drugs or alcohol.”
Because of society’s
patriarchal culture and gender stereotypes, the way to fight against violence
against women is still rough and tough.
But the
scriptures we heard this morning give us courage.
The good
news from Jesus is that, although there are wars and famine, human and natural
disasters, he said don’t be alarmed. He encouraged all those who are facing
challenges to be patient and know that it is the beginning of the birth pangs.
Jesus did admit that human reality is full of suffering, pain and challenges.
Difficulties and trials could be even bigger in the future as the present war is
not an end. But he said it is the beginning of birth pangs. The profound message and the Good News are new
life and new possibilities will follow after the pain.
As a mother
of two children, I experienced deep pain during my labouring process. However,
I will forever remember the joy of the new born!
Therefore,
sisters and brothers, let us keep up our spirits in the midst of difficulty.
In Psalm
16, it is affirmed once again that the God of life protects her people. God
shows to her chosen people the path of life. In God’s presence, there is
fullness of joy. No one has the right to
take away the life and joy of the victims of violence.
From 1
Samuel, Hannah’s prayer shows us that God’s love and mercy dwelt in her, a
woman who once was very hopeless because she bore no children and was being
discriminated against. Her plight revealed again how women have been oppressed in
a male-dominated world, but God listened to her prayer and gave her life and
hope. God the Creator reveals herself in
the weak, the vulnerable and the oppressed.
God reveals
her compassion and power in her people, in her church and in various
organizations which are demonstrating solidarity with survivors and which are
committed to take action to end violence against women in the family, in the workplace,
in the church and in the world.
At the end
of my sermon, I would like to show an umbrella made by RainLily as part of
their fund-raising activities.
The rape
crisis centre was named RainLily because rain lilies are a kind of flower that blossoms
beautifully after a heavy rain. It reveals a fact and a belief that victims of
sexual violence can grow stronger and continue to live a beautiful life after
their traumatic experience. Their life can be restored fully.
When I put
water on the umbrella, you will see flowers appear.
From
violation to restoration, it is a call from God to every Christian and church
which are faithfully walking with Jesus Christ, the saviour and redeemer of the
world. Amen.
# posted by Kowloon Union Church : Sunday, November 18, 2018
