Gerda Lerner, in her book, “The Creation of Patriarchy”, says that “patriarchy is a historical construct; it has a beginning, it will have an end.”
if you grew up in Christianity, it may seem like fact that the heavens and Earth were created by a lone male god who created an order in which men rule over women because women first ate the fruit of a tree that would give them knowledge. If you were raised to believe this is true, it may seem like the patriarchal system in which we now live has always existed because the only god created it to be so. Believing this to be true, it can feel impossible to challenge such a system.
But both archaeological evidence and historical evidence tell us otherwise. Patriarchy was created long after humans were. For 200,000 years humans, if they worshiped a deity at all, likely worshipped a mother goddess. Even ancient Israelites worshipped a mother goddess of equal importance to Yahweh in the Holy of Holies, new evidence suggests.
Knowing this gives us power. The power to reclaim human dignity. ___________________________________________________________________
REFERENCES:
Ackerman, Susan. “Asherah, Asherim: Bible”. Jewish Women’s Archive.
Allebest, Amie. Breaking Down Patriarchy Podcast. http://breakingdownpatriarchy.com/
“Asherah“. Editors of the New World Encyclopedia. New World Encylopedia.com
“Asherah, The Tree of Life, and The Menorah: Continuity of a Goddess Symbol in Judaism?” December 4th, 1996. The First Sophia Feminist Theology Lecture, College of St. Mark and St. John, Plymouth.
Beau, Elle. “The History of Patriarchy”. November 11, 2018. Medium.com
Crecganford. “Asherah, Wife of God? The Queen of Heaven, Mythology Explained“. October 17, 2020. YouTube.
Dever, William G. “Asherah, Consort of Yahweh? New Evidence from Kuntillet Ajrud”. Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, No. 255 (Summer, 1984).
Downey, April Lynn. “Judean Pillar Figurines”. October 1, 2020. World History Encyclopedia.
Funny Olde World. “God’s Secret Wife: Asherah”. November 21, 2021. YouTube.
Hasson, Nir. “Ancient Place of Worship Found Near Jerusalem Challenges Assumptions About First Temple”. February 3, 2020. Haaretz.com
Hastings, Christobel. “God Has Been a Woman Since the Beginning of Time”. August 17, 2018. Vice.com.
Mallamud, David. “Asherah as an Israelite Goddess: Debunking the Cult Object Myth”. May 9, 2016. University of Maryland.
McIntosh, Matthew A. “Asherah: Ancient Canaanite Mother Goddess, Consort to Yahweh”. March 8, 2020. Brewminate.com
Pass, Rachel. “Meet Asherah: The Little Known Jewish Tree Goddess”. February 6, 2020. HeyAlma.com.
Riggleman, Heather. “Why Do We Use Masculine Pronouns For God?” March 8, 2021. Christianity.com.
Shrewsbury, Martin. “Asherah, Known as ‘Lady of the Sea'”. November 27, 2017. AllTooHuman.Blogspot.Com.
Thornton, Christy. “‘They’ Is Not A Pronoun For God”. January 20, 2022. ChristianityToday.com
“Trees and Religion- Ancient Mesopotamia”. October 25, 2016. Arboriculture.com.
Viegas, Jennifer. “God’s Wife Edited Out of the Bible– Almost”. March 18, 2011. NBCNews.com
“Yahwist Source”. Editors of the Encyclopedia Brittanica. Encyclopedia Brittanica.com.
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