Levitt Letter Extra News

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Saudi women columnists have recently spoken out against the oppression of women in their country. They denounced the Saudi preachers who spread negative notions about women in their sermons, criticized the countless limitations imposed on women in Saudi Arabia, and criticized the norms of Saudi society regarding the relationship between husband and wife.

The following are excerpts from some of the articles:

Preachers Spread Distorted Notions About Women

Columnist Dr. Hasna Al-Quna’ir wrote in the Saudi daily Al-Riyadh: “Women are victims of [the preachers'] discourse… [which is intended to] condemn them and to prove them inferior [to men] in their piety and in their mental [abilities], [based on] a shameless distortion of the Prophet’s hadith…

“Our TV channels are full of old and new preachers who convey their views directly to the public… Answering [viewers' questions], they burst with accusations against members of the [female] sex. They excite the viewers’ emotions, entreating them to defend the virtues that the women corrupt…

“An example is the answer given by one of the preachers [to a viewer who asked] about consulting with his wife and seeking her advice. [The preacher told him]: Do not consult with her, for she is emotional and her opinions are not valid… As evidence, he cited the Prophet’s hadith [which says]: ‘a tribe that nominates a woman [as leader] will not succeed’… Many preachers refuse to acknowledge that this hadith… was uttered in [specific] historical circumstances and in a particular context. The Prophet never meant it as a ruling that applies to all women, in every place and at all times…

“Another preacher incited fathers, brothers and husbands against their daughters, sisters and wives, saying that a girl who is not beaten from an early age grows up to be a rebellious woman, difficult to control… This preacher [also] said that a woman who leaves her home without a veil is like [a woman] who goes out naked. He warned the Muslim women against wearing their abayas [a long gown] around their shoulders [instead of covering their heads as well], saying that this was the main reason that women are seduced and fall [into sin]… There was [a preacher] who warned women against shaking a man’s hand, saying that, according to one of the sheiks, a woman who shakes the hand of a man that is not her husband is guilty of… ‘adultery of the hand’…

“The question is why some Muslims have [developed] this dehumanizing view of women, which does not respect [the women's] humanity and honor. [This situation] stems from disregarding important factors… such as the historical circumstances and the specific context which formed the background for some of the religious laws and rules that [discriminate] against women. It also stems from the failure to distinguish between religious duties pertaining to rituals – which may be subject to absolute principles – and rules of behavior, which are controversial and are not subject to absolute laws, such as [the custom of] covering the face…

“This is what led to these distorted views and to the [development] of rigid thought patterns regarding women which are not open to debate, and which are accepted by the followers and students [of these preachers] who endorse extremist views. The woman is the victim of this insular culture, and her only salvation would be a reorganization of the cultural structure of [our] entire society.”

Saudi Women Are Subject to Countless Prohibitions

Saudi columnist Fatima Al-Faqih examined the question of discrimination against women, trying to assess it in a detailed and objective manner. She wrote in the Saudi daily Al-Watan:

“Are Saudi women actually deprived [of their rights]? [They] are forbidden to drive, forbidden to travel without permission, forbidden to stay alone at a hotel without permission, forbidden to name their own children without [a man's] consent… forbidden to take out a passport without permission… forbidden to leave their homes without permission… forbidden to take a job without permission… forbidden to change the color of their abayas, forbidden to go to school or to the university without permission… forbidden to purchase shares or to open to a [bank] account in their children’s name without permission.

“[A woman] is not allowed to expose her face in some cities of the kingdom… [She] is not allowed to marry without permission… not allowed to stay married if [one of] her male relatives decides that her husband’s [tribal] lineage is inferior to hers… not allowed to sue for divorce without apologizing and paying a fine, not allowed to keep her children after the divorce, unless she gets permission… not allowed to hold a senior position in the private or public sectors, not allowed to vote or run for office… not allowed to travel alone with a chauffeur… not allowed to annoy her husband, and finally, a woman’s voice is considered [a form of] defilement, and she is forbidden to speak in public, so that her affairs will remain shrouded in secrecy.

“A researcher [studying the limitations on women] would [probably] stop here, since the list is endless, and since he would conclude that whoever doubts the [injustice] inflicted on women either lacks awareness or derives some benefit from the discrimination. The damage [caused by this discrimination] is obvious, and the solution has been delayed, causing the problem to grow [even] more severe. There is need for immediate intervention in order to stop the deterioration.”

A Saudi Woman Lives in Constant Fear

Columnist Dr. Maha Al-Hujailan criticized the norms of Saudi society, where a woman must live in constant fear that her husband may take another wife. In an Al-Watan article titled “the Intimidation of Women in Our Society,” she wrote: “Our culture rests on several basic values of family life, including the assumption that a women must live in constant fear of a man. This is especially true when she gets married, since she must constantly suffer mental and psychological anguish, fearing that her husband may take another wife.

“According to [our] culture, [only] a woman who lives in this sort of fear and anguish properly fulfills her role as wife, while a women who feels assured that her husband will not take another wife comes to disdain her husband and her family life…This culture causes a women to feel mentally and psychologically inferior, like a quarrelsome child who must be constantly supervised, intimidated and punished into performing her duties.

“In our culture, an exemplary, clever, and well-behaved woman is one who fulfils her duty out of the constant fear… that her husband will take another wife, since she is helpless [to prevent this]. [It is assumed that] if it weren’t for this overt or covert threat, the woman would not behave herself.

“No doubt, it is [our] social reality that reinforced this notion and turned it into an accepted [norm] among men and women alike. Some women were raised in this culture, and [its norms] have become part of their mental and psychological baggage. Perhaps this [upbringing] has caused them to believe that a good man who respects them is nothing but a weak and unstable man… In their opinion, an ideal man is a violent one who humiliates his wife. This is the ideal upheld by the society in which they were raised.”

By Wayne Stewart, The Palestine (Tx) Herald-Press

In many churches today the significance of prophecy and the role Israel plays in God’s plan is not taught. End-times prophecy is thought of as scary and cryptic by many people. The truth of the matter is, if you have not accepted Christ as your personal savior, then end-times prophecy should scare you. The fear people feel when it is discussed is the Holy Spirit’s way of saying Christ’s return is imminent and it’s time to get affairs in order.

There are some who feel Israel no longer plays a part in God’s plan. They will cite certain verses in the New Testament they say point to this. For every verse they single out, there’s an entire Bible screaming it isn’t true; even the apostle Paul said it isn’t the case.

I ask then, Did God reject his people? By no means! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. God did not reject his people, whom he foreknew. Don’t you know what the Scripture says in the passage about Elijah — how he appealed to God against Israel: “’Lord, they have killed your prophets and torn down your altars; I am the only one left and they are trying to kill me?” And what was God’s answer to him? “I have reserved for myself seven thousand who have not bowed the knee to Baal” Romans 11:1-4.

Paul said God has reserved a remnant from Israel that he will rescue in the end. We gentiles have been grafted into the root of Israel by acceptance of Christ; we have been given the Gospel. We are a part of Israel, but we are not the apple of God’s eye. Still, our fate is tied with Israel.

“Shout and be glad, O Daughter of Zion. For I am coming, and I will live among you,’ declares the Lord. ‘Many nations will be joined with the Lord in that day and will become my people. I will live among you and you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you. The Lord will inherit Judah as his portion in the holy land and will again choose Jerusalem. Be still before the Lord, all mankind because he has roused himself from his holy dwelling.” Zechariah 2:10-13.

Even though we are a part of God’s redemptive plan, the language is clear: He is choosing Judah as His portion and Jerusalem will serve as His throne.
The prophecy at the end still center’s around Israel and its final battle, the rest of the world is arrayed against it, and through God’s intervention, Judah and Jerusalem prevail in the final battle, Armageddon.

“The Lord will save the dwellings of Judah first, so that the honor of the house of David and of Jerusalem’s inhabitants may not be greater that that of Judah. On that day the Lord will shield those who live in Jerusalem, so that the feeblest among them will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the Angel of the Lord going before them. On that day I will set out to destroy all the nations that attack Jerusalem.” Zechariah 12:7-9.

Then, our Blessed Hope returns.
“And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son.” Zechariah 12:10.

Read this passage and understand, this is Christ (God) talking to Zechariah 400-plus years before his advent here on earth. At the moment of Christ’s return and Israel’s salvation, those left in Israel will know He is the Messiah and they will grieve because they denied Him and put Him to death.

Before his return, after the church is Raptured, those left behind who come to accept Christ will be refined by fire through the tribulation. Most of the people of Israel will have been killed and most of those who have come to believe in Christ during that time will have been put to death. There will be very few Believers left and the Jews will be few in number, but they are God’s Chosen People just as they have been since Abraham found favor with God. God’s promises are binding for eternity.

“This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘I will save my people from the countries of the east and the west. I will bring them back to live in Jerusalem; they will be my people, I will be faithful and righteous to them as their God.” Zechariah 8:7-8.

Then again, God says he is singling them out.
“Though I scatter them among the peoples, yet in distant lands they will remember me. They and their children will survive, and they will return.” Zechariah 10:9.

Israel is the key. As Paul said, in Israel’s rejection of Christ the gentiles were able to have the Word given to them.
“Again I ask: Did they stumble so as to fall beyond recovery? Not at all! Rather, because of their transgression, salvation has come to the Gentiles to make Israel envious. But if their transgression means riches for the world, and their loss means riches for the Gentiles, how much greater riches will their fullness brings!” Romans 11:11-12.

What’s Paul saying here? Let’s look at the American example. This country was founded on Christian principles (don’t let anybody deceive you into believing it was not.) Ours was a country dedicated to living a life pleasing to God and we were richly blessed for it, though we have now rejected God and those blessings are quickly being removed.

Who are we descended from? God’s enemies, yet because we believed that His Son’s death paid for our sins and His resurrection gives us the promise of eternal life, we were blessed mightily.

Then what of God’s chosen people who turn to Christ? To them will be given the keys of the kingdom, so to speak. Remember, they are God’s Chosen People. Again and again Israel is the center of God’s end-times prophecies. We are arrogant above all things if we believe we are chosen by God before the Jews. We live in the period of grace. It is by faith that we are saved, faith in Christ, that he bore the penalty for our sins. This period of grace is quickly coming to a close and the time of the gentiles will be over.

In Revelations, Israel is chosen as God’s People and Jerusalem, His city; the names of the twelve tribes of Israel will be placed on the gates around the New Jerusalem.

Don’t fall for replacement theology. It is not the gentiles’ destiny to replace the Jews, but to share with them Christ’s redemption which we received through them.

We are blessed because we have been given the opportunity to take part in God’s redemptive plan, but we must share our glory with Israel. Here I will share two passages of Scripture from Romans chapter 11, verses 25-26 and verses 28-31 that deal with this subject.
“I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: ‘The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob.’

“As far as the gospel is concerned, they are enemies on your account; but as far as election is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, for God’s gifts and his call are irrevocable. Just as you who were at one time disobedient to God have now received mercy as a result of their disobedience, so they to have now become disobedient in order that they too may now receive mercy as a result of God’s mercy to you.”

What are we to do? Let others know about the salvation Christ offers. Let people know He is coming soon. Show them the prophecies in the Bible and let them see those signs being fulfilled in the world. Let them pray for Israel and pray that the Jews will come to know Christ. Then look up for Christ’s return.