ERA, the Equal Rights Amendment, is supposed to be dead.
Be sure of one thing. It will be revived in some form in the next session of Congress; and in the North Carolina legislature.
The Biblical book of Ester offers a suggestion about the source and nature of some of the opposition to the Amendment. The book itself is a tale of love, jealousy, intrigue, revenge, death and justice (of that day) triumphant. What a TV movie!
The story begins when Ahasuerus, king of Persia, throws a party for the lords, generals, and governors of the hundred twenty-seven provinces of his kingdom. The festival lasted for six months, and then there was a banquet for seven days. There was eating and drinking and “the royal wine was lavished”. His queen, Vashti, also gave a banquet for the women of the palace.
On the seventh day of the festivities, when “the heart of the king was merry with wine,” (not surprisingly) he summoned Vashti to show off her beauty along with his other possessions and wealth. She refused to come.
The king was enraged, “His anger burned within him.” He asked his courtiers fir advice.
Paraphrasing their advice: Queen Vashti, by refusing to appear, has insulted not only the king, but also the princes and men of the realm. The women of the court, our wives, all know of the queen’s disobedience, and will look at us, their husbands, with contempt. Right now these women are spreading the news all over the country. Wives will say, ‘If Vashti can disobey her husband, the king, I can disobey my husband too;’ and “there will be contempt and wrath in plenty.” Vashti must be deposed as queen, and news of her punishment be published so that “all women will give honor to their husbands, both high and low.” Keep the women in their place.
The author of the Book – it may have been Jehovah-God himself – knew male chauvinism, and held it up to ridicule. The story continues – Esther became queen, was threatened with a pogrom, and risked her life to rescue her people. Both Vashti and Esther struck a blow for women’s rights. I’ve always rather admired the neglected heroine, Vashti.
The Book of Esther has very little, if any religious value. Martin Luther wanted to discard it from the Bible. The word, “God”, does not appear in the book. Its significance lies in Esther’s willingness to risk her life for her people.
On the other hand, a bit of advice to ERA advocates, stick to equality before the law. Don’t be diverted from the main issue by the excesses of some of the proponents. In the nature of things there are differences between men and women. To deny the difference is futile and weakens the case for ERA.
For instance, there is a suit in the courts claiming sex discrimination because pension annuity rates for women are lower than those for men even though both have paid the same amount for their pensions. The reason is, that on the basis of averages, the women will live longer than men, and collect pensions for more years than will their male counterparts. The total pension over the years will be essentially the same amount for both men and women who invest the same amounts in pension programs.
Conversely, men pay more for life insurance than do women of the same age for the same amount of insurance. Surely the advocates of ERA do not want the rates for women raised to equal the rates for men.
In Ahasuerus’ Persia, and in Khomeini’s Persia today, women were and are humble, submissive slaves. In the world of Jesus and Paul, the women – Mary Magdalene; Mary and Martha (the sisters of Lazarus); the Samaritan woman at the well; Lydia, the merchant of Phillipi; and Prisca, the preacher at Corinth are equal souls, neither male nor female, before God. We hope they will be equal before the law.
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