The part in the meeting this week about jehovahs loving provisions for women. All about the certificate of divorce and remarriage. My wife wondered where the provision was for a wife with a rotten husband. There was no reciprocal way for her to fill out a form and leave. Pretty much the provision was for chattel marriage. The elder did pointedly say this divorcing cannot be done nowadays in the congregation.
Divorcing a wife
by road to nowhere 3 Replies latest watchtower bible
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FFGhost
Wives were considered "property" rather than "persons" in most of the "civilized" western world until just a few centuries ago.
Once you understand that, then a lot of the misogynistic laws in the OT make more sense.
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FedUpJW
Once you understand that, then a lot of the misogynistic laws in the OT make more sense.
And couple that with the fact that WT believes they are still living in the year 2,000 BC.
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truth_b_known
Wives were considered "property" rather than "persons" in most of the "civilized" western world until just a few centuries ago.
The purpose of marriage in the part of the world that the Israelites/Canaanites came from was all about property rights. The only wealth at the time was land and farm animals. Only men were allowed to possess these things. A man needed a male heir to leave these things to. Women had no inheritance. Women depended on their first born male child to provide for them once their husband died.
This is also why the practice of polygamy ended. If a man was in a relationship with multiple women, each women having a male child with the same man would argue over who the rightful heir was. The practice of choosing one woman to produce a male heir was created.
This is why the Israelites had the practice of a man marrying his sister-in-law if a male heir had not been produced by his brother and brother's wife. Once the man died the son produced with his sister-in-law would inherit the woman's first husband's property and then take care of the widow.
It wasn't until the 17th century Romance Movement that people started marrying for love. Prior to that marriage was a business arrangement for families to acquire land and expand power. That is not to say that married people didn't love one another or marrying for love didn't happen prior to the 17th century.
So, yes, there was no certificate for divorce for women in the days of Moses as women were treated like second class citizens. Much hasn't changed in that part of the world. The Judeo-Christian belief system still propagates these ideas. Christians can talk all they want about how the Bible orders men to love their wives. Out of the other side of their mouths they preach women should be subjective to men and be silent.