Reflection on Acts 9:36-43
by Joy Kingsbury-Aitken
“Tabitha the tunic maker and Simon the tanner”
In her book, Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation, historian Kristin Kobes Du Mez examines the five-decade-long development within American white evangelical churches of what has become known as Christian Nationalism. Rather than follow the example of the compassionate Jesus of the gospels, this version of “Christianity” is underpinned by the image of the Christian man as ruggedly masculine. The type of man portrayed on the screen by actors like John Wayne and Mel Gibson, who is as likely to use his fists as his words to impose his will on others. When confronted by the teachings of Jesus, like turning the other cheek and treating others how we would like them to treat us, the Christian Nationalists respond that while that worked in Jesus’ day, it no longer works in the corrupt culture in which we live, showing their profound lack of historical understanding. The Roman Empire into which Christianity was birthed was immensely decadent, violent, and brutal – far more so than most of us in our world will ever experience.
The machismo masculinity of the Christian Nationalists is actually quite fragile. It cannot tolerate men who do not adhere to its tenets. We recently saw an example of this intolerance when a group of burly men from Destiny Church, mimicking what has been happening in America, invaded a children’s book reading activity in a library in Auckland, terrifying both the performers (described as drag queens) and the children listening to the stories. The insistence of the current United States administration that there are only two genders, and the subsequent persecution of transgender people, is another example of identity fragility, as is the removal of all books with a DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) focus from American schools and some university libraries. Unfortunately, what begins in America tends to spread abroad. We to,o have had politicians speak out against DEI, and the now defunct Treaty Principles Bill may be seen as this opposition in action. Given that Micah wrote, “O mortal, what is good and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God,”[1] it is troubling when people of faith take a stand against fostering compassionate acceptance, justice and accessibility for all people, irrespective of race, religion, sexual orientation and gender identity. It is not just minorities that should be concerned. Suppression of the aspirations of straight, white women was the norm of our western, predominantly Christian, culture until challenged last century, and is reasserting itself.
Rugged, or more bluntly, aggressive masculinity needs submissive femininity as its foil. Over the last five years, Trad Wife social media influencers have encouraged young women to abandon thoughts of pursuing careers outside their marital homes for that of domestic bliss within them, as subordinates to their husbands and mothers of their many children. Girls, particularly those from conservative Christian homes, are opting out of tertiary education to focus on home economics. This entire movement seems to be based on an idealised image of the 1950s wife and mother, such as depicted in the advertisements of the period showing impeccably dressed young women, albeit with aprons on, presiding over impeccably clean and tidy homes (kept so with the help of the latest appliances being advertised), cooking cakes and cookies, bottling preserves and preparing wholesome meals, while supervising impeccably behaved children, and sewing beautifully made clothing for them. Those of you ladies who were young wives in the 1960s undoubtedly did all these things, but at the time, I suspect you never achieved impeccability nor perceived yourselves as living lives of domestic bliss. Life is far too messy and challenging for that. The Trad Wife movement is a deliberate attempt to return to the world that existed prior to the emergence of feminism in the 1970s. The feminist movement was always about empowering women to choose for themselves ways to thrive, like giving women the freedom to pursue a career or be exclusively homemakers, or some combination of the two. On Mother’s Day, I want to acknowledge the importance of the labour of mothers, both inside and outside their homes, and the essential cherishing of children that mothers, together with fathers, undertake. I don’t wish to criticise young women who see themselves as Trad Wives, dedicating their time to the nurturing and nourishing of their families. I would, however, like them to understand that the Trad Wife lifestyle is a cultural choice influenced by patriarchy. It is not a lifestyle mandated by the God they worship, who grants both women and men the freedom to make choices. Contrary to what is implied in the second letter to Timothy, women are not saved through childbearing.[2]
Although the Bible was written by men for men, women do appear within its pages, and more often than not, they do so because they were extraordinary. There is nothing “traditional” about the Bible’s heroines. Today’s reading from Acts is about one of these, who was known for her charitable works. Tabitha is the only woman called a disciple in Scripture, although clearly all female followers of Jesus were and are disciples. Luke tells us that Peter was at the centre of some significant miracles during the early days of the church. Leadership of the Jesus Movement had been transferred from Jesus to Peter, and like when Elisha replaced Elijah as the prophet of Israel, Peter’s authority was confirmed by God performing amazing miracles through him. When Tabitha became ill and died, the believers in Joppa sent for Peter, who was in Lydda, where he had just healed a paralysed man named Aeneas. Lydda was on the road from Jerusalem to the coastal town of Joppa. Luke likes to group miracles into pairs, so the healing of Aeneas is coupled with the healing of Tabitha. Both miracles led to people in the local area believing in Jesus. This contrasts with the miracles that Jesus performed, which did not lead to belief among the religious elite in Jerusalem. When they asked Jesus to declare himself plainly that he was the Messiah – an incredibly dangerous thing for Jesus to do as subsequent events proved – Jesus responded by saying, “The works that I do in my Father’s name testify to me; but you do not believe.”[3]
While not a member of the Jerusalem elite, Tabitha was of a sufficiently elevated class to have both a Jewish and a Greek name. Was her family cloth merchants, who needed to be bilingual in order to buy from and sell to both Jews and Gentiles? Her Jewish name Tabitha, like her Greek name Dorcas, means gazelle. Whatever her social background, Tabitha clearly had access to cloth, a lot of it, which suggests that she had access to surplus funds with which to buy that cloth. Many of the women who appear within the pages of the New Testament were women of means. For example, Joanna the wife of Chuza, who was the “minister of finance” in the court of Herod Antipas, Suzanna, and Martha and Mary of Bethany, all of whom sponsored Jesus’ ministry. Being a patron of a notable teacher was an acceptable role for wealthy women in the Roman Empire.
Tabitha obviously was skilled at, and enjoyed, sewing and utilised her talents for the benefit of others, especially the widows in the church in Joppa. This was her ministry. She reminds me of the members of this congregation who stitch quilts, knit hats, jerseys and slippers, and bake cookies and cakes, as blessings for the people in our community in need of this support. I’d also add the ladies who run the clothing shop as servers who emulate the spirit of Tabitha. Of course, this also applies to the men who serve in various ways, like in the foot clinic and as readers at Burnside Primary School. Providing practical support to people with needs is no less a ministry than taking a prominent leadership role in the church.
In Biblical times, widows were especially vulnerable if they did not have sons to take care of them. Consequently, throughout the Old Testament, the Israelites were exhorted to provide for the widows and orphans in their midst – a command the early church took seriously. This is what Tabitha was doing, and in doing so, was providing more than garments. She was providing dignity. Clothing makes the woman no less than the man. Undoubtedly, people in Biblical times were judged, like we are, by the quality of what they wore.[4] Not surprisingly, therefore, it was the widows who mourned her death most deeply, and who rejoiced the most when God, through the agency of Peter, restored her to life.
Peter stayed some time in Joppa in the home of Simon the tanner. While Tabitha was probably a woman with a status that arises from having resources, Simon in contrast, being a tanner, was one of the marginalised people in Israel. Tanning was a very smelly, grubby job that was considered an unclean trade and consequently those who undertook tanning were also judged to be unclean. Simon the tanner was doing essential work – without people like him there would have been no sandals, bags and belts and other leather items that made life easier. Society still tends to stratify people according to the work they do. During the Covid-19 lock-downs we discovered that many of the lowest paid people were doing the work we could not survive without. What is notable about Simon is that in spite of being marginalised, he opened his home to Peter, not just for a night or two but for some time. Hospitality is just as important for the church today as it was in the first century. It builds community and fosters growth. Accordingly, the ladies of our Hospitality Committee are performing a vital service for us members of The Village Presbyterian Church.
This Mother’s Day we honour the service and sacrifice of the mothers in our church whether or not they have lived in ways being replicated by the Trad Wife movement. In addition we honour the women who don’t have children but nevertheless serve others within and outside this community in a motherly way. To you all we say, thank you and God bless. Amen.
[1] Micah 6:8 NRSV
[2] 2 Timothy 2:15
[3] John 10:25-26 NRSV
[4] James 2:1-4