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Showing posts from February, 2012

Book Review: Women's Lives in Biblical Times

Since sexual ethics is an area of interest for me, it's critical to gain a solid understanding of gender relations in the Bible. Just how patriarchal were biblical times, and how does the Bible and did ancient Israelites view women? So, after wading through some reviews at RBL , I decided to read  Women's Lives in Biblical Times  by Jennie Ebeling, Associate Professor of Archaeology at the University of Evansville. Women's Lives in Biblical Times is an introductory text on the daily lives of women during Iron Age I (the period of the book of Judges). It is designed to be usable as a supplement for undergraduate courses in Hebrew Bible. There are seven main chapters covering seven major events or life stages in a woman's life - birth, childhood, first menstruation, marriage, childbirth, motherhood, and old age and death. Through these episodes the main aspects of women's life was explored (e.g., religious practices, food preparation, basket making).What sets Ebe