"Me Too" Means Men Too
This is Part 3 of a 5-Part Series on the Bible and the Me Too Movement.
TRIGGER WARNING:
This 5-Part series on the Me Too movement contains biblical descriptions of rape, sexual assault, and violence, which may be triggering for survivors.
When the topic of homosexuality comes up, Christians frequently reference the story of Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:1-29), but, in doing so, they miss the point of it entirely. Sodom and Gomorrah is a story about the abuse of power; abuses that resulted in sexual depravity and, ultimately, gang rape.
We frequently think of the oppression that women may have faced during biblical times, but fail to understand or appreciate the conditions men were faced with during biblical times. Guns, which really leveled the playing field in terms of safety and protection of self, family, and property, were not invented until roughly 1000 AD/CE, anywhere from 1000 - 3000 years after most of the Old Testament stories took place. That means that, not only was it frequently a time of "survival of the fittest", but the "fittest" usually meant the biggest, strongest men who were the most skilled with a sword. I think it's easy to read the Bible and think many of the men were either cowards or misogynists, but it was very much a matter of size, strength, and numbers, and I think we have a hard time understanding what that really would have been like.
Having an appreciation for that makes the story of David and Goliath that much more significant. David was small, weak, and an untrained shepherd boy, and Goliath was a big, strong, skilled soldier trained with a sword. It was nothing short of miraculous that God gave David the victory! And David won not by his strength, but by his wits and the skills he did have - not with a sword, but with a slingshot. Once Goliath was safely unconscious on the ground, David was easily able to kill him with a sword, but David never would have had the victory if he'd had to go head to head in a battle with Goliath.
The cities of Sodom (from where we derive the term "sodomy") and Gomorrah were known for being "wicked" (Genesis 13:13); everyone did as they pleased. They were so wicked that God had decided to destroy them, and He had sent 2 angels in the form of two human men to carry out His Judgment upon them.
Lot (Abraham's nephew) and his family had settled in this area, but would have been considered "foreigners", and God had decided to spare them as they were the only righteous ones (much as He did with Noah and his family in the story of the flood). It's important to note that "righteous" didn't necessarily equate to integrity or virtue, it just meant that they acknowledged God and tried to live accordingly.
The two male angels arrive in Sodom and plan to sleep out in the town square that night, but as foreigners, they would have been seen as easy targets, so, recognizing the danger they might be in, Lot invites them to his house to stay the night with his family.
Unfortunately, despite Lot's best efforts to protect the two visitors, all of the men in the city of Sodom show up at Lot's door that night, surrounding the house and demanding that Lot open the door so that they can gang rape the two men.
It's easy to get hung up on what happens next. In order to protect the two angels, Lot calls the men out on their behavior, begs the men not to harm his visitors, and offers up his virgin daughters instead. It's hard for us to imagine how anyone could do that, but the men's response to Lot gives us insight as to Lot's fears and motivations:
"'Stand back!' they shouted. 'This fellow came to town as an outsider, and now he's acting like our judge. We'll treat you far worse than those other men!' And they lunged toward Lot to break down the door." (Genesis 19:9)
Lot wasn't just trying to protect the two men; he was trying to protect himself and his family as well, but by inviting them into his home, he had put himself and his family at risk. There are several instances in the Old Testament where women were "offered up" to other men in order to save the lives of their husbands or fathers, typically with the women's agreement and cooperation. I think when everyone in a family/group knows that they are outnumbered and outmatched, they use whatever means they can to stay alive. It reminds me of the scene in Braveheart when the bride of the newly wed couple comforts her new husband as she is rushed away from the wedding to have sex with a nobleman as required by law. When there is an abuse of power, people frequently do whatever they think they have to do to keep themselves and those they love alive and as safe from harm as possible.
Luckily, the two angels intervened; they pulled Lot into the house, bolted the door shut, and supernaturally blinded the men who had tried to gang rape them. And, the next day, as promised, they waited until Lot and his family were safely outside of the city and then God's Judgment came upon Sodom and Gomorrah, and the entire area was completely destroyed by fire and sulfur.
In this particular story, the men of Sodom were exercising power and control over foreigners, knowing that, being outnumbered, the two men would be at a distinct physical disadvantage. But abuse of power isn't always about physical power over someone else; it can be emotional, spiritual, social, political, or financial power. I recently watched a sermon by Christine Cain ("Remember Lot's Wife", 10/30/22), and she pointed out that, while Christians frequently make this story about homosexuality, according to Ezekiel 16:49-50, Sodom's sin was that they were "arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy. They were haughty (i.e. - prideful) and did detestable things before Me." To me, this indicates that the abuse of power went far beyond physical power and sexual abuse; it included abuses of power by those who had money and status over those who were poor and disadvantaged.
Sexual harassment or assault is typically not just about sex; it's about power -- an abuse of power and control. And that is not limited to men using their power to abuse women, it is also about men using their power to abuse other men, or, as we will see in Parts 4 and 5, about women abusing their power over men or other women. Sadly, men are even less likely to talk about it or report it than women are. But, rest assured, God sees them too.
If you are a man and have been in any way victimized, whether it's physically, spiritually, emotionally, socially, financially, or sexually, do not allow that to call into question your masculinity. As in the case of David, God does not define a man by his outward appearance or physical strength, and He can bring victory to anyone who seeks after Him, although He may not bring it in the way we expect. Over time, God eventually made David the king of Israel; arguably, the most powerful man in the kingdom - regardless of his size or stature.
© I Lift My Voice, 2022.
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