Rape: Is It Ever Legitimate?

With the presidential elections just a few days away, both sides have already made their voices heard on a number of topics, including women's issues. One topic that always comes up during election time is the question of abortion and contraception. This year it went a little further when one senator used the term "legitimate rape," which, quite frankly left me scratching my head. Where is the legitimacy in rape?

One thing I love about the Bible is that it tackles every subject known to man. The Bible is relevant today as it was when it was written thousands of years ago. And so the Bible addresses the subject of rape. Deuteronomy 22: 25 says, "But if a man find a betrothed damsel in the field, and the man force her, and lie with her: then the man only that lay with her shall die." 

Fast forward to the story of Tamar, King David's daughter. She was raped, not by a stranger and not in the fields, but by her brother, Ammon, in his own house.
"And when she had brought them unto him to eat , he took hold of her, and said unto her, Come lie with me, my sister. 12 And she answered him, Nay, my brother, do not force me; for no such thing ought to be done in Israel: do not thou this folly ... Howbeit he would not hearken unto her voice: but, being stronger than she, forced her, and lay with her" (2 Samuel 13 ; 11 - 12; 14).

Did Ammon have a legitimate right to rape his sister? No, he did not. The Bible says that immediately the act was completed, "Amnon hated her exceedingly ; so that the hatred wherewith he hated her was greater than the love wherewith he had loved her. And Amnon said unto her, Arise , be gone" (v 15). No apology, no word of comfort, nothing. She was thrown out like a dog. King David was wroth at the news, according to the  Bible, but he did nothing about it.

The Bible says that Tamar tore her clothes, put ashes on her head and went out crying. From that time, no man would look at her, because she had been violated. She would be a desolate woman for the rest of her life. Not so Ammon. His life went on as usual. Until finally, as cunningly as he had plotted to rape his sister, his older brother, Absalom, plotted and had Ammon killed. 

Justice was served, you might say. But what about poor Tamar? She is never mentioned again in the Bible. Her life had just about come to an end. Society is much more lenient now. A woman who has been raped or abused may still get married, have a family and try to put her past behind her. But do the scars ever heal? 

The words "legitimate" and  "rape" could never belong together. They are on opposite sides of the coin. But if you have suffered that unfortunate experience, God can heal you. He can turn your scars into stars. He promises to give you  "beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness" (Isaiah 61 : 3). Won't you call on Him today?

The Big Picture

In a democratic society, elections come and elections go, but this US presidential election campaign will go down in history as one of the most exciting and electrifying the world has ever seen. As if an African American male and a white female vying for the democratic party's nomination wasn't enough, the staid Republican party went and nominated a female as their candidate's running mate. The political mercury could not possibly get hotter. However, the rhetoric from the Republican camp remains the same. Vote the candidate who says he is against abortion and homosexuality, while that of their opponent also remains the same: "I support a woman's right to choose."

Let me state here and now, that as a Christian I oppose abortion and homosexuality because the word of God says they are wrong. The word 'abortion' is not in the Bible, but it does call taking a life murder. Before I became a Christian, I contemplated abortion twice. Now that I look back on it, I feel ashamed for having thought about it, and I thank the Holy Spirit for keeping me from making a very grave mistake. Because if I had done it the first time I would have gotten rid of my only daughter, and I can't picture what my life would be like without her. The second occasion I would have destroyed my youngest son, with whom I have a special bond.

My college education (which took place after I had my children) also helped to convince me that life begins at conception, and to destroy a life, well, it is as the Bible says - murder. Before a woman realizes she is pregnant, the baby's heart is already formed-and beating! The first organ to be formed is the heart. In that blob of flesh is a beating heart! Then came my religious education that showed me, "Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee ..." (Jeremiah 1: 5). And again, "Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them" (Psalm 139: 16).

But can I tell this to a pregnant teenage girl, scared out of her wits and pressured by her boyfriend and friends to "get rid of it"? Or, an unmarried mother of three or four, on welfare, who gets no help from the children's father, and finds herself pregnant with her fourth or fifth child? Or, the woman climbing the corporate ladder, who thinks now is not the right time to have a baby? Oh, I know there are other reasons women have abortions and to us they may seem frivolous, but the fact is, to the woman, an abortion may seem like the only answer. The woman, the teenager, who doesn't know God, thinks she is all on her own and has no one to turn to. But, my dear sister, you are not alone. God is with you, whether you know Him or not. He loves you, whether you love Him or not. He said, "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee" (Hebrews 13:5).

My new perspective of abortion came about as a result of being born again. The Bible says, "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold all things are become new" (II Corinthians 5:17). Being in Christ helps us see things in a new light. We begin to see the big picture. We come to realize that it's not so much what we want, but what God wants for us. We come to view that baby not as a threat to our security, peace of mind or whatever, but as a precious gift from God, and as His gift, He will help us love it and take care of it. He is there with us in this predicament, and the next, and the next.