Introduction
The primary
purpose of this research is to rediscover the theological implications on the
“image of God”, to reinterpret and construct the theological and traditional
implications on the full humanity of male and female respecting the creation narrative
in Mizo context. The reason why I choose
this theological and traditional implication on the image of God in Mizo
context is that the reconstructing of traditional understanding on the image of
God as male and female is necessarily one of the most essential processes in
the community of Mizo people. I see that the Mizo people are engaged with the
obligation and responsibility in reconstructing the male-dominated world biases
within the dehumanized women in Mizo society; which still produce the violence,
exploitation and discrimination upon women in Mizo society, striking women’s
dignity and values.
Statement of Problems
The ways of
lives and practices of human beings are mostly derived and inherited from the traditional,
cultural and religious beliefs in different perspectives. There are the
conflict implications on the subordinated women and patriarchal structures in
various societies from we can touch till today; mostly derived from the Biblical
narrative of creation narrative by the Jewish traditional concept of
patriarchal and androcentric systems. Most scholars suggest that the story of
creation account was the explanation of the origin of how God created the
universe, by using certain circumstances which the people of that time could
observe in their environment. The male-oriented concept of God leads the people
into an understanding God as father dominant autonomy culture persuading people
towards God as mainly nature preferring only man is holy and worthy to serve in
religious affairs and spheres with a negative view of women were unholy and
unclean for serving religious ceremonies, and take out women at the outside of
religious affairs. This is because of misunderstanding and the uncritical study
on the subject of image of God.[1]
Whatever it may be, we should approach the appropriate exactness of theological
construction on the implications of the image of God in creation narrative. This
conceptual structure makes the inequality and distinction dignity between man
and woman respecting the event that in His own image, God created man more high
rather than woman whom He created after man. In Mizo’s society, the structure
of patriarchal and androcentric system have been occupied in the lives of Mizos
people. There have been male-dominated structures in Mizo’s society from what
we are able to explore so. I, therefore, would like to attempt to develop the
process of equality between men and women in the Mizo society.
Research Questions
In
this section, I would like to point out the research questions what we are
going to ponder and solve in this study. Firstly, what can we find the
theological equality between men and women in the Creation narrative? How can
we apply the full humanity of men and women in Mizo context respecting the
creation narrative? Whose obligations do we need to liberate the Mizo women
from the male-dominated and patriarchal structure of Mizo society? How can we
sustain progressively the process of the full humanity of men and women in Mizo
society?
Methodology
When I am going
to deal with this study in search of methodology, I would like to use Reimaging Approach. The main task of the method is aiding the
implication on the conflict concept by reimaging and re-sustaining the
misunderstandings that developed the violence and exploitations. Moreover, it
will try to assist the de-humanized to recover their humanity. I think that
this approach will be the one appropriate for dealing with this study. However,
I face an encounter finding the related term with other similar approach
because still I do not find this Reimaging model in other document writings. As
we have mentioned, however, the task is not changing the concept or the essence
of the themes, but rediscover the exact meaning of the themes by reimaging and
re-sustaining the covered implications in this contemporary Christianities.
Evidence of Biblical Patriarchy
This section
will explore the legal and social position and condition of women as
subordinated creatures in Biblical patriarch. “He shall rule over you”,—this judgment of Gen. 3:16 summarizes
the position of domination in which women find themselves in the Old Testament.
But this is not all; the woman’s misery is double one: Her desire will be for
her husband, yet he shall rule over her. Apart from this she is punished with
pain in childbirth. The man is punished with sweat in his labor. Yet, we all
know that women do not sweat less in their toil. They pay a price on top of
what the man pays. They sweat while they work, they have pain in child-birth
and they are emotionally dependent on the man who rules over them.[2]
All wives were under
the control of their husbands, and widows were depended upon their sons. The
women with no heirs were destined to a life of poverty and hopelessness. Women were
as part of the husband’s property (Exod. 20:17). There was the criminal
subordination on the cases of sexual disposal of daughters by their fathers
(Gen. 19:4-8). They could not inherit property (Num. 27:1-11). Women had to
marry within the class so the property would not move out of it (Num. 36:1-9).
Adultery by women was a major crime punishable by death (burning or stoning); a
man’s unfaithfulness to his wife was not a crime unless the woman involved was
herself married or engaged to be married. Circumcision was the rite to
membership into the Israelite religious community (Gen. 17:10ff) which,
naturally, excluded the women. In the temple, the women were confined to the Court
of Women which was 15 steps lover than the Court of Israel (exclusive for
males). Women could not enter the Temple within 7 days after the end of their
menstrual period (Lev. 15:19ff). Mothers could not enter the Temple within 40
days following the birth of a boy but 80 days after the birth of a girl (Lev.
12). The young woman who lies about her virginity deserves the death penalty
because she deceived her husband-to-be and also her father who was supposed to
strictly take care of her (Deut. 22).[3] It
is possible to for a man to get married to more than one woman. A man can
divorce a woman when he finds something repulsive about her by sending her out
of the house and giving her a bill of divorce (Deut. 27: 1ff). The precise
reasons for a divorce are not clearly given. Various authors stress that the
position of women in the Old Testament is closely connected with the mode of
production. Since the organization is patrilineal and patrilocal, male children
are automatically more desirable. The woman is exploited as a labor force and
as a child-bearer. Thought the economic position of the woman is important, she
can never be an independent producer.[4]
Creation Narratives
There are two
accounts of creation stories in Genesis. In Gen. 1:1-2:4 (a,) the six days of
creation climax in the creation of male and female in the image of God (1:27).
In Gen. 2:4b-3:24, human life begins in an Eden garden where God forms humus
(Heb, adamah) into human form (adam). Both stories have been pointed to
throughout history as divine sanction for the subordination of women to men and
environment to human. In the creation of man and woman, such interpretations
focus on the woman after man and from his rib, on the use of the word
“helpmeet”, and on the role of woman in the fall. There are, however, other
arguments which come out of the careful reading of the text affirm, male-female
equality.[5] It
is today acknowledged that this narrative is written by one author who did
accommodate different traditions (e.g. of the two trees). This creation
narrative has been aptly characterized by O.H. Steck as an etiological myth,
i.e. a myth which tries to explain the origin of certain circumstances which
the people of that time could observe in their environment. Basically, Gen.2 and
3 try to explain a life experience which is very deeply ambiguous.[6] Scholars
often attribute Genesis 1 to a Priestly writer (P) because of its image of a
transcendent, all-powerful deity; it’s almost genealogical style, and its
explanation of the origin of the Sabbath. If so, this Priestly writer’s views of men and women differ from the much
more male-centered Priestly writers of Leviticus, for whom a woman’s
menstruation and childbearing are sources of pollution, separating her from the
sacred realm. She regularly lacks the pure status necessary to participate
fully in Israelite ritual life.[7]
The roles
played by Pathian are discussed in
terms of his relation with his creatures.
Pathian is God of creation who gets involved in the affairs of his human creatures.
He is the source of all blessing, loving and compassion, but Pathian also dispenses justice and
retribution. According to Mizo’s belief, Pathian
is the creator of all things. Vanlalauva wrote that Mizos believe in a
supreme God called “Pathian” whom
they knew as the creator of the world and everything in it. But Mizos do not
describe any details of the process of creation. Challiana wrote that the
creator of everything in this world, heaven and earth is none other than Pathian who lives in an interior place
of heaven. Remkunga also wrote that Pathian
is believed by Mizos to be the creator and sustainer of everything, but
they do not have a refined theology of creation such as the Christians have. The
detailed steps and development of Pathian’s
creative activity are not much told. But there is no doubt about Pathian’s creative power and action as
oral tradition transmits from one generation to the next.[8]
Mizos, therefore, took the doctrinal beliefs of creation account from the Bible
when the missionaries came into the Mizo’s society. Mizo is being with the
obligation of proof understanding in the creation account so. We need to seek
the significant explanation of the full humanity between men and women, for the
de-humanized women in which the patriarchal and androcentric system are being
occupied.
Background of the Women’s Position in Mizo Society and Its Theological Critique
Mizo society is
one of the most free societies where men and women mix, court and work together
freely. This social freedom has a long tradition from our forefathers and is
probably rooted in a pre-history of the Mizos or at least in the very beginning
of their existence as a community, it is not adopted form the free society of
the west. Till today courting is common as young men go to visit young women
either in group or alone in their free and leisure time, it is the girl’s duty
to treat them and give attention to them in the midst of their busy works. After
coming home from the whole day tiring jhum works, the boys’ main business
leaving aside household works, is to court girls who are equally tired and who
still have to continue household duties while at the same time paying attention
to them. In this way the girls are overburdened, yet they are not to complain
it. Before and early dawn of Christianity, marriage was done on arrangements of
both parents. The girl’s parents too did not care whether the boy would be a
suitable one for her or whether she liked him, they would force her to marry
him who had enough wealth or who came from good family. Even after unwillingly
wedded, the girls were again the victims of such an insulting saying, ‘a worn-out fence and a woman can be changed.’
There were two kinds of works—household and jhum. At home, they alone had to do
all the ‘extra works’ again. The burden of Mizo women knew no bounds and they
simply had to submit themselves to these as their statuesque.[9] In
former days in Mizo society, before and after Christianity when a husband got
angry he would first go and drink and get so that he could beat his wife as he
would not like to do so with clear conscience. Today even without getting drunk
a husband would beat his wife when he gets angry.[10]
Christianity is
indeed the source of blessing in all aspects for Mizo people particularly for
Mizo women. Their condition of life today is comparatively much better than
before. In many ways the people were influenced by the western way of life,
though the missionaries did not bring along with the Gospel the message of
‘Women Liberation’ as such, because they themselves did not know about it as
the Movement itself had not yet been started, but the lifestyle of both men and
women missionaries in which there was no fast distinction between them, did so
much to the attitude of men towards women. On the whole, the contribution of
missionaries and Christianity to the improvement of women’s status cannot be
denied.[11] While
there are the improvement of women’s status and cleansing the burdens, much of
them are still taking place today. It has been felt that male predominance
tends to ignore the role of women in the pre-colonial Mizo society. The general
assumption is that many aspects of life in the Mizo society has been influenced
by modernization particularly from the early part of 20th century. Traditional
cultures have been re-defined since the Mizos’ contact with the British and
Christian missionaries; although sensitization towards the arena of women based
issues continue to be confined within the model of western patriarchal
paradigm. More than ever, patriarchy is gaining a stronger hold in the modern
period especially when compared to the pre-colonial period. Modernization can
be seen largely in terms of material culture, whereas ‘traditionalism’ still
influences the Mizo society at the level of consciousness and ideas.[12]
In His Own Image, God Created Man—Male and Female Equally
All too often
those who wish to uphold the domination of woman by the man hear all too well
the first part: “God created man in his own image”. But they often conveniently
forget the last part of it “male and female he created them”. In the Hebrew
text five words are to be distinguished: ‘Adam,
‘ish, ‘ishah, zakhar, and neqebhah.
‘Adam is a generic word for humankind or in British English ‘man’: “Let us
make man in our own image” (Genesis 1:26). Adam,
as the very next verse demonstrates, is male and female. It is only after
the fall that Adam becomes a proper name and man gives the name Eve to the
woman. Zakhar i.e. male and neqebhah i.e. female (Genesis 1:27)
denote a person’s sex, albeit in the one humanity. Male and female bear the
same imago dei, whatever that means.
Both are creatures of flesh, soul and spirit, pointing to their total
dependence on God the Creator and to be distinguished from God and other
creation like the animals.)
The
other words, ‘ish and ‘ishah are used of man and woman and at
other times of husband and wife who are in a covenant relationship. In this
context we need to address the “myth” of the creation of women. It is said that
God created man min-hadamah i.e. from
the ground or soil and created women me’ish
from Adam’s side (Gen. 2:23b). The fact of the woman being created from
Adam’s side need not imply and any ideas of inferiority of the former to the
latter. Rather it asserts that the woman is of the same order of being as the
man and also that she is equal to the man. As scripture puts it in the mouth of
Adam “this (i.e. woman) is bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh” (Gen. 2:23). ‘Ish and ‘Ishah,’ point to
differentiation within humanity (Gen. 2:23).[13] Particularly,
we can see the evidence of the word man as
the human race. In Genesis 5:1-2 we read, “When God created man; he made him in
the likeness of God. Male and female he crated them, and he blessed them and named them Man when they were created.[14] The importance of the “image of God” in the
understanding of human dignity is immense. “God’s image” may be defined as the
inherent dignity or worth of a human being on account of his or her wisdom or
reason. God’s image also signifies the life of the first man and woman in
Paradise-their happiness, innocent obedience to God and fellowship with God,
equal blessing of God. Regarding Paul’s concept of God’s image, he definitely
insisted that in Christ there are neither Jew nor Gentiles; woman nor man. In
God’s image all are equally shaped.[15]
“When
Adam had lived a hundred and thirty years, he became the father of a son in his
own likeness [demūt], after his image [tselem], and named him Seth” (Gen. 5:3).
Seth was not identical to Adam, but he was like him in many ways, as a son is
like his father. The text simply means that Seth was like Adam. It does not
specify any specific number of ways that Seth was like Adam, and it would be
overly restrictive for us to assert that one or another characteristic
determined the way in which Seth was in Adam’s image and likeness. It is
evident that every way in which Seth
was like Adam would be a part of his likeness to Adam and thus part of his
being in the “image” of Adam. Similarly, every
way in which man is like God is part of his being in the image and likeness
of God.[16]
Doctrinal Theology of the Image of God
The most simple
answer is human sinfulness. This is not the place for an exposition of sin. For
our purposes it should suffice to draw attention to the link between
partnership and primacy. The primacy, however, is one of age and says nothing
about a natural or ethical superiority of men over women. Primacy by itself is
not bad or sinful; for it is a necessary tool of some sort of order in society.
But it becomes sinful if foreign qualitative notions are imported into it. This
is where cultures have not helped or have helped to interpret primacy as
superiority.[17] The reason this image is so unknown to
modern people, Luther thinks, is that God’s declaration proved true: when Adam
and Eve sinned, disobeyed God, they lost the image of God. The remaining powers
of the image have become “leprous and unclean,” impaired and weakened. Until
then there can be no truly adequate knowledge of the lost image of God, except
that it included eternal life, freedom from fear, and all that is good. But God
takes pleasure in this work of restoration through Christ just as God rejoiced
in the creation of humanity.[18]
It is vivid
that in talking about unity and oneness in Christ confronting divisions and
inferiority and superiority issues of gender, race and culture of his converts,
Paul alludes to these stories and blends them together in a remarkable way,
which is evident in Gal. 3:28 and 1 Cor. 11:3-12. For Paul the creation
accounts do not serve any longer as a determining tool for divisions in the
society, especially between men and women, but is has becomes rather the medium
of unity and oneness of both the sexes, since God “in Christ” has redeemed and
restored the original image of “Man”—man and woman created in God’s own image.
Basically, Paul’s understanding of the gospel of Christ is a liberative one; it
is a gospel that does not tolerate any form of injustice and oppression.
Therefore he could not imagine the new life in Christ to be encapsulated in the
old fashion of life—an oppressive and hierarchical structure—which his
opponents sought and wanted to hold on to it.[19]
Building the Equality of Men and Women in Mizo Society
Today women’s
issues have become one of the burning and discussed issues all over the world.
Much has been said and much improvement on the status and position of women has
been achieved, and yet much has to be done still. Many men and women in Mizo’s
society are not aware of the problems being faced by women nor are they aware
of such movement and discussions on women’s questions that are taking place.[20] Today,
women have come up in almost all aspects of life; there are high ranking women
officers in the government sector. By the equal opportunity given to them,
women are encouraged to undergo higher education or professional training and
they have gradually been coming up competing themselves. In commercial sector
and in business women become the main actors, they run shops down to vegetable
markets, business is at their hands. The progress and improvement of women’s
place and role in the socio-economic and political field is thus evident.[21] Various
academic discourses on Marxism, capitalism, globalization, subaltern, popular
culture, human rights, postmodernism, post-structuralism etc provide a new
thinking for many educated Mizos.
Political
consciousness during the post-independent era initiated a succession of changes
in the Mizo society. Hence, a group of Mizo women have continuously felt
dissatisfied and this gave rise to the establishment of the Hmeichhe Tangrual
Pawl in 1946, followed by the Mizo Women Organization (MHIP) in 1964.
Initially, the new women organization raised the need to reform traditional and
cultural practices of the Mizos. Today their activities range from the set up
of orphanage, drug de-addiction camp, movement of protests against rape,
domestic violence, reform of customary laws, reform of bride price and many
others.[22]
Progressively,
I see that there are most of depressions in the position of Mizo women in the
present circumstances. The way women are labeled and regarded in the family and
society as weak, unable, incapable and inferior; subordinate to men has
weakened them much more than they actually are. Women’s self-understanding as
weak, unable and subordinate makes them more vulnerable. Because of this understanding women are not given their
due roles and responsibilities in the family and society, and because of their low self esteem women also often refuse to accept the responsibilities
which are given to them in the society.[23] Therefore,
we are facing the responsibility to catch what is paired in the problematic patriarchy.
Many Mizo men claim that women are just the servant for men when God created.
We deliberately miss the point in the Genesis. Woman is taken from the man, but
her first and primal contact is with her
Maker. For both them, the origin of life is a divine mystery. It is wrong
to say that woman owes all her existence to man, just as it would be wrong to
say that man owes all his existence to dust and is therefore subordinate to it.
Both are portrayed as created directly by an individual and purposeful act of
the creator.
The women
should encourage struggling for the more preferred hard-work for building the
equality. Women should not think themselves as weak and unable to overcome the
ability like men. In ordinary activities, when men give the sits and places for
women in bus or in other places, women accepted them because they think they
are weaker than men. But today Mizo women should not think themselves like
that, rather they should not want to accept because they are able to do
themselves, rather they give for the sick, paralyzed people. In our opinions,
we should not think themselves as more weak rather than men, because God
created man as male and female
equally.
Evaluation
Both men and
women are created equally in the image of God. According to Phyllis Trible,
“Sexual differentiation does not mean hierarchy but equality. Created
simultaneously, male and female are not superior and subordinate. Neither has
power over the other in fact.” The image of God is in the female as in the
male. God has to be imaged-but in both male and female categories. In one sense
we can use male and female images to describe God because that is how we
experience and visualize the Divine.[24] Mizo
women seem to struggle for the ‘authority’ in which they are emphasizing on the
equality between men and women. In Mizo’s society, the families in which women
have more authority are usually made fun and underestimated by the Mizo people.
We should hold the vital point in the Mizo’s society; it will be inappropriate and
wrong opinion that we need to change “Hmeichhia” into “Minu,” but they would
need more living for their whole lives with bearing to struggle the equality,
and the abilities to do likewise whatever men could do. “Hmeichhia” is just the
name in the Mizo language. The word “Ketaminu”[25]
is also the name of the animals in Mizo language, as we call the male as
“Ketaminu.” We call both of Ketaminu—male and female—as “Ketaminu.” “Keipui” is
not always referring to the female, it is just the name. We should not make
Mizo language confused, and change differently, but we should show that the
equality between men and women by our abilities and struggling, and that we
all—male and female have full humanity. It would be very dangerous if we are
taking seriously the irrelevant opinions and biases, over and over in our
societies.[26]
History has
largely remained a record of public events and personae to the exclusion of the
private sphere of the home and the family. Some women put forward that ‘History
is HIS STORY; to get a complete picture of the world we also need HER STORY’.
Looking at the current trend in Mizo history, few efforts have been done to
reconstructs the role of women. Why has the role of women in the history of
Mizo society remained relatively unexplored, though their potential
contribution to an understanding of social change appears so obvious? Moreover,
women’s role in history has been largely ignored and seldom recorded by Mizo
historians. For instance, where are Mizo women who were actively involved in
the Mizo National Front (MNF) movement of 1966-1987? This exclusion of women
from the domain of history seeks to reinforce prevailing gender stereotypes. By
portraying women as passive through the ages, it would be easier to justify
their continued exclusion from the public sphere.[27]
Therefore, today Mizo people are influenced by the modernization of the
globalization from different points to points in developing the progressive
pattern on the Mizo male-dominated world. While it seems that we are becoming
more far from the stereotyping of women, but much of them are still alive in
Mizo society. We need to escape from the bondage of the misunderstanding in
which the violence and exploitations are more developed in our society. If we
will go back to the narrative of the creation of God in Genesis, we can really
see that God never aim to create the male and female inequality, but he created
them in His own image as human beings. We know that God created male and female
but this two have full humanity, without superior and inferior. Both of them
possess the life, soul, love, conscience, moral law, and other sense what male
also has. It is incompatible that forcing to marry is the worst vulnerable in
the lives. It is certainly true that God created man and women separate, that
separateness is clarified on just male and female. This is the purpose of God
He created male and female; just not He created only man. Because He created
tow human beings—male and female, man will need women as vice versa. When human
disobeyed God, there became the darkened in the life. In Christ, there will be
no Jews or Gentiles, male nor female, but all becomes one equally. This is the
women whom God created equally in the beginning, whom God redeemed equally, and
sanctified equally by the Holy Spirit, and equally called to mission in this
world. If you think that cooking, washing the clothes, winnowing paddies, look
after for your children and other works of women are devaluing you, and are not
the task of men, you are gradually devaluing and reducing your dignity. This
does not mean to the destroying the image of God, but by knowing and fulfilling
our great obligations it goes to reimaging
the image of God for Christians today.
Women, therefore, need to escape from the bondage of male-dominated world. While
this is the obligation of women, this is also the obligation of men; we human
beings have the great obligation and responsibility to liberate the women from
the violence and exploitation male-dominated world to the peaceful Kingdom of
God in this word.
Author : David John
[1]
Ar Naing, “Exegetical Study on the Imago
Dei in Creation Story from Feminist Perspective”: Myanmar Theological
Bulletin, Vol.5 (Mandalay: Myanmar Theological College, 2010), 66.
[2]
Gabriele Dietrich, A New Thing on Earth:
Hopes and Fears Facing Feminist theology (Delhi: ISPCK, 2001), 51.
[3]
Sharon Rose Joy Ruiz-Duremdes, “Women in the Old Testament” in Hope S. Antone
& Yong Ting Jin et al, eds., Our Stories,
Our Faith (Kowloon: World Student Christian Federation, 1992), 26.
[4]
Ibid, Gabriele Dietrich, A New Thing on
Earth: Hopes and Fears Facing Feminist theology, 53-54.
[5]
Soe Soe Mar, “Feminist Study on Biblical Text,” in Dr. Mary Dun et al, eds., Resources for Teaching Feminist Theology (Myanmar:
Christian Institutes of Theology, 2005), 123.
[6]
Ibid, Gabriele Dietrich, A New Thing on
Earth: Hopes and Fears Facing Feminist theology, 55.
[7]
Susan Niditch, “Genesis” in Carol A. Newsom and Sharon H. Ringe, eds., Women’s Bible Commentary: Expanded Edition (Louisville:
Westminster John Knox Press, 1998), 16.
[8]
T. Vanlaltlani, Tribal Religion: Mizo and
Bru (Mizo Theological Association/Lengchhawn Press: Aizawl, 2009), 93-94.
[9]
R.L. Hnuni, “Women in the Context of the Bible and Mizoram,” in K. Thanzauva
ed., Towards A Tribal Theology: The Mizo
Perspective (Mizoram: Mizo Theological Conference, 1989), 80-84.
[10]
R.L. Hnuni, Vision for Women in India:
Perspectives from the Bible, Church and Society (Bangalore: Asian Trading
Corporation, 2009), 80.
[11]
Ibid, R.L. Hnuni, “Women in the Context of the Bible and Mizoram,” in K.
Thanzauva ed., Towards A Tribal Theology:
The Mizo Perspective, 80-84.
[12] Hmingthanzuali &
H.Vanlalhruaia, Reflections of Passion:
Women Issues in Mizo Society, http://thangtharculture.blogspot.com/2007/07/women-issues-in-mizo-society.html,
[article online] Internet accessed on September 25th, 2013.
[13]
John S. Pobee, “In His Own Image…Male and Female, He Created Them,” in John S.
Pobee, ed., Culture, Women and Theology (Delhi:
ISPCK, 1994), 131-132.
[14]
Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology: An
Introduction to Biblical Doctrine (England: Inter-Varsity Press, 2007), 440.
[15]
Ibid, Ar Naing, “Exegetical Study on the Imago
Dei in Creation Story from Feminist Perspective”, 85-86.
[16]
Ibid, Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology:
An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine, 444.
[17]
Ibid, John S. Pobee, “In His Own Image…Male and Female, He Created Them,” in
John S. Pobee, ed., Culture, Women and
Theology, 148.
[18]
Jane Dempsey Douglas, “Luther on the Image of God in Women” in Janet Martin
Soskice & Diana Lipton et al, eds., Feminism
and Theology (New York: Oxford University Press, 2003), 76.
[19]
Keci Siang, Paul, Women & Female
Imagery: Approaching Difficult Passages (Aizawl: RDDAICS, 2010), 105-106.
[20]
Ibid, R.L. Hnuni, “Women in the Context of the Bible and Mizoram,” in K.
Thanzauva ed., Towards A Tribal Theology:
The Mizo Perspective, 72.
[21]
Ibid, R.L. Hnuni, “Women in the Context of the Bible and Mizoram,”, 84-85.
[22]
Ibid, Hmingthanzuali & H.Vanlalhruaia, Reflections
of Passion: Women Issues in Mizo Society, http://thangtharculture.blogspot.com/2007/07/women-issues-in-mizo-society.html,
[article online] Internet accessed on September 25th, 2013.
[23]
Ibid, R.L. Hnuni, Vision for Women in
India: Perspectives from the Bible, Church and Society, 86-87.
[24]
Anna May Say Pa, “Biblical Foundation for Feminist Theology: The Feminine Image
of God” in Marry Dun et al, eds., Resources
for Teaching Feminist Theology (Myanmar: Christian Institutes of Theology,
2005), 78-79.
[25]
Millipede is a small creature with a
long cylindrical body consisting of many parts, each part having two pairs of
legs. In Mizo, the word “Ketaminu” means to the female—“Ketam” means something
that has many legs, and the word “Nu” goes to the meaning of female.
[26]
Mipa
leh Hmeichhia Intluktlanna, http://zochepa.wordpress.com/2010/07/10/mipa-leh-hmeichhia-intluktlanna/,
[article online] Internet accessed on September 24th, 2013.
[27]
Ibid, Hmingthanzuali & H.Vanlalhruaia, Reflections
of Passion: Women Issues in Mizo Society, http://thangtharculture.blogspot.com/2007/07/women-issues-in-mizo-society.html,
[article online] Internet accessed on September 25th, 2013.
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