When you hear about women dying for things such as adultery, crimes against chastity, heresy, you think about women in the past, women who lived and died long, long ago.
And that is true. Joan of Arc, the French girl-martyr who was tried and convicted for heresy, was born and died in the 1400s. Anne Askew, another convicted heretic, was burned at the stake during the reign of Henry VIII. Both France and England no longer support the death penalty of anyone - man, woman, child - for any crime.
And so we think the struggle for women's rights, for human rights, children's rights, the rights for all to have a happy life, is over. Wrong.
In 2004 a court was given permission by the High Supreme Court of Iran to execute a girl for 'crimes against chastity', saying that she was a 22 year old woman and an unrepentant adulteress, when in fact she was a sixteen year old with a dead mother and a difficult childhood, a psychological illness and was raped, but the rapist walked free and she was hung from a crane as a seductress. this is 2004, for crying out loud. Six years ago. And to this day men, women and children are murdered in the name of God, in the name of Justice, in the name of nothing in particular.
Who are we, as mere humans, to take another life? We have no right to murder murderers, yet alone innocent women and children. And every day when you pray to God in thanks that you are not born in hellholes that still practice and encourage the slaughter of those in the name of human law I hope you pray for those who are. I hope you pray for those who burn, boil and hang in the name of religions and other figments of ignorant men's imagination. Every free step we take is tainted by the blood of martyrs who have died for us.
We are all sinners in this imperfect world. For any who has hurt those who hurt others, think of how many times you have been hurt, think how many times you have caused pain. How can you fly a banner of superstition tainted with innocent blood? Preach your relgions and cults, tell everyone to murder women, children, unbelievers. Tell everyone that all men are murderers, all women are sinners, all children are the offspring of the devil.
When you tell them that, I wish I could say that they do not believe. But they do. The world seems to be made up of the persuaders and the persuaded. And that is what makes me sick.
1 comment:
I think the struggle will go on as long as we are human.
And I liked your historical examples: Joan of Arc and Anne Askew.
I always understood a martyr died for their principles or something they believed in strongly.
And there is a great saying I have heard: "hurt people hurt people". We are all hurt, and we cause hurt.
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