#18

If you are completely antagonistic to organized religion, this may not be the book for you. However, I hope that, even if you disagree with the tenants of Christianity, you could agree that there needs to be a shift towards equality and empowerment of women in Christian (and other religions) relationships and settings. A Year of Biblical Womanhood is a passionate advocate of Christian feminism which I really appreciated. She highlights strong women throughout the Bible who did not fit in the stereotypical roles of their society, who were outcasts or unconventional and who did powerful, society-changing deeds.

The premise of Rachel Held Evans' book is that she will take the commands of "Biblical Womanhood" literally and try to follow the rules as much as possible. This is the part where I feel she falls a little short. She picks and chooses which rules she will follow and it's not entirely cohesive. A.J. Jacobs The Year of Living Biblically is a lot more cohesive, detailed, comprehensive and funny. However, Held-Evans strengths lie in debunking myths about the roles of women in the Bible, passionately championing social justice, exhorting women to support and raise each other up, and mourning the tragedies that have befallen women simply for being women since the dawn of time all the while maintaining respect for the Bible and the love of Jesus and exploring ways to deepen that relationship in a more authentic way.

In short, this book is not for people who want reasons to eschew Christianity but for those who are looking for a more egalitarian, loving, just way of living through the lens of Jesus' teachings.




One wonderful year with this loving, just, patient, egalitarian man. Love you Juniper!