Until now, you have had no idea who I am or that I even exist. Until now, I have been a silent follower. I agree with your biblical stance on abortion, I've agreed with your stance on Trump, and I've agreed with a number of other issues you've blogged about. There have been several occasions I haven't completely agreed with you, but until now, I haven't disagreed with you so strongly I have felt compelled to write a formal response.
Before I begin, let me make it perfectly clear that I am not financially endorsed by anyone. I don't get paid for blogging or writing in any form. I don't consider writing to be my strong suit and, with five children to care for around the clock, it isn't anything I have time to do as I'm sure you can see by how far behind I am on publishing in my own blog. In fact, with any free time I do get, I use it to knit or to spin. I have six alpaca fleeces to process and I'm anxious to knit them up since it is my favorite fiber. But this time, I made time. I have always been a quiet observer until I have felt the need to step in and set things straight, defending the defenseless, usually one person at a time as opposed to an entire group. And I've never been so upset in another's defense that my body has shaken as it is right now.
Let us begin with a semi-famous tweet I saw through a friend's screenshot shared on Facebook. I'm not actively on Twitter so I missed it on that particular form of social media. It is tweeted by one Matt Walsh @MattWalshBlog dated 6/9/2016 at 11:33 AM: "Drunken hook up culture is the problem, not "rape culture." Women can protect themselves by not participating in hook up culture."
Prior to this tweet, I was under the impression you were an intelligent man who has typed well-thought-out subject matter before publishing. As the adage goes, "There's a first for everything." Figuratively speaking, I put my foot in my mouth on a regular basis. I've always been good at it. But then, there's that "Doh!" moment and the guilt sets in and I have to apologize to someone. I'm just glad it isn't to an entire sex of humans all over creation because I'd feel really small then.
Ugh. Here I go rambling again. See? Writing is not my strong suit. I'm going to need some help with this one so I got up and got my Bible. From every piece I've read of yours, I've gotten the impression you consider yourself to be a God fearing man, a Christian, a believer in our Creator, and redemption through the Gospel of Christ. I am also, except I'm a woman. As stated before, I have a special knack for inserting my foot in my mouth so I'm going to stick to the infallible Word of God for this.
As quoted, "Drunken hook up culture is the problem, not "rape culture"...."
Ephesians 5:18 "Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery."
According to Oxford Dictionaries, the definition of "debauchery" is "N. 1. excessive indulgence of sensual pleasures" not rape. Also, not a single one of the synonyms is rape.
What is rape? According to Oxford Dictionaries, rape is:
"N. 1. the crime, typically committed by a man, of forcing another person to have sexual intercourse with the offender against their will
V. 1. (especially of a man) force (another person) to have sexual intercourse with the offender against their will"
I haven't been raped, but I am a woman and I am very aware of the possibility - and it is terrifying, to be quite honest. My grandmother hadn't consumed alcohol when she was raped and became pregnant with her first child at 15 years of age in the 1940s. A friend of mine has a mother who is deaf because she has a rare genetic disease. She was walking to a college class completely sober when she was grabbed from behind, dragged away and raped in the 1970s. In 2009, a man raped a gas station attendant in my local area who was also not drunk. Within weeks, he proceeded to break into a third floor apartment in the night and raped a young mother who was also sober. Tell these women that they could have prevented their rapes by not participating in "drunken hook up culture." Please. We'd all love to hear it. My grandmother's attacker wasn't drinking either so there's that. These examples are, by no means, even scratching the surface of non-alcohol related rapes.
I don't follow you closely enough to know how many children you have or whether you have girls or boys or at least one of each. Do you have daughters? What will you tell them if they're raped? Will you tell them how it could have been prevented? That someone else's actions were their fault? Do you have sons? What will you teach them about rape? Will you teach them that it is okay for a woman to be raped because she has immersed herself in "drunken hook up culture?"
Wrong! Sin, Matt. Sin is why we have drunken hook up culture and it is nothing new. Have you read about Sodom and Gomorrah? Sin is also the cause of rape. Romans 3:23 "...for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God...." You may or may not recall the first sin, fall of man, and curse of generational sin. I can't find a single verse in my bible which states "drunken hook up culture" causes and/or justifies rape. "Drunken hook up culture" is an excuse for a male to avoid taking responsibility for one's own actions. If a man gets drunk does it make it okay for him to beat his wife? Is it okay if she's drunk? But what if they were raised in a culture which condones it?
“Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme,”
I Peter 2:13 NKJV
Rape is illegal whether or not either party has imbibed!
Ephesians 6:13-18
“Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.”
Are you wearing your belt of truth or did you switch it out with the belt of opinion? The last I checked, the two are not one in the same.
Who could have prevented these rapes if not the female victims? Surely not the very males who committed the rapes, for we all know that women must take responsibility for the thoughts actions of men, right? I wonder how many other males were at that party at Stanford that night, how many who were drunk and chose not to rape drunk girls.
“You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.”
Psalm 139:2 NIV
“It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control your own body in a way that is holy and honorable, not in passionate lust like the pagans, who do not know God; and that in this matter no one should wrong or take advantage of a brother or sister. The Lord will punish all those who commit such sins, as we told you and warned you before.”
1 Thessalonians 4:3-6 NIV
““You shall not steal.”
Exodus 20:15 NIV
He stole her body and defiled it behind a dumpster while she was unconscious! But it is okay because she engaged in "drunken hook up culture?" Yes means yes and no means no. He didn't have permission. It doesn't matter that she wasn't able to say, "No," because she wasn't able to say, "Yes."
Ephesians 6:4 NKJV
And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord."
Fewer fathers do the aforementioned which means fewer men and women do this:
Ephesians 5:21 NIV
"Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ."
Ephesians 5:22
"Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord."
Ephesians 5:25
"Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her...."
I urge you to teach your children about the absolute truth (isn't that what you blog about?) - the infallible truth - not your deluded opinion. When we Christians raise our children up in the training and admonition of the Lord we are teaching them how to be loving husbands and wives. We are teaching our sons how to treat females, to love them in such a way they would die for them, not assault them! Teaching them certain things are wrong no matter what the circumstances are.
Rape is wrong regardless of the culture or setting it is in!
LOVE!!!
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