03/05/2026
“Why Do we Need to Re-read and Re-interpret the Bible?
This is the question many often ask. There are different reasons as to why we need to re-read and re-interpret the Bible. Different reasons may be brought out.
- The Bible was written and interpreted by males from a male dominated society and as such had male perspectives: Since the Bible is written by males from a male dominated society of Israel, the patriarchal structures, customs, traditions and values which are so oppressive toward women have been reflected in many biblical passages. For this reason, the Bible abounds in male languages and imagery and in many cases women’s appearance in the Bible is in relation to males only. Hence Phillis Bird comments about the Old Testament,
*The Old Testament is a man’s “book” where women appear for the most part simply as adjuncts of men, significant only in the context of men’s activities, and this is because it is a collection of writings by males from a male dominated society.*¹⁰
Since biblical interpretations have been done by men who first interpreted biblical passages, they used mostly male terms and language to articulate theology, the Church, synagogue and academy, and to instruct human beings on who they are, what roles they should play and how they should behave. For this reason, the Bible has been so harmoniously associated with sexism, faith and culture that it was not long ago that few have started to question it. Even those passages which show equality of men and women were either deliberately ignored, distorted or misinterpreted. For example, the creation of a woman as a “helper fit for man” has been interpreted for centuries to indicate that women are subordinate and inferior to men. This traditional interpretation has been re-interpreted to indicate women have a high dignity and respected position which is given to her by God. Hence, it cannot take the normative authority of the biblical archetype as a point of departure for interpreting the Bible, it must begin with the experience of women and their struggle for liberation.”
Book: A theology response to Mizo Women by ATTWI Mizoram Branch