Abstract
As studies have shown, marital sexual infidelity is attested in every society of the world.1 In African societies, adultery is not only strictly prohibited on social, moral and religious grounds but is also regarded, in some African cultures, as an abomination. This is rooted, among others, in the sacredness of marriage in Africa and the inseparable link between the use of human sexuality in marriage and the generation of new life for the perpetuation of the family-lineage and the community. In theory, the ban on adultery applies equally to all married men and women but in praxis, there are some hints of gender injustice against women in observing the ban on adultery. The patriarchal context in some African cultures provides the background for such gender inequality and sexual injustice against women. By using bosadi biblical hermeneutics to interpret the Sotah ritual (Num 5:11-31) - a ritual that is gender-specific, meant only for women accused of adultery - this article condemns the sexual injustice endured by married women in some (African) patriarchal societies and advocates the reading of Num 5:11-31 and other biblical texts containing 'oppressive elements' in a way that is liberating and empowering to the oppressed and marginalised.
Highlights
As studies have shown, marital sexual infidelity is attested in every society of the world.[1]
The patriarchal context in some African cultures provides the background for such gender inequality and sexual injustice against women
By using bosadi biblical hermeneutics to interpret the Sotah ritual (Num 5:11–31) – a ritual that is gender-specific, meant only for women accused of adultery – this article condemns the sexual injustice endured by married women in some (African) patriarchal societies and advocates the reading of Num 5:11–31 and other biblical texts containing ‘oppressive elements’ in a way that is liberating and empowering to the oppressed and marginalised
Summary
Marriage in many African societies is not just a union between two persons (a man and a woman) and a covenant of affinity between two families, two clans or even between two communities. I will employ the bosadi hermeneutics to highlight the contextual implications of the Sotah ritual for a married Igbo (African) woman.[11] The latter will be done by identifying and condemning some gender injustices found both in the Igbo-African culture and in the text of Num 5:11–33:. I agree with authors who argue that the ritual “is likely to cause a woman great distress.”[48] Clearly the dragging of an innocent woman to the temple, dishevelling of her hair and making her drink the “bitter water” constitute a real damage to her honour, and physical and mental health This brings us back to the Igbo-African context and the unfortunate sexual injustice suffered by some married women, a fact which bosadi hermeneutics encourages us to identify and condemn. Some women in the patriarchal Igbo culture still endure such unwarranted social ridicule in the hands of their husbands
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