christianity did not improve that situation considerably. the instructions of the new testament that eve was the cause of the expulsion of adam from the garden of eden abused woman more. encyclopedia britannica indicates: "(according to christianity) women are tempters, responsible for the fall of adam, and second-class human beings."^[3] the bible contains numerous paragraphs that belittle woman and consider her as property of man who is free to handle her the way he likes. the following extracts are from king james bible:

·        "unto the woman he said, i will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee." (genesis 3:16)

·        "but if this thing be true, and the tokens of virginity be not found for the damsel. then they shall bring out the damsel to the door of her father's house, and the men of her city shall stone her with stones that she die:" (deuteronomy 22:20-21)

·        "wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the lord. for the husband is the head of the wife, even as christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. therefore as the church is subject unto christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything." (ephesians 5:22-24)

·        "let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience as also saith the law. and if they will learn anything, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church." (corinthians i 14:34-35)

·        "let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. but i suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. for adam was first formed, then eve. and adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression." (timothy i 2:11-14)

·        "but i would have you know, that the head of every man is christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of christ is god." (corinthians i 11:3)

·        "for a man indeed ought not to cover his head, forasmuch as he is the image and glory of god: but the woman is the glory of the man.  for the man is not of the woman: but the woman of the man. neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man. for this cause ought the woman to have power on her head because of the angels." (corinthians i 11:7-10)

·        "in like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array;" (timothy i 2:9)

·        "what is man, that he should be clean? and he which is born of a woman, that he should be righteous?" (job 15:14)

·        "and i find more bitter than death the woman, whose heart is snares and nets, and her hands as bands: whoso pleaseth god shall escape from her; but the sinner shall be taken by her. behold, this have i found, saith the preacher, counting one by one, to find out the account: which yet my soul seeketh, but i find not: one man among a thousand have i found; but a woman among all those have i not found." (ecclesiastes 7: 26-28)

·      numbers (27: 1-11) indicate that widows and sisters have no right in inheritance and that daughters take inheritance if the father does not have male offspring.

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[3] encyclopedia britannica, (1984) vol. 19, p. 909.