ABSTRACT
A light on a hill is what we are supposed to be as Christians in order to cast light into the darkness around us so that people know where to look for help. This is the Gospel lesson from Matthew for Epiphany 5 Year A. Jesus spreads light to a woman caught in adultery in John 8:1–11 by writing in the dirt. One of the ways I have heard this interpreted was that Jesus wrote the men's sins in the dirt. I chose to spread light using this story to address the subject of domestic and sexual abuse and what one woman suffered and was freed from by our Lord. How may we free women today from that load which is often interpreted as sin?
Notes
1. All Biblical quotes are taken from The Thompson Chain-Reference Bible: New International Version, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Corporation, 1983, p. 988.
2. Alexander, David and Alexander, Pat, eds. Eerdman's Handbook to the Bible, Herts, England: Lion Publishing, 1973, p. 541.
3. Poling, James Newton. Understanding Male Violence: Pastoral Care Issues, St. Louis, MO: Chalice Press, 2003, p. 1.