Just a comment...

For some reason, my account will not let me comment, so I will just have to give it in the form of a post:) The first time I truly read and understood the horrific stories in the book of Judges was in a Women of the Bible Class. Many feminists use these stories to highlight what they see as Christianitie's subjection of women. Sadly, I think they miss the point. Amy mentioned the way we read these stories is of utmost importance. I love to read them through the lens of the evolving relationship between God and humanity. The fact that God says nothing speaks volumes. Judges is thought to serve as a piece of propaganda- trying to sell the people on their need for a king. As we know, God was their king and they would only get themselves into more trouble if they had a human king, but due to all the despicable things that happened under the judges they needed a king. All the while, they do not seek God's guidance. We see time and time again that when the Israelites call out, God responded and sent prophets to save them. Here, in a time of obvious need, they resorted to human guidance rather than God. Even if God did speak up, I doubt the people would have heard. Nothing could squelch their hunger for a king. Nonetheless, through the darkness we see the relationship between God and mankind evolving. We see a God that allows us to make decisions, to turn our back to God, and then once we realize our depraivity God stands with open arms while we run back. That story of truth runs through every book of the Old Testament, no matter how dark or how happy. Sadly, as Amy and Sandra said in their amazing posts, we do the same thing today.