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We all know the Christmas story from the Bible: the virgin Mary gives birth to a baby boy, who is the son of God. But, wonders Robyn Whitaker, how did Mary’s virginity turn into a war on sex within the Christian church? With the Christmas story as its basis, Mary’s virginity has frequently been used to justify an association between sex and sin that has plagued the church for 1,600 years. And in doing so, it has turned a mostly pro-sex Biblical tradition into a conservative purity movement - at the particular expense of women.
And as Dorothy Lee writes, the idea of Mary the ‘ever virgin’ is divorced from the lives of real women, who can never attain her unsullied purity. Yet in the Gospels, Mary is a vibrant figure: strong-minded and courageous.
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Wes Mountain/The Conversation
Robyn J. Whitaker, University of Divinity
The idealisation of Mary as a virgin has created a misguided and deeply damaging relationship between sex and sin within the Christian church.
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Madonna with child and angels by Giovanni Battista Salvi da Sassoferrato, 1674. The cult of the Virgin is emblematic of the way the church silences women and marginalises their experience.
Wikimedia Commons
Dorothy Ann Lee, University of Divinity
Belief in the eternal virginity of Mary has inflicted damage to women, who can never attain her sexless motherhood or unsullied 'purity'. Yet in the Gospels, Mary is strong-minded and courageous.
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Menorahs have now become ubiquitous features around the world during Hanukkah, from Berlin to New York to Melbourne.
Hayoung Jeon/EPA
Rebecca Forgasz, Monash University
Giving small gifts to children has become common around the world, though nowhere has Hanukkah reached the level of commercialisation that it has in the US.
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Toys are becoming increasingly advanced, but this can be more of a hindrance than a perk.
Pixabay
Andrew Maxwell, University of Southern Queensland
At Christmas shopping, you may have noticed toys are becoming very complex. They fly, hop, jump and follow you around – some even need to be 'connected'. But why are we seeing such technical advances?
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Politics + Society
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Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra
As the prime minister finally reads the mood and returns home, the holiday affair reflects badly on him and his media team.
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Dominic O'Sullivan, Charles Sturt University
British Columbia’s new law requires its parliament to align all laws with the UN declaration on indigenous rights. New Zealand and Australia should watch closely to see what it could mean for them.
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Education
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Larissa McLean Davies, University of Melbourne; Jessica Gannaway, University of Melbourne; Lucy Buzacott, University of Melbourne; Sarah E. Truman, University of Melbourne
Reading texts by and about diverse Australians will change the ways all young people see themselves and their communities. Here are five such books.
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Business + Economy
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François Lévêque, Mines ParisTech
A Protestant tradition with pagan roots, the Christmas tree is now a global phenomenon. It also reveals much about market economics, so let's climb on the sleigh and take a ride around this holiday item…
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