Speaker: ResearchGate

Abstract: »Incidence of rape and attempted rape in Old Testament narratives (cf. Gen 19; 34; Judg 19; 2 Sam 13) has been investigated in scholarly literature, especially by feminist interpreters from different hermeneutical contexts. In the last decade, the unprecedented and unmistakable wave of child rape in South Africa has become a source of concern in government circles and the society at large. The primary reason for this wave is unclear, but the factors that trigger it are well-documented. On the other hand, this study observes the absence of child rape in Old Testament narratives (but also notably in the other major corpuses of the text – Pentateuch, Wisdom and Prophets) and registers this as a lacuna in rape incidents in the ancient world. In light of the Old Testament context, it is argued that the modern (South African) context has much to learn (gain) from its ancient counterpart. The movement (or "development"?) from the ancient world’s zero child rape to a "modern" situation in which children are raped, maimed, and murdered almost on a monthly basis calls into question the modern claim to civilisation, human dignity, and human rights and shows that child rape is a sign of social decadence and human depravity and not of human development. Any serious theology of rape must consider the absence of this modern aberration of child rape in the ancient world. « (Source: Online Program)

Wikipedia: Ancient history: History of ancient Israel and Judah | Bible: Hebrew Bible / Rape in the Hebrew Bible | Sex and the law: Rape / Child sexual abuse, History of rape