Saudi Arabia has released a video telling men how to beat their wives when they “disobey.” The video aired on television in the country in February. The Kingdom gave their approval for the video, which is why it was aired.
This is disgusting, but unfortunately not uncommon. Many religious sects allow and even condone domestic violence.
One Christian pastor in New York, Stephen Kim, promotes domestic violence and has his eight reasons and tips for doing so. He tells women to have sex with their husband whenever he demands it; it is a sin to refuse him. This negates the concept of marital rape by not allowing women to say no.
He also teaches that women are not equal in the marriage, so domestic violence is okay since they don’t have any authority.
Looking at the two religions, there are some similarities in the teachings. Extremist Muslims and Christians both condone domestic violence. Both of them beat women, expect them to bear children, and to be subservient.
These extremists also don’t allow divorce even when the husband is abusive. Here is a taste of what they tell battered women:
“If your husband knows that you are the weaker vessel, desperately seeking your survival and that of the kids, and that you are not trying to punish him, but that you are going to stand by and continue to love him, that you are going to wait for him to get out of prison and then try to start over again, it may move his heart to fear if not to repentance.”
They even go so far as to tell women to pray for their husband’s death instead of divorce:
“There have been occasions, both in Scripture and in our ministry, where a man was so vile that God has killed him. A woman can come to God asking Him to deliver her from a man if he will not repent, but a woman should be sure she has obeyed God in her relationship to her husband, before she asks such a thing.”
Christianity generally teaches that the only valid grounds for divorce are adultery or abandonment.
They are not the only ones against divorce. Islam is also strictly against it. It can be done, but it is widely frowned upon. They view divorce as an absolute last resort and encourage couples to get counseling instead.
In Saudi Arabia, women are required to be legally controlled by a husband. This is known as a “guardianship system.” Women who are victimized by their guardians don’t really have options to fight it. It assumes that women are inferior and can’t make important decisions on their own.
That would explain why they would make a video telling men how to beat their wives.
.jpg){kind=link}