The Bible tells us that civilization began in the land of Shinar (called Sumer by scholars). That fact has been verified by archaeologists who have excavated the land and discovered thousands of tablets containing written records of their civilization. The people called themselves Sumerians and called their land Shumer. It was located in southern Mesopotamia (land between the two rivers) which can be identified as todays Iraq.
The Sumerians civilization blossomed in 3800 b.c., almost 6000 years ago and attained a high civilization that included laws and regulations and every first in civilization that we enjoy today. Scholars can not find any part of civilization today that did not have its roots in Sumer. The land attained great heights and women played a major role in every part of everyday life, in government and in commerce. Zecharia Sitchin in his book "When Time Began" explains the role women played in Sumer's civilization as follows.
The gathered evidence shows that in Sumer and Akkad women engaged not only in household chores like spinning, weaving, milking or tending to the family and the home, but also were working professionals as doctors, midwives, nurses, governesses, teachers, beauticians, hairdressers, singers musicians, dancers and banquet masters.
Women were also prominent in business and property management. Records have been found of women managing the family lands and overseeing their cultivation, and then supervising the trade in the resulting products. This was especially true of the ruling families of the royal court. Royal wives administered temples and vast estates, royal daughters served not only as priestesses but even as the High Priestess.
Sumerian kings had promulgated codes of social justice, their laws protecting the widow, the orphan, the weak and decreeing that you shal not take away the donkey of a widow or you shall not delay the wages of a day laborer. The Sumerian concept of laws intended to direct human conduct rather than punish its faults. All of that came to an end after two thousand years of Sumerians greatness with the rise of Babylon.
Now, lets us fast forward to the year 2014 almost 6000 years after Sumer. Women are being marginalized over the Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade which took place over 30 years ago. They are denied equal pay for equal work, they are denied advancement in the workplace, they are a minority in our two party system, they continue to be harassed physically and mentally in many areas of life. The list can go on and on but the people know what is happening.
Ideology has taken the spotlight and leading the charge against women and the American way of life. It is an ideology of ignorance, lies, elitism and a drive to convert the life of freedom into a life of fear. It is a ideology of division, divide and conquer. Void of ideas and compassion and a lack of courage to debate the issues. What happened in Sumer thousands of years ago should matter to all who seek a better life for all its people, its children and generations to come. The Sumerians said they were taught that understanding the past is the key to a better future. A failure to do so will doom the future to be like the past.
Ideology in governing has no place in American life. The record of the past three decades has proven that. Is ideology as practiced today a prelude to what happened to the great Sumerian civilization. That is a question we should all ponder.
This commentary written by John Lucia.
