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Martha Shelley, author of THE THRONE IN THE HEART OF THE SEA, is a prolific writer on the intersection of women’s issues, politics and religion. She has spent the last few years researching the historical and religious role of women in the Bible to better understand today’s controversies created by the efforts for a more inclusive and powerful role for women in society and religious life. We will focus on the story of the original bad girl of the Bible, Jezebel. How has her story affected women throughout the centuries? Would the biblical stories be different if women had written them? How can religion inspire the women’s movement?
A Tale of Power, Peril, and Passion,
Set in the Turbulent Middle East of the Ninth Century, BC
The Throne in the Heart of the Sea
A Novel by Martha Shelley
Who was Jezebel? Thanks to the Bible, her name has become synonymous with a wicked woman of sexually scandalous character. Few know that Jezebel was a Phoenician princess who became the Queen of Israel. Fewer still know the story of her arch-enemy, Elijah the Prophet.
A prolific writer on women’s issues, politics, and religion, Martha Shelley discovered Jezebel about thirty years ago while studying the history of her people-the Jewish people. Intrigued, she vowed to find the real woman behind the Biblical bad girl and one day tell Jezebel’s side of the story.
1. Why should people read this book?
First and perhaps most important, because its a great read. Its very entertaining. Second, because it gives us a picture of the ancient Middle East, and were very involved in the Middle East. Some of the customs I describe persist to this day among traditional Beduin, for instance the way marriage negotiations are conducted. And even when the customs have changed, the attitudes behind them remain the same, not just among Arabs but also in Jewish and Christian societies.
2. You spent many years doing research for this novel. Why was it so important for you to have all the historical facts and details for this book?
The majority of novels about ancient Israel start with the assumption that the Biblical account is correct. Since Im disputing a significant part of that account, at least in the case of Jezebel, I needed to be as accurate and credible as possible. And I also wanted to portray her world as completely as one can in a novel. What did the ancients eat, how did they manufacture things, what were their religious practices really like? I wanted to give the reader real human beings, not plaster saints and cardboard villains.
3. Jezebel is the biblical bad girl. Do you think she has gotten an unfair reputation over the centuries? Why do you feel it necessary to redeem her to a modern audience?
The bad girl image was grafted onto Jezebel 300 years after her death, when the Books of Kings were written. During her lifetime she was honored — you can see that in Psalm 45. It is a praise-song about the wedding between a princess of Tyre and the king of Israel, and the only Tyrian princess who married an Israelite king was Jezebel. That psalm is like a fingerprint that the thieves who stole her reputation forgot to erase. Why is it important? Because these images, these cultural archetypes, are transmitted from one generation to the next and affect how women see themselves, how men see women, and how we treat each other.
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4. Elijah is her arch-enemy. You present him differently as well. Why?
Elijah is a pivotal figure in Judaism, where he is supposed to return to herald the coming of the Messiah; in Christian tradition he already returned as John the Baptist. The Bible presents him as a full-blown prophet and miracle worker. I dont believe in miracles, so I started with him as a teenager, self-absorbed and furious over the injustices he has personally suffered. Later on he can mature into the champion of all those who suffer injustice.
5. In your novel, Elijah occasionally uses language that we cant repeat over the air. Some readers may find it startling. Why did you choose to do that?
Theres some pretty raw language in the Hebrew Bible but it doesnt get translated, so the characters in most Biblical novels tend to speak in a very stilted, cleaned-up King James English. Jezebel is a princess, so she doesnt curse. Elijah is an angry young farm boy. Some of the street kids in my novel are even more foul-mouthed. Again, I wanted to present real people, in world so real you can almost smell it.
6. As a writer and scholar, do you think the Bible and other religious texts unfairly categorize women as either saints or fallen women? How can we move past such a binary?
Biblical woman are a lot more complicated than the question implies. There are fallen women like Eve, obedient and therefore saintly women like Esther, and military champions like Deborah. We also have matriarchs like Sarah, Rachel, and Leah, who are portrayed as jealous of their husbands affections and conniving on behalf of their sons. But most of the women are missing: fathers beget sons, and the names of the mothers are forgotten. The problem is that the perspective is almost entirely male, and womens actions are judged according to how they affect the interests of the men around them.
7. Do you think women would be portrayed differently in religious texts if women were telling the stories?
Of course: in the Bible, the Book of Ruth may be the work of a female author, possibly edited by a man later on. It shows two childless widows struggling to survive in a patriarchal society, where land is passed down from father to son. There are also ancient hymns to goddesses, texts a lot older than the Bible, and I suspect a lot of them were written by women. The rules would be different, too. In Jewish and Islamic law, a man has the right to divorce his wife, but not vice versa.
8. What are your feelings about womens roles in society today? Do mainstream religions reinforce traditional expectations and stereotypes of women or can religion be a source of liberation?
Modern women are still struggling with the stereotypes and expectations that have come down to them in the form of religion, mythology, and literature. Take a look at the arena where sex and power intersect — the king can have concubines, the wives and concubines must be faithful. Can you imagine what would happen to Nancy Pelosi or Hillary Clinton if they were caught with boyfriends half her age? Male politicians may be disgraced, but they can always make a comeback, and their wives stand by them even in the most humiliating situations. To answer your second question, if religion is to be a source of liberation, we have to rewrite it. Which is what Im trying to do.
9. How should people interpret the Bible if the text is skewed by patriarchal bias?
Every generation interprets the Bible — people interpreted it to justify slavery and also to oppose slavery. You can believe the Bible is the inalterable word of God, you can be an atheist, or anything in between, but you still have to deal with it. It is the foundation stone of our greatest art, literature, and music. All I can do, though, is share my own interpretations — you have to come to your own understanding.
10. Does the Bible and religion punish women who are powerful and strong? Why is the subjugation of women so pervasive in religious stories?
The Bible punishes certain powerful women, but not others. Judith is praised for killing a man, because her actions help Israel defeat its enemies. Jezebel is condemned because she stays faithful to the religion she was born with instead of converting to her husbands religion, and because she isnt sufficiently subordinate to him. You might as well ask, why do men feel threatened by powerful women? Why do they feel so threatened that they create entire religions and legal codes to subjugate women?
