By Rev. Mark H. Creech
May 9, 2003

(AgapePress) - Variations of the tale are found in the folklore of Eastern Europe, but it was said to have happened during the Middle Ages in Germany. The year was 1141 and Wolf, the duke of Bavaria, was besieged inside his castle of Weinsberg by the army of Frederick, and his brother the emperor Konrad.

The siege had lasted long and Wolf realized he had no choice but to surrender. Messengers rode back and forth, terms were proposed, conditions allowed and arrangements completed. Wolf and his army prepared to give themselves over to their bitter enemy.

But the wives of Weinsberg were not prepared to lose everything. They sent a message to Konrad, asking the governor to promise safe passage for all women in the garrison, that they might come out with as many of their valuables as they could carry on their backs.

The request was graciously granted, and soon the castle gates opened. Out came the women -- but not as supposed. They carried neither gold nor jewels on their backs, but each one of them was bending under the weight of her husband, whom she hoped to save from the vengeance of the conquering army.

Konrad was so moved by this extraordinary act that he made peace with the duke of Bavaria on much more favorable terms than expected.

The castle mount was afterward known as the Hill of Weibertreue, or "woman's fidelity."

There has never been a time in the history of our nation when there was a greater need for women like the wives of Weinsburg. Some might accuse me of fanciful language and exaggeration, but I say that America's fate rests squarely on the backs of its wives and mothers.

Let the feminists say what they will, but the emancipation of womanhood began with Christianity. Jesus clearly showed his regard for women. He sought out the woman of Samaria. He spent much time in the home of Mary and Martha. Luke 8 speaks of "certain women" whom he had healed and who, in turn, "ministered to him of their substance." It was to women that Christ first appeared after his resurrection. Christ ushered women into a new place of dignity and crowned them with a new glory. And wherever the Christian evangel has gone for two millennia, womanhood has been exalted as sacred and the noblest function of life.

Nevertheless, in recent years there has been a concerted effort to pull women down from the lofty throne to which Christ exalted them and place them on an equal footing with men. Yet wherever Christianity flourished, for 2,000 years she had not been equal -- she had been superior. She was considered to be of finer clay and more in touch with the angels of God. Men bowed before her in adoration.

In his classic sermon, Keepers of the Springs, the late great Peter Marshall makes this point, adding, "And so it is, that in the name of broadminded tolerance a man's vices have now become a woman's ... tolerance has won for woman the right to become intoxicated ... the right to have alcoholic breath ... the right to smoke ... to work like a man ... to act like a man ... for is she not man's equal? Today they call it "progress" ... but tomorrow -- oh ... they must be made to see that it is not progress. No nation has ever made progress in a downward direction. No people ever became great by lowering their standards. No people ever became good by adopting a looser morality. It is not progress when the moral tone is lower than it was. It is not progress when purity is not as sweet. It is not progress when womanhood has lost its fragrance. Whatever else it is, it is not progress! We need [women] who will realize that what is socially correct may not be morally right. Our country needs today women who will lead us back to an old-fashioned morality ... to old-fashioned decency ... to old-fashioned purity and sweetness for the sake of the next generation, if for no other reason."

Ironically, those words were written more than a half-century ago, but they have never been more true. There are presently voices in our nation that call for the woman to assert herself. "Demand your rights," they contend. "You have been subservient long enough. Demand liberation from the responsibilities of a housewife and motherhood, and reach your full potential." The implication is that the woman who gives herself sacrificially for her husband and children is some sort of second-class citizen, an underling who never quite makes it. Women, they say, must be liberated to enjoy the fruits of greater pursuits. These voices, like a great army, have besieged our land and we have all but nearly completely surrendered to them.

Once more we need the wives of Weinsberg to rise up and show that few positions in life are as demanding as that of the wife and mother. She sacrifices to make the home attractive, to do the laundry, cook the food, care for the children, and care for her husband's personal needs. Nevertheless, her sacrifice gives her life a depth and dignity that cannot be had in any other way. Moreover, the very fate of the nation rests upon her shoulders -- on how well she performs her unique and incomparable role in life. She is in many respects the hope of the nation.

The script of an old play sums it up well: "The wife and mother in her office holds the key of the soul; and she it is who stamps the coin of character and makes the being who would be a savage, but for her gentle cares, a Christian man or woman! Then crown her the queen of the world."

Yes, indeed! Crown her; exalt her again to her rightful place -- the Hill of Weibertreue.