Strong Women

 "Strong she seemed, and stern as steel, a daughter of kings." J.R.R. Tolkien, The Two Towers. 

For some peculiar reason I have always loved this quote. It seemed to me to epitomize the character of Eowyn.  Her very soul was noble, strong, and stern as steel. That is the kind of woman I aspire to be.

I have always feared that my womanly ideal was not exactly square with Scripture. We don't see a lot of women killing orcs or witch kings or falling in love with romantic heroes in Scripture. Or so I thought.

This morning I read Proverbs 31. I am so familiar with that chapter that I can quote a lot of it from memory. A very common verse suddenly stood out to me: "Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come." (verse 25) I looked at it once, then I looked at it again, and then I knew. Tolkien had taken the qualities from Proverbs 31 and applied them to Eowyn's character. Purposely or not, he had taken the Biblical ideal of a godly woman and brought her to life.

 Of course Eowyn wasn't perfect. She didn't always make wise choices, and the despair with which she secretly went to battle was not admirable. However, we see that even these bad choices were used to bring about good. (If you want to know what that good is, read the book.) Through it all, her character has strength, honor, and dignity. After she marries, her warrior woman personality melds into that of a tender and healer, someone who still acts with strength and honor but with more knowledge and wisdom. She finds her true identity in being submitted to true love rather than chasing her own glory.

Eowyn acts with strength and honor because she is of kingly lineage. She knows that she is a daughter of kings and she wishes to fulfill her noble calling. I am also a King's daughter, daughter of an even more noble and kingly line than that of the Rohirrim. Should I not also act nobly, consistent with my calling? It's an awesome thought.

The Proverbs 31 woman laughs at the time to come. She is confident because she knows who she is and what her purpose is in the world. As we go into this new year, I want to be a shieldmaiden Eowyn, strong, stern as steel. But I also want to be a redeemed, renewed Eowyn, laughing at the days to come, strong in my lineage as a King's daughter and in my identity as a strongly submitted woman.

Author's Apology:

I'm sorry if this is all a bit cheesy. I feel like I'm chasing something I cannot grasp, but which brushes against me at every turn.. I am still growing in what it means to be a woman, but I feel like that Lord has really given me something with Eowyn. She was a solace to me as a troubled mid-teen. Now, as a young adult, she is an example. I don't think I'll ever outgrow her.