Does society treat women as objects or persons? Today, the Gospel gives us two different perspectives - that of the Pharisees and the scribes and the other of Jesus. The scribes and Pharisees' disregard for the woman is poignantly described, "making her stand there in full view of everybody." They add to her humiliation by making a public display of her. They cared nothing for the woman; their purpose was to trap Jesus in a dilemma. As they ask Jesus to propound the Law and thus the judgement, they demonstrated that they did not even treat her as a woman; she was a case. But Jesus saw through their malice. He knew that the woman and her situation were being exploited for theological triumph. Her life had been placed into His hands - His answer would determine her fate. Rather than be controlled by their scheme and drawn into their abuse of the woman, Jesus put the situation in its proper context. "If there is one of you who has not sinned, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." With these words Jesus identified with her; Jesus also drew His opponents to identify themselves with her. Solidarity breaks down the barrier between the guilty and the innocent. It destroys the artificial distinctions between 'them' and 'us'. Solidarity makes us see that we are all ultimately co-joined in a bond of human brokenness as well as divine grace.