A story for mean-spirited times
Commentary
In the decade of the 50s, when one biblical epic after another came out of Hollywood, 20th Century Fox produced the story of Ruth. This was a period in film making that the Christian Century dubbed "the biblical misrepresentation cycle." The biblical story was altered. Samuel G. Engel, the producer, felt the biblical story was weak because he thought it was really the story of Naomi and because in the story the course of love ran too smoothly. To add more popular interest he created a character to rival Boaz for the hand of Ruth. In this decade of the 90s one shudders at the thought of what other additions a contemporary producer might insert.
Actually, the producer was on to something when he sensed the strength in the story to be elsewhere than in the meeting of Ruth and Boaz. The producer sensed Naomi's strength. He missed Ruth's grit and courage and the bonding of the two determined women made vulnerable by a shared bereavement yet courageously assuming responsibility for themselves and taking a risky journey back to Israel. At the hands of the author Ruth looms before us as a heroine of the community of faith on a par with Abraham. A novella portraying two strong women is unusual in a male-dominated society. Nor must we miss the author's constant reminder that Ruth was a Moabitess.
The lesson from Hebrews carries on the author's presentation of Jesus as high priest. I refer you to last week's comments of the epistle lesson. If you opt to use this week's lesson, prepare well via background study and proceed with caution.
After a series of adversarial encounters with and trick questions posed by his opponents Jesus has a cordial meeting with a scribe. The scribe actually pays Jesus a professional compliment and elicits respect from Jesus. This meeting of Jesus and the scribe narrated in our gospel lesson catches our attention precisely because it is an encounter of another kind.
Sermon Seeds In The Lessons
Ruth 1:1-18
Any reader picking up a story whose locale is the time when the Judges ruled in Israel might well expect a tale of blood and battles. Those were fearsome days when the disjointed Hebrew tribes were vulnerable to the raids of predatory neighbors, and attack and reprisal, offense and revenge were the order of the day. A reading of Judges would prepare one for such an expectation. Instead, a beautiful story of love, loyalty, and courage ensues as two women out of a common grief forge a journey into a new future. The late Maurice Samuel, author and lecturer, called Ruth the loveliest of love stories in the Bible and noted that it was the story of a love between two women. Some admirable human capabilities emerge in the story of these two women.
Placed where it is in our canon, immediately after Judges, Ruth is the sort of story we need to read after plowing through pages of blood and battles. Just as after we have absorbed the daily headlines reporting stories of crimes and battles we need to hear about the heroism of ordinary people and love that goes beyond self. Those stories are being enacted also and we need to know that to keep our perspective. Noting the fact that they are daughters of nations often hostile to one another reminds us of the human possibility of transcending caste and nation. Does this suggest any possibility for the preacher?
The story of Ruth was written and circulated in a mean-spirited time. Ezra and Henemiah were building exclusionary walls. Determined to preserve the purity of the faith, edicts were being issued to force Jewish men with foreign wives to send their wives and children away (Ezra 9:1-113, 10:1-3, 44). Ruth the Moabitess will be the grandmother of King David. There is foreign blood in the royal lineage of Israel. This is the subtle time bomb in the story.
There is something even more surprising. The writer places Ruth on a par with another Gentile who went on a journey to a strange land: Abraham. The comparison to Abraham is there. Ruth goes out as he did, but without benefit of a Divine promise and without the family and resources of Abraham. In her confession of faith and her loyalty to Naomi she is an Israelite par excellence. This is a revolutionary portrait in a patriarchal society. It also flies in the face of inherited bias. "No Ammonite or Moabite shall be admitted to the assembly of the Lord. Even to the tenth generation, none of their descendants shall be admitted to the assembly of the Lord" (Deuteronomy 23:3).
The book of Ruth abounds in suggestions for the preacher. Bear in mind this is an ancestress of Jesus. The point of destination of the risky journey of Ruth and Naomi is Bethlehem. Can we make anything out of that?
Hebrews 9:11-14
Preachers in the act of teaching or proclamation try to make use of illustrations that are within the sphere of the hearer's experience, and all illustrations carry both limitations and risks. It is in such a way that the writer of Hebrews addresses his congregation. He uses the liturgy and rituals of the old Jewish sacrificial cultures in speaking of the ministry and death of Jesus but fills those terms with radically new meaning. In this passage he is using a "how much more" sort of comparison as Jesus often did (Matthew 6:30, 7:11). Here the writer compares the old with the new. If the old rituals were not without value to the worshipper how much more valuable as a commanding and purifying influence of conscience is the example of Jesus whose life energy (i.e. "his blood") was totally committed to doing the will of God. The thought here is not of some bloody transaction that effects an atonement. The witness is to the atonement God who draws near to us in Jesus that we might be drawn near to him.
Mark 12:28-34
The scribes were the custodians of the juridical and theological traditions of Israel. They were highly trained teachers most of whom lived off of subsidies from pupils or patrons. Only the temple scribes were paid out of the temple treasury. While some were covetous, some overly ambitious, some inadequate, the majority pursued their ministries faithfully. They were a mixed bag like the clergy of any day and age. We want to say this for many still understand the scribes as "the bad guys." Paul and Barnabas came out of scribal circles.
This scribe was courteous and obviously a person open to dialogue and not afraid of examining his own beliefs. He is open to Jesus and Jesus treats him with respect. This is not so often the case today where there are noisy and self-righteous voices on all sides of major public questions and trashing others is a technique of debate. This scribe is not unlike many who may be in the pews each Sunday, having questions about the creeds of the church but open to Jesus and willing to meet the neighbor's need by volunteering to help feed the hungry. Encourage them as Jesus encouraged this man. They are not far from the kingdom. Any step we take toward Jesus puts us closer to the kingdom because it brings us closer to him, the bearer of the kingdom. Jesus left his final comment hanging in the air as if inviting further discussion.
The concluding comment of the scribe merits consideration. "... 'to love one's neighbor as oneself,' -- this is much more important than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices" (Mark 12:33b). He is saying, in effect, that what we do for our neighbors in the world is more important than what goes on inside the church. The work of the church outranks church work as a priority. This needs to be said with a caveat. Less important does not mean unimportant. The hearing of the Word, the sharing of the sacrament, prayer and hymnody sustain the community of faith in its mission. John Calvin called the worship of the church a "help to our infirmity." What does this say about the importance of preaching and liturgy?
Actually, the producer was on to something when he sensed the strength in the story to be elsewhere than in the meeting of Ruth and Boaz. The producer sensed Naomi's strength. He missed Ruth's grit and courage and the bonding of the two determined women made vulnerable by a shared bereavement yet courageously assuming responsibility for themselves and taking a risky journey back to Israel. At the hands of the author Ruth looms before us as a heroine of the community of faith on a par with Abraham. A novella portraying two strong women is unusual in a male-dominated society. Nor must we miss the author's constant reminder that Ruth was a Moabitess.
The lesson from Hebrews carries on the author's presentation of Jesus as high priest. I refer you to last week's comments of the epistle lesson. If you opt to use this week's lesson, prepare well via background study and proceed with caution.
After a series of adversarial encounters with and trick questions posed by his opponents Jesus has a cordial meeting with a scribe. The scribe actually pays Jesus a professional compliment and elicits respect from Jesus. This meeting of Jesus and the scribe narrated in our gospel lesson catches our attention precisely because it is an encounter of another kind.
Sermon Seeds In The Lessons
Ruth 1:1-18
Any reader picking up a story whose locale is the time when the Judges ruled in Israel might well expect a tale of blood and battles. Those were fearsome days when the disjointed Hebrew tribes were vulnerable to the raids of predatory neighbors, and attack and reprisal, offense and revenge were the order of the day. A reading of Judges would prepare one for such an expectation. Instead, a beautiful story of love, loyalty, and courage ensues as two women out of a common grief forge a journey into a new future. The late Maurice Samuel, author and lecturer, called Ruth the loveliest of love stories in the Bible and noted that it was the story of a love between two women. Some admirable human capabilities emerge in the story of these two women.
Placed where it is in our canon, immediately after Judges, Ruth is the sort of story we need to read after plowing through pages of blood and battles. Just as after we have absorbed the daily headlines reporting stories of crimes and battles we need to hear about the heroism of ordinary people and love that goes beyond self. Those stories are being enacted also and we need to know that to keep our perspective. Noting the fact that they are daughters of nations often hostile to one another reminds us of the human possibility of transcending caste and nation. Does this suggest any possibility for the preacher?
The story of Ruth was written and circulated in a mean-spirited time. Ezra and Henemiah were building exclusionary walls. Determined to preserve the purity of the faith, edicts were being issued to force Jewish men with foreign wives to send their wives and children away (Ezra 9:1-113, 10:1-3, 44). Ruth the Moabitess will be the grandmother of King David. There is foreign blood in the royal lineage of Israel. This is the subtle time bomb in the story.
There is something even more surprising. The writer places Ruth on a par with another Gentile who went on a journey to a strange land: Abraham. The comparison to Abraham is there. Ruth goes out as he did, but without benefit of a Divine promise and without the family and resources of Abraham. In her confession of faith and her loyalty to Naomi she is an Israelite par excellence. This is a revolutionary portrait in a patriarchal society. It also flies in the face of inherited bias. "No Ammonite or Moabite shall be admitted to the assembly of the Lord. Even to the tenth generation, none of their descendants shall be admitted to the assembly of the Lord" (Deuteronomy 23:3).
The book of Ruth abounds in suggestions for the preacher. Bear in mind this is an ancestress of Jesus. The point of destination of the risky journey of Ruth and Naomi is Bethlehem. Can we make anything out of that?
Hebrews 9:11-14
Preachers in the act of teaching or proclamation try to make use of illustrations that are within the sphere of the hearer's experience, and all illustrations carry both limitations and risks. It is in such a way that the writer of Hebrews addresses his congregation. He uses the liturgy and rituals of the old Jewish sacrificial cultures in speaking of the ministry and death of Jesus but fills those terms with radically new meaning. In this passage he is using a "how much more" sort of comparison as Jesus often did (Matthew 6:30, 7:11). Here the writer compares the old with the new. If the old rituals were not without value to the worshipper how much more valuable as a commanding and purifying influence of conscience is the example of Jesus whose life energy (i.e. "his blood") was totally committed to doing the will of God. The thought here is not of some bloody transaction that effects an atonement. The witness is to the atonement God who draws near to us in Jesus that we might be drawn near to him.
Mark 12:28-34
The scribes were the custodians of the juridical and theological traditions of Israel. They were highly trained teachers most of whom lived off of subsidies from pupils or patrons. Only the temple scribes were paid out of the temple treasury. While some were covetous, some overly ambitious, some inadequate, the majority pursued their ministries faithfully. They were a mixed bag like the clergy of any day and age. We want to say this for many still understand the scribes as "the bad guys." Paul and Barnabas came out of scribal circles.
This scribe was courteous and obviously a person open to dialogue and not afraid of examining his own beliefs. He is open to Jesus and Jesus treats him with respect. This is not so often the case today where there are noisy and self-righteous voices on all sides of major public questions and trashing others is a technique of debate. This scribe is not unlike many who may be in the pews each Sunday, having questions about the creeds of the church but open to Jesus and willing to meet the neighbor's need by volunteering to help feed the hungry. Encourage them as Jesus encouraged this man. They are not far from the kingdom. Any step we take toward Jesus puts us closer to the kingdom because it brings us closer to him, the bearer of the kingdom. Jesus left his final comment hanging in the air as if inviting further discussion.
The concluding comment of the scribe merits consideration. "... 'to love one's neighbor as oneself,' -- this is much more important than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices" (Mark 12:33b). He is saying, in effect, that what we do for our neighbors in the world is more important than what goes on inside the church. The work of the church outranks church work as a priority. This needs to be said with a caveat. Less important does not mean unimportant. The hearing of the Word, the sharing of the sacrament, prayer and hymnody sustain the community of faith in its mission. John Calvin called the worship of the church a "help to our infirmity." What does this say about the importance of preaching and liturgy?
