By the streams of Babylon
we sat and wept
when we remembered Zion.
On the aspens of that land
we hung up our harps.
I think of the razing of Jerusalem and Solomon's Temple as the "crucifixion" of the Old Testament. It was unthinkable and unimaginable. How could God's holy city fall to an army of idolaters? How could the Only Begotten Son of God die a most ignominious death, like a common criminal, hanging on a cross and shamefully exposed to every passerby? Neither could make any sense to the devout faithful.
And yet they happened. They were undeniable historical facts with all the horrible consequences of a cruel reality.
But, mysteriously, the Jews would not stop worshipping their God even from exile in Babylon. They remained in touch with their coreligionists in faraway Egypt, and eventually throughout the world. Using standard technologies of communication and available methods of travel, with respected authorities (rabbis) but no commanding headship, they adjusted and helped each other adjust to the new reality. They became an international, stateless religion -- something the world had never seen and could not imagine.
Their persistent practice of faith made them a peculiar people among the nations, for which they were both admired and despised. Some gentiles would be attracted to their humane ethics and their reasonable worship of the One God. Others would hate them for being nonconformists, and for their practice of caring for one another even at remote distances. They didn't blend in; they created Jewish neighborhoods around their synagogues in Babylonian, Persian, Egyptian, and Roman empires. They preferred to do business with one another because their ethics and their social cohesiveness guaranteed honest dealings.
This could only be the work of God's Spirit moving among the Jewish people. While other cities and nations disappear under the wash of history, when other religions vanish without a trace, Jews persist in faith, hope, and charity. They remember their history and the God who remains with them forever.
Christians, of course, worship the same God, and also persist in that practice. Our God has been crucified but raised up. Our people have been despised but rejoiced in their suffering. We have been deeply shocked by innumerable betrayals from within out ranks, and yet we continue to worship this Crucified Lord. We belong to no nation; we have watched them rise and fall. But, because we are sent from Jerusalem by the Lord, we are loyal to our particular nations.
Often we turn back to the Lord and pray, "Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean.” You can heal me; you can teach me; you can guide me; you can reconcile me to this present moment; you can gather this shattered community into your Body.
Living as we do in a deeply divisive era, scandalized by violent racism and sexism that persist in our troubled, beloved country, we ask the Spirit of God to be with us, and help us to listen as He says again, "I do will it, be made clean!"
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I love to write. This blog helps me to meditate on the Word of God, and I hope to make some contribution to our contemplations of God's Mighty Works.
Ordinarily, I write these reflections two or three weeks in advance of their publication. I do not intend to comment on current events.
I understand many people prefer gender-neutral references to "God." I don't disagree with them but find that language impersonal, unappealing and tasteless. When I refer to "God" I think of the One whom Jesus called "Abba" and "Father", and I would not attempt to improve on Jesus' language.
You're welcome to add a thought or raise a question.