What is Ruth about? It's the work of reconciliation.
Once upon a time, Sodom doesn't get off to such a good start. perhaps a really crappy childhood. anyway Lot ends up there, bad choice. he and his daughters barely escape.
there they are the three of them in a cave and the daughters have just witnessed what they think is the destruction of the known world, and so they bravely attempt to continue it by begetting children off their father (by getting him drunk like noakh did after the destruction of HIS world. curious)
thus is Moab born. rough childhood! rough story. yhvh gave us two choices: the boring Eden choice or the difficult choice. we chose...
so anyway Moab doesnt grow up to be so nice and gives Yisro'el a hard time. well, Yisro'el doesnt play so nice either look at those poor blokes who wanted to mary in when their prince fell in love with Dina.
so we have two mortal enemies again. always this story in tanakh! why?
anyway the edict in yisro'el is that the Moabites are OFFLIMITS!
but how to get to the messiah? by way of David. how to get to David? ah.. therein lies a story...
mostly the men are off fighting battles and are too busy to get on with creating David, but the women...
when Judah's sons shirk their duty with Tamar, aren't men enough to polinate her she forces the issue with Judah himself by way of trickery, pretending to be a whore... and eventually begets one of Davids forebears. which leads us to Boaz.
And Boaz, is HE up to the task? doesn't seem to be in any hurry to do it either. Naomi's two son in laws (Boaz's cousins) were'nt enough for the task either. so finally Naomi and Ruth have to force the issue by tricking Boaz into giving birth to David's second forebear. this is mostly Ruth's doing, she's the one who was determined to come back to Yisro'el with Naomi. and she comes from? Moab.
thus we move towards the meshiach, by way of the guts and reconciliation of women.
so i say this about mashiach: he will come when we learn to accept each other's differnces and create something new out of them.
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2 comments:
I like the fact that Ruth came from the "bad" "contaminated" Moabites, but got herself into the line of descent for David, good for her if that was her goal.
The Moab story is a bit creepy, like just how "drunk" did the father have to get before he thought it was OK to sleep with his daughters? On the other hand, why was Moab a bad guy just because he was born from this situation? That wasn't his doing, let alone all the descendents further down the road.
But the main thought I have about this story, is why all this preocupation with bloodlines, and DNA when it comes to well being and happiness of the world in general?
Like the messiah will come when this particular guy gets together with this woman, and such and such specific kid is born, and then grows up and has this specific kid, etc.
Meanwhile the rest of the world waits for these special people to exist, before they can have peace and well being???
Sounds kind of classist, if you ask me, not to mention uneccessary.
How about this, the Kingdom of G-d is within you and everyone right now, right this moment, if you awake to it, and recognize it.
Peace and happiness to you and everyone who reads this.
hi Susan, thanks for your comment
I want to think up a detailed response, but right now let me say, it's about bloodlines as you say because it is a jewish story. that' is, the tora stories are ALL ABOUT the figting and reconciliateion of brothers. The tora is a dreamjournal of the history of the jewish people. trying to see more into it can be risky!
and not only brothers, but about different peoples in general. in the tora god said to humans who were building the tower of Bavel: i don't want the BORG, scatter you guys and create a lush world of radically different cultures all dear to me.
from my perspective as an Earth being, this is a good thing it is what makes Earth desirous to live on, this diversity.
but it is difficult for us humans to do. very difficult. we have the propensity to become borg.
your comment that the rest of the world is waiting for this minor reconciliation in the classist jewish line is a CHRISTIAN concept.
the christian concept adopted from the Hellenistic world is that there is a UNIVERSAL way for humans to live.
the biological evidence does not support this. Nor is it a jewish ideal. Nor is it my ideal.
do all peoples have to wait for a jewish messiah? well, first of all you must realize that i was engaging in some poetry, but note my last statement:
so i say this about mashiach: he will come when we learn to accept each other's differnces and create something new out of them.
It is not all peoples who are waiting for the jewish messiah. but it is the poetic fiction of the jewish messiah that is waiting for ALL PEOPLES to learn this act of reconciliation!
maybe my contention is that these women in tora that lead to this reconciliation are already our anointed ones, and other women around the world who do this are anointed also! no need to wait for a KING!
So how do we learn to do these acts of reconciliation? ah..
therein lies the rub. show by example. but where is the fine line between showing by example and expecting everyone to follow EXACTLY the same example?
the jews chose to show by example. In 2500 years, it seems to me, that example has not spread. the Christians chose to show by engulfing all cultures into their worldview. that lead to BORG. The Muslims also chose to reconcile tribes largely by the sword. bleah.
It is a puzzle.
how are the acts of Ruth and her decendants an example to all people? That's the challange.
how do all people awaken to the kingdom of heaven in their hearts?
how to spread the word without spreading uniformity?
humanity is a puzzle.
But at least there is poetry!
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