The Journey
Exodus
Faith is a journey, and the book of Exodus is a paradigmatic journey. It is THE formative event in the existence of Israel as a covenant people with God. As such, it comes to define the worldview of the Old Testament, and was the worldview from which Christ drew his own theology and understanding of his work and mission.
Faith is a journey. It begins when there comes a recognition that there must be something more than meets the eye. Thich Nhat Hanh, the Vietnamese monk, wrote that there are really only three reasons for anyone to begin the journey of faith:
--to find relief from suffering, comfort in distress, and assurance
--to end suffering, once and for all, finding a state of being that is peace
--to end suffering, once and for all, not just for oneself, but for all people
("Peaceful Action, Open Heart")
Exodus begins in suffering. The people of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob fell into the non-being of slavery in Egypt. They follow Moses because he promises an end to their suffering. Moses knows this is God's plan for the revelation of God's means by which to end the suffering of all as Israel becomes a witness to the world, but the people do not know that. They know only that their suffering might be at an end. So, they go.
As a journey, though, faith is not easy. The refrain that runs through Exodus is "Moses, why did you bring us in the wilderness to die?" Moses might well have sung back that horrible, terrible, no-good, very bad song from the '70s, "I Never Promised You a Rose Garden." The real journey of faith begins when the initial excitement, wonder, and bliss of finding God fades in the realization that life really does not change all that much, faith or no faith. The world struggles onward, with enough innocent suffering, injustice, and violence to last forever. Where is God? What about all of those promises? You mean, we have to WORK?
Faith is like a marriage. We marry for better and for worse; for health and in sickness; for joy and for sorrow; for plenty and for want. Marriage only works when there is a total commitment from each partner to see it through to the end, self-emptying, becoming other-centered, and, yes, enduring to see love blossom, deepen, and flourish, carrying us through the inevitable darkness that comes (and, no, I am not advocating remaining in an abusive relationship which is not marriage). Faith means staying on the journey. Moses kept marching. The people followed. They fought through outside threats--famine, thirst, the Egyptians, etc.--and they fought through the inner threats--doubt, apostasy, fear, etc. It took forty years, but they got to the Promised Land. Again, Thay Hanh helps here--"We cannot handle happiness, if we cannot handle suffering."
There were rules for the journey. The Torah, that complicated complex of regulations, rites, and requirements, that fills the end of Exodus, all of Leviticus, some of Numbers, and is repeated in Deuteronomy, is really nothing more than a guidebook for love as God defines it. Here is how to love God with one's whole being, and how to love your neighbor as yourself. Love sets the parameters for the journey and keeps us moving forward. The rules are not an end in themselves. They are not to become an idol. They are meant to teach us how to live. Love is the absolute, so when the journey thwarts the rules, calling for love in a different way, then love first, ask forgiveness second. Hence, we come to understand Christ's total impatience with strict Sabbath keeping that denied love (cf. the Man with the Withered Hand). Make love your aim.
The Promised Land may not be what we assume it to be. Imagine the horror of the Israelites to find that the supposed Land of Milk and Honey was full of people! Whoops! Joshua tells a triumphal version of the story. Joshua, taking over for Moses, leads the people in a cleansing of the Promised Land, purifying it into the land of shalom God promised. Or, for us, faith means continually cleansing ourselves of the stuff and mess of human existence that eats away at the practice of love as God defines it. At times, that means radical surgery for our souls, letting go of behaviors, associations, or distractions that keep us from the practice of love. Judges tells a more pragmatic story in which the Israelites have to learn to realize the promises of God in the midst of the people in the Promised Land. Or, for us, being faithful does not mean abandoning the world, but learning to live with it and within it.
The Promised Land is never going to be fully experienced here and now. Its promises keep us going, but the journey itself does not end until we meet with our God in the world to come. The Israelites kept journeying. Long after they found a home in Canaan, they kept journeying. Their journey continues even here and now, through the tumultuous history of the Jewish peoples.
So, too, does ours. Our paths diverged from the people of Moses with the advent of Jesus, but in so many ways, the journey became parallel. We keep seeking God. We keep seeking the answers to the three inspirations for faith mentioned above.
Keep going.
Love will guide us.
Faith is a journey, and the book of Exodus is a paradigmatic journey. It is THE formative event in the existence of Israel as a covenant people with God. As such, it comes to define the worldview of the Old Testament, and was the worldview from which Christ drew his own theology and understanding of his work and mission.
Faith is a journey. It begins when there comes a recognition that there must be something more than meets the eye. Thich Nhat Hanh, the Vietnamese monk, wrote that there are really only three reasons for anyone to begin the journey of faith:
--to find relief from suffering, comfort in distress, and assurance
--to end suffering, once and for all, finding a state of being that is peace
--to end suffering, once and for all, not just for oneself, but for all people
("Peaceful Action, Open Heart")
Exodus begins in suffering. The people of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob fell into the non-being of slavery in Egypt. They follow Moses because he promises an end to their suffering. Moses knows this is God's plan for the revelation of God's means by which to end the suffering of all as Israel becomes a witness to the world, but the people do not know that. They know only that their suffering might be at an end. So, they go.
As a journey, though, faith is not easy. The refrain that runs through Exodus is "Moses, why did you bring us in the wilderness to die?" Moses might well have sung back that horrible, terrible, no-good, very bad song from the '70s, "I Never Promised You a Rose Garden." The real journey of faith begins when the initial excitement, wonder, and bliss of finding God fades in the realization that life really does not change all that much, faith or no faith. The world struggles onward, with enough innocent suffering, injustice, and violence to last forever. Where is God? What about all of those promises? You mean, we have to WORK?
Faith is like a marriage. We marry for better and for worse; for health and in sickness; for joy and for sorrow; for plenty and for want. Marriage only works when there is a total commitment from each partner to see it through to the end, self-emptying, becoming other-centered, and, yes, enduring to see love blossom, deepen, and flourish, carrying us through the inevitable darkness that comes (and, no, I am not advocating remaining in an abusive relationship which is not marriage). Faith means staying on the journey. Moses kept marching. The people followed. They fought through outside threats--famine, thirst, the Egyptians, etc.--and they fought through the inner threats--doubt, apostasy, fear, etc. It took forty years, but they got to the Promised Land. Again, Thay Hanh helps here--"We cannot handle happiness, if we cannot handle suffering."
There were rules for the journey. The Torah, that complicated complex of regulations, rites, and requirements, that fills the end of Exodus, all of Leviticus, some of Numbers, and is repeated in Deuteronomy, is really nothing more than a guidebook for love as God defines it. Here is how to love God with one's whole being, and how to love your neighbor as yourself. Love sets the parameters for the journey and keeps us moving forward. The rules are not an end in themselves. They are not to become an idol. They are meant to teach us how to live. Love is the absolute, so when the journey thwarts the rules, calling for love in a different way, then love first, ask forgiveness second. Hence, we come to understand Christ's total impatience with strict Sabbath keeping that denied love (cf. the Man with the Withered Hand). Make love your aim.
The Promised Land may not be what we assume it to be. Imagine the horror of the Israelites to find that the supposed Land of Milk and Honey was full of people! Whoops! Joshua tells a triumphal version of the story. Joshua, taking over for Moses, leads the people in a cleansing of the Promised Land, purifying it into the land of shalom God promised. Or, for us, faith means continually cleansing ourselves of the stuff and mess of human existence that eats away at the practice of love as God defines it. At times, that means radical surgery for our souls, letting go of behaviors, associations, or distractions that keep us from the practice of love. Judges tells a more pragmatic story in which the Israelites have to learn to realize the promises of God in the midst of the people in the Promised Land. Or, for us, being faithful does not mean abandoning the world, but learning to live with it and within it.
The Promised Land is never going to be fully experienced here and now. Its promises keep us going, but the journey itself does not end until we meet with our God in the world to come. The Israelites kept journeying. Long after they found a home in Canaan, they kept journeying. Their journey continues even here and now, through the tumultuous history of the Jewish peoples.
So, too, does ours. Our paths diverged from the people of Moses with the advent of Jesus, but in so many ways, the journey became parallel. We keep seeking God. We keep seeking the answers to the three inspirations for faith mentioned above.
Keep going.
Love will guide us.
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