I've been struggling (in general, and with this last part of the chapter, specifically) all week. Not because conceiving a child at 90 is such a stretch - it is, of course, but probably no more or less so than speaking the universe into existence - but because of the whole Isaac v. Ishmael issue.
I get that the point is not one son versus another, so much as it is My Way versus God's way. To me, though, I struggle not to read the whole thing as: some people are chosen, some are not. And I guess I should struggle: I'm not seeing a lot of reason to read this passage differently, other than, "I don't like that."
Looking at 17:20-21, I get that Ishmael gets a blessing, too. I see that. But which is the point here -- the generations that follow them, or the covenant with God? In the first half of the chapter, I really feel like a key point is that what really matters is God's covenant, His establishing Himself as Abraham's God. Why doesn't Ishmael get that, too? Isn't that more important than being the father of these nations? Without it, isn't his blessing a consolation prize at best, and totally meaningless at worst?
Having said that, I can kind of see how my perspective here is 1. skewed by my feelings that a kind of racism has leaked into the Christian view of Arab versus Jew and 2. totally limited by the fact that I can only see parts of this story God is telling, here. I mean, if Christ came for the non-Jews, for those who were not chosen, then seeing the Arabs as singled out as not bound to God by a covenant is wrong. In reality, they are just as bound as my Gentile ass -- which is to say, not at all.
I guess that the purpose and meaning of Christ really hinges on this distinction: one group has a covenant and one doesn't. Someone needs to, so that we can see this aspect of God -- the God who commits Himself wholly to a specific chi;d. Ishmael WON'T work, not because he is less than Isaac, but because God has chosen just this thing for Isaac. That level of devotion is a part of God.
So Christ didn't come to ameliorate these people who were not as good as the Jews, then: He came to point at what God has given them, that significance, that attention, and to say: God is that. Not just for them, but for you. In a way, for you He is more than that, because He never made a covenant with you -- but here You are, loved and made perfect in Him. And that may be the source of all those stories about the last-minute vineyard workers, the first being last, and vice versa. Not that Ishmael is left out, but that God has something else -- not the covenant -- for him. For him, God has the Gospel.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Gen 17 Part 2: Covenant God
How do I screw up Genesis 17? For me, a faux-Jew steeped in somewhat unsubstantiated readings of the Old Testament (thanks, Creation Science!), I stumble in two general directions. One, I can write off the whole thing because God's covenant with the Jews does not technically apply to me. Two, I can appropriate the whole thing since, by virtue of Christ, I am now a one of Abraham's descendants.
Alternately, and in keeping with my goal for today (and probably tomorrow), I can look at Genesis 17 and the idea of a covenant God as critical to me, even though that covenant (this covenant, here) is not intended for me. Because really: am I reading the Bible to find out about me, or am I reading it to find out about God? Whether or not this passage applies to me, personally, it does tell me a lot, I think, about my God.
Such as: God is not a free-lunch God. The fact that we have nothing to offer Him does not dissuade Him from commanding a commitment, because participation in God is a blessing for us. So He says: you must keep My covenant. And, to clarify that this is not about God needing from us, from Abraham, He specifies a covenant that is all about us, that symbolizes our commitment (Abraham's commitment) to do things exactly as God asks, to give God exactly what God requires. Not because God hates foreskin, but because God loves discipline, and discipline, I think, is nothing if it is not the practice of treating what is minor as significant. It does matter if God asks for an animal or a plant as a sacrifice; it does matter if God asks you to circumcise yourself and you don't. Because when you do these things, you indicate that you get it, that you know to Whom you belong.
And here is the beautiful thing: God's not doing this because He's a control freak who wants to own and thwart and control you. He does it because we already belong to Him. That's not His preference; that's the natural order of things. And because we belong to Him, our greatest peace lies in holding onto that sense of belonging. We need to feel like we are participating in it or it is possession, it is control. By establishing a covenant, God says: we are each other's, freely. I wouldn't ask you to be my property; I am only telling you that you are Mine. That you belong to Me, and that that belonging is the only means through which the world can make sense, because to deny it is to deny yourself, as much as it is to deny me. You can't not be Mine; so here is how we can be one another's. And through belonging to me, your flesh, which is temporary, carries an everlasting covenant. By belonging to me, you become what you are meant to be. When you are part of my covenant, you are most fully and wonderfully yourself, because you become exactly what you are intended to be.
Alternately, and in keeping with my goal for today (and probably tomorrow), I can look at Genesis 17 and the idea of a covenant God as critical to me, even though that covenant (this covenant, here) is not intended for me. Because really: am I reading the Bible to find out about me, or am I reading it to find out about God? Whether or not this passage applies to me, personally, it does tell me a lot, I think, about my God.
Such as: God is not a free-lunch God. The fact that we have nothing to offer Him does not dissuade Him from commanding a commitment, because participation in God is a blessing for us. So He says: you must keep My covenant. And, to clarify that this is not about God needing from us, from Abraham, He specifies a covenant that is all about us, that symbolizes our commitment (Abraham's commitment) to do things exactly as God asks, to give God exactly what God requires. Not because God hates foreskin, but because God loves discipline, and discipline, I think, is nothing if it is not the practice of treating what is minor as significant. It does matter if God asks for an animal or a plant as a sacrifice; it does matter if God asks you to circumcise yourself and you don't. Because when you do these things, you indicate that you get it, that you know to Whom you belong.
And here is the beautiful thing: God's not doing this because He's a control freak who wants to own and thwart and control you. He does it because we already belong to Him. That's not His preference; that's the natural order of things. And because we belong to Him, our greatest peace lies in holding onto that sense of belonging. We need to feel like we are participating in it or it is possession, it is control. By establishing a covenant, God says: we are each other's, freely. I wouldn't ask you to be my property; I am only telling you that you are Mine. That you belong to Me, and that that belonging is the only means through which the world can make sense, because to deny it is to deny yourself, as much as it is to deny me. You can't not be Mine; so here is how we can be one another's. And through belonging to me, your flesh, which is temporary, carries an everlasting covenant. By belonging to me, you become what you are meant to be. When you are part of my covenant, you are most fully and wonderfully yourself, because you become exactly what you are intended to be.
Monday, April 12, 2010
Genesis 17: I GOT you!
In another, more scholarly life, I got to sit in amphitheaters and lecture halls and reflect on the nature of God. One of those philosophers -- Aquinas? Kierkegaard? -- made the point that the question of why God does what He does, is moot, because any life, just or unjust, is more than we deserve.
I feel like that is correct, but unfair -- unnecessary. God could be justified in saying, I do what I WANT! But that's not God here, in Genesis.
It gets to be such a cliche, to Old Testament - New Testament Good Cop Bad Cop routine. But here, squarely in the Old Testament, is God, not only establishing a covenant, but making clear that that covenant is the whole point, is who He is with respect to us. His point is not the shame-filled one I've been treated to since childhood -- ie, who are you to think God would give you anything, anyway? It is, I am committed to You, and I'm not going to write off that commitment because I am God and you are in no position to ask questions. You don't have to skulk off, passive aggressive: Well I guess wanting my own kid was asking too much, I'll let You off the hook. You don't have to accept less than what you wanted because you should have known better than to trust Me, because it's not like I owed you in the first place. You just have to get out of the way, pay attention, and let Me do for you what you've been saying you wanted all along.
That's the thing in these first verses of Genesis 17 -- the thing through which Job, Christ, the Gospels, my own life, need to be read: before we learned to hate ourselves and call it humility, before Job suffered and got told off and we ran with it, here is God saying, clearly, I am your God. I am your God. I am yours. Before we get to the small, symbolic, marginal commitments I ask from you, let Me tell you about the hugeness I'm offering up: I am giving Myself to you, to be your God. Everything you wanted -- meaning, context, transcendence, belonging -- I am giving you that. If what you wanted was everything - I am giving you the Source of everything.
I can do that, because I'm God. I can tell you, and I am telling you, I'm yours. You can have whatever you like. And you don't have to do any kind of accounting, don't have to calculate: am I worthy, what must I do... because the everything that I ultimately will inspire you to give Me, is nothing compared to what you are asking of Me. Just align yourself with Me. Just walk before Me, and I will cover your steps, and you will be blameless. Stop trying so hard. I've got you.
That is a covenant God. One Who, regardless of the craziness you've pulled, and in the moment were you are arrogant enough to believe that even the most abbreviated, circumscribed life could every be you, making it on your own, looks at you and says: I got you. We are in covenant. We were in covenant all along. And all those things that looked like you, being let down, being alone, were just you, missing the boat. But it's okay. Because now I am here. I am yours. There literally is nothing else you could want.
I feel like that is correct, but unfair -- unnecessary. God could be justified in saying, I do what I WANT! But that's not God here, in Genesis.
It gets to be such a cliche, to Old Testament - New Testament Good Cop Bad Cop routine. But here, squarely in the Old Testament, is God, not only establishing a covenant, but making clear that that covenant is the whole point, is who He is with respect to us. His point is not the shame-filled one I've been treated to since childhood -- ie, who are you to think God would give you anything, anyway? It is, I am committed to You, and I'm not going to write off that commitment because I am God and you are in no position to ask questions. You don't have to skulk off, passive aggressive: Well I guess wanting my own kid was asking too much, I'll let You off the hook. You don't have to accept less than what you wanted because you should have known better than to trust Me, because it's not like I owed you in the first place. You just have to get out of the way, pay attention, and let Me do for you what you've been saying you wanted all along.
That's the thing in these first verses of Genesis 17 -- the thing through which Job, Christ, the Gospels, my own life, need to be read: before we learned to hate ourselves and call it humility, before Job suffered and got told off and we ran with it, here is God saying, clearly, I am your God. I am your God. I am yours. Before we get to the small, symbolic, marginal commitments I ask from you, let Me tell you about the hugeness I'm offering up: I am giving Myself to you, to be your God. Everything you wanted -- meaning, context, transcendence, belonging -- I am giving you that. If what you wanted was everything - I am giving you the Source of everything.
I can do that, because I'm God. I can tell you, and I am telling you, I'm yours. You can have whatever you like. And you don't have to do any kind of accounting, don't have to calculate: am I worthy, what must I do... because the everything that I ultimately will inspire you to give Me, is nothing compared to what you are asking of Me. Just align yourself with Me. Just walk before Me, and I will cover your steps, and you will be blameless. Stop trying so hard. I've got you.
That is a covenant God. One Who, regardless of the craziness you've pulled, and in the moment were you are arrogant enough to believe that even the most abbreviated, circumscribed life could every be you, making it on your own, looks at you and says: I got you. We are in covenant. We were in covenant all along. And all those things that looked like you, being let down, being alone, were just you, missing the boat. But it's okay. Because now I am here. I am yours. There literally is nothing else you could want.
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