The Bible Story that is a Tribute to Women

Icon of Ruth and Naomi

The Book of Ruth has always been a popular section of the bible that holds a special appeal to women for a variety of reasons.  It is a testament of female self-sufficiency and of a close relationship between strong, resourceful women.  The richness of this story even extends to championing outcasts and oppressed people, while Ruth's example also serves as a tribute to the dignity of labor.

It is established at the beginning of this story that Ruth is not an Israelite by birth but rather a Moabite, ironically a people who were not even friends with the Israelites.  But in a plot twist of God's will, she has married a Judahite (a Hebrew person from the tribe of Judah).  With this marriage, Ruth has accepted the people of Israel as her own, moreover she has adopted the God of Israel as her own. 

These convictions are greatly tested when both she and her sister-in-law, another Moabitess, experience the deaths of their Israelite husbands.  Their mother-in-law, Naomi, had also lost her own husband, Elimelech.  The three women are left to figure out how they will survive.  Given the era in which they live, a time when women were completely dependent upon the support of men, this was especially problematic.  At first, both daughters-in-law want to stay with Naomi.  But Naomi cannot provide for them and doesn't even have any other son that either daughter-in-law could take to replace the one lost; no man means no source of support nor continuing family legacy--they are literally left with nothing!  So Naomi urges her daughters-in-law to go back to their own people.  One daughter-in-law reluctantly agrees and leaves Naomi alone with the other daughter-in-law, Ruth.  But Ruth is completely devoted to Naomi and refuses to leave her, demonstrating their strong and special relationship. (RUTH 1:16-17) 

As the elder, Naomi knows she must devise a way to provide security for herself and Ruth.  With their strength of determination and resourcefulness, Naomi takes Ruth back to Judah where Naomi's late husband owned property.  But claiming this land and continuing the family lineage are tied together; Naomi knows that there exists the requirement of a close relative (usually the dead man's brother) to marry the widow of the deceased in order to continue his family line (DEUTERONOMY 25:5-10).  Naomi is too old to have more children, so both women agree to position Ruth for this purpose.  But since there is no direct heir through Naomi's late husband, Elimelech, to inherit his land, Naomi must wisely seek out an appropriate member of their extended family that would qualify for a "Levirate-like" marriage for Ruth  (adhering to the custom by which a man may be obliged to marry his brother's widow).  The proper selection would ensure them in their claim to the land with the support that it provides, along with the carrying on the family lineage for future security. 

Naomi decides on a wealthy relation that owns a lot of land of his own, whose name is Boaz.  Since it is harvest season, Naomi puts her plan in motion by directing Ruth to go to work on Boaz's land gleaning barley from the reapers.  The women are true partners in this endeavor; Ruth exhibits her loyalty to Naomi by following her instructions.  Ruth performs an admirable work ethic, working Boaz's field of barley without rest from morning to night.  Her tireless dedication is noticed by Boaz.  She works through the harvest season, steadfastly gleaning and gathering by the handfuls the leftover barley after the reapers.  Day in and day out, Ruth not only works hard but additionally proves endless devotion to her mother-in-law by saving a portion of her daily food allotment for Naomi's consumption.

Boaz is in admiration of Ruth's efforts.  He commends her on her bravery to leave all she had known in her native land behind to stay with Naomi.  He rewards her allegiance and faithful labor by making sure she is treated respectfully by his other laborers along with her receiving an equal share of the grain.  Boaz invites Ruth to eat with him and even extends her a greater territory in which to glean.  He orders protection of her so that other laborers do not reprimand her for this greater access. Ruth maintains her dedicated work ethic and virtue to be worthy of Boaz.  Despite having just been a servant in his field, through hard work and loyalty she earns the suitability to become his wife. 

Boaz rewards Ruth with a gift of barley as a sign of "redemption".  Naomi is excited, it looks like her plan of arranging a "Levirate-like" marriage for Ruth from the extended family worked and that she and Ruth will be taken care of!

But a complication arises when another, besides Boaz, surfaces who happens to be a closer relative to Elimelech.  His position gives him the first claim on Naomi and Elimelech's property.  Custom requires that land stays in the family, although a family could mortgage land to ward off poverty; yet law required a kinsman to purchase it back into the family (Leviticus 25:25).  This near kinsman aims to take advantage of this law and buy the land.  The women are disappointed; there is no offer of a "Levirate-like" marriage and they now worry that their plans for a secure future have fallen through.

But with Ruth having successfully won favor with Boaz, he steps in to advocate for her and her mother-in-law.

Boaz meets this near kinsman at the city gate, a location famous for settling contracts. This kinsman first says he'll purchase Naomi and Elimelech's land but when he hears he must also marry Ruth, he withdraws the offer. 

Boaz then satisfies custom by marrying Ruth and becomes the "kinsman's redeemer".  

Ruth and Naomi partnered to succeed with their plans despite Deuteronomy 23:3-6 which excludes any Ammonite or Moabite from the congregation of the Lord (joining the Israelites).  They were able to do this because Ruth had already set a precedent of exception by having married Naomi's son, a Judahite, and with her regarding herself a member of his family even after his death she was able to proceed in her marrying another Judahite.  This not only benefited the two women, but also went on to benefit all of God's people; both Boaz and Ruth become the ancestors of David and--resultingly--of Jesus Christ Himself.  As such, Ruth teaches Jews and Christians alike how outsiders can become good, exemplary followers and there is no reason to exclude them.

That is why this section of scripture is held in great esteem by both Jews and Christians.  For Jews, who fall under the category of Jews-by-choice, this book uniquely addresses the difficulty of trying to apply the laws given in books such as Deuteronomy which excludes outsiders.  For Christians, Ruth prefigures being the outsider who is grafted into joining the ranks of God's chosen people.   

Her story that she shares with Naomi makes The Book of Ruth one of the greatest mother-daughter stories ever told.  Women continue to celebrate it as a tribute to what godly women can accomplish, not the least of which was setting into place a descendancy celebrated by Jews and Christians that eventually went on to change the world!

The Morning Brew Book Review: THE SECRET CHORD by Geraldine Brooks

Welcome to the Christian Coffee Clutch's first edition of "The Morning Brew Book Review"!

Introduction

Although I am an Orthodox Christian and this blog is primarily for Christian camaraderie, nonetheless with the commonalities and crossovers of other major religions there is certainly a place at this table for all people of faith and even for those just curious about religion in general.  I see such diversity as a strength for connecting, not a weakness of ambiguity.  Our coffee clutch is not really about pushing pluralism, it is more about the awe of discovery.  I have found that during my own interfaith dialogue experiences, not only did I learn about another person’s faith beliefs while they also learned something about mine, I unintentionally ended up reaping an increased knowledge about my own religion.  At such times, when my counterpart brought up a point that I had not considered or did not know much about, I would say to myself, “That’s interesting!  I wonder what my own religion’s approach is to that very same point?”  I would then go back to my Orthodox Christian sources and gain the benefit of being further schooled.

The Secret Chord by Geraldine Brooks 

Hits the High Note

Such was the fascination I felt and rewarding education I obtained as an Orthodox Christian reading Geraldine Brook’s The Secret Chord (published by Viking - An imprint of Penguin Ran House LLC, 2015).  This is a story about the life of the Old Testament's King David as seen through the eyes of his court prophet, Nathan.  However, it is not the Christian Old Testament account of King David's story, but rather in this version Ms. Brooks follows what has been recorded about David’s life as revealed in Jewish sources which include the Tanakh and the Talmud.   I had much appreciation for the obvious research Ms. Brooks did to construct the foundation of her story about this consequential point in ancient times, which makes for a must-read for any true lover of history no matter if that reader is a practitioner of any religion or even one who practices no religion at all.

While there exists no source that supplies solid and thorough information about David’s complete life story, Ms. Brooks took the numerous informational dots she had collected and connects them with the blending in of her own unique created brand of entertainment.  Her story is a captivating—and just as important, plausible—rendition of describing events like the violent battles, or even of a horrific rape, in disturbing graphic detail.  She also paints each scene in her own poetic style to add vibrancy to the historic story settings. Ms. Brooks also craftily reveals critical character motivation even for the most controversial figures (David being chief among them) along with their page-turning development.  All of these components work together to unfold her own exclusive and plausible story of David in its entirety.   For historical fiction in general and biblical historical fiction in specific, plausibility is key.  Ms. Brooks leaves the reader feeling that it all really could have happened that way.

Naturally, there are moments in “The Secret Chord” that are not in line with my own faith’s beliefs.  One example being that Orthodox Christianity does not officially hold the view that there existed a homosexual relationship between David and Jonathan.  This is not due to homophobia or heterophobia as Orthodox Christianity does not preach either; there is just no supporting evidence found in our scripture for it.  Even in David’s Song of Lamentation the language describing their relationship is interpreted as a powerful profession of love and grief with no explicit sexual suggestion.  Whether by reason of doctrine or dramatic license, Ms. Brooks’ story took a different view on this as well as some other points, but none of which interferes with nor detracts from the enjoyment of her story. 

Another layer of interest I found is a personal one.  I, too, albeit as someone with a different faith prospective but as someone who shares Ms. Brooks’ passion for David’s story, have authored a book about David and Michal, "CONDEMNATION: The Calamity of Israel's First Crown" which will be published by Archway, a division of Simon & Schuster, and made available in 2018.  Given Michal’s tragic life, along with how women were characterized and treated, David and Michal’s story is not an easy one to write for any female of today’s world.  As such, it was especially interesting for me as a female to see another woman’s take not just on the tragedy of Michal, but also on the belittlement of women evident in the treatment of them as well as additionally showcased in the amount of polygamy that occurred.  There is also the challenge of considering the justification for the excessive amount of  bloodshed, of the innocent along with the guilty.  I found it refreshing that Ms. Brooks did not gloss over such subjects but approached each of them by tactfully opening the door to some healthy debate, acknowledging the complexity while even offering critique.

While I have constructed a very different angle on the lives of David and Michal in my upcoming book, I have aimed to also achieve the same entertaining plausibility that Ms. Brooks has accomplished.  And I hope to attract a diversity in readership that “The Secret Chord” has proven, as I have attested to, is possible.