| Walter Brueggemann has a way of seeing within the stories of the Old Testament a way to address the day at hand and the vision of God's Reign for us today. Again this is from the chapter, "You Cannot Fool Your Nephesh" in his book "Mandate to Difference." The memory of Israel that it repeats at Passover is of an irrepressible brick quota and an impossible production schedule. And like any driven production system, the quotas keep increasing. Every success generated more rigorous demands. You may be sure that there was no work stoppage under Pharaoh because the production apparatus was at work 24/7. You may be sure that there was not seventh day, no sabbath, no day blessed and made rich with vitality, no holy day devoted to YHWH, the Lord of the sabbath. Seen in this way, the eagerness of Israel for the Sinai commands is easy to understand. The Sinai offer was an alternative to the quota system of the empire. Now the production system would be interrupted and shut down every seventh day. Israel would rest as it never did in Egypt, because YHWH, unlike the Egyptian gods, is a God of restfulness. Our God is a God of restfulness. This is not only to be applied to the "day" of rest. We are also told that our lives can be ones that spring forth from a rest that is handed to us as promise. We need not have our days be full of things that must be done in order that we can "be somebody." We are people who are called beloved - from the get go. That word is our place of rest. This is where our anxious lives are handed a way not to spin around endlessly and what may seem to be forever. The God of liberation from Egypt liberates us from the hellishness of life that never stops demanding that we must be more, do more, and produce more. This is not an invitation to slothfulness. Rather it is the way we are invited to see the day. How am I going to be the Beloved of God today. What will come my way? What gift can I share? Who will come by me and open up my vision? How will I rest and become refreshed in the middle of a world that is dedicated to following the gods of productivity and surplus? Connection: How often do you feel at rest during the day - at rest in the sense that you are assured that you are beloved and thus can catch your breath by breathing in this promise from God? O God, you invite us to rest in you alone. It is not always easy. We have our agendas and the lists of things that must get done and cannot be interrupted - less we fail at the game of life. Continue to call to us and touch us and remind us to breathe in your refreshing Spirit of life. Amen. |
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