Today's piece is a direct follow-up to what was quoted yesterday - again from "Out of Babylon" by Walter Brueggemann.
It was an acute question for those displaced Jews, even as now the same question faces the church in the midst of empire. The question never receives a final or a simple answer. The issue is always under negotiation and review; the local tradition is always repositioning itself and, at that same time, always being imposed upon by the force of the empire. So it must have been among Jews in Babylon, hearing always again the refrain of the unwelcome poetry of divine disappointment, always again responding in grief, always again refusing to give up on that ancient rootage.
In the book of Revelation we are introduced to "the first and the last" who is also called "the alpha and the omega." It is the story that always was and always will be. It is the faithful poetry of God's Reign that will find a way to be spoken to a people who, at times, refuse to hear of such a God - or simply are so broken they need someone to come and feed it to them. These stories and promises become the food that sustains and brings back to life all of us when we have had enough - even when we do not know what is pounding us. When people or pets are experiencing the "failure to thrive," others take them in their arms and offer them food. Yes, it must be food they can use - but it is put into their mouths regularly until they begin to benefit from the nutrition. That is what the faithful community is to do with each of us. Bring in the stories that sustain us and empower us to be God's beloved in the midst of empire.
Connection: Do you have a story that is able to feed you when you do not want to go on?Do you have someone in your life to whom you can turn when you are not thriving? Do you have someone or some group that can see that you are not thriving and you can count on them to feed you?
When the poetry of your Reign falls upon us, O God, send saints who will give us the words of your love that we will be brought back to life and yearn again to be whole and blessed - just as you have always seen us. Amen.
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