Hotel Zephaniah

As I was reflecting on the class notes from today, it was something pointed out in the commentaries that really struck me. It was from the Africana Commentary regarding the book of Zephaniah.  The writer's concern was the desire for a homogeneous society. She found it very distressing because she comes from a continent debilitated by ethnic cleansing and civil war.

One of the pillars of the social work ethics is the dignity and worth of a person. Every client has it and you are to make every decision based on this seemingly obvious principle.  But it's not so obvious to others in the world. Africa is not the only continent to experience atrocities based on ethnicity or race.

The scary thing is that she is right and people have used verses in the Bible to justify horrific things.  While Zephaniah presents us with an uncomfortable issue, it is important to remember all the more that scripture is to interpret scripture.  We must remember that Zephaniah is one piece of the canon and we must look at it within that place.

As a person who loves other cultures and finds great value in learning from people who are different than me, I find the oracles against the nations in many of the prophetic books distressing as well. However, I cannot deny that this is part of my story and that of every Christian.  God chose Israel first.  The call of Israel from the beginning has been to be a blessing.

I do not necessarily know what to do with passages so damning of others. They are there and it is foolish to erase them or make them seem less daunting. I rest in that fact that God sent Jesus to be the Savior of all and that echoes the blessing of Israel.  God's intent from the beginning was to bring people to saving knowledge of God self. 
And I believe the Holy Trinity sees dignity and worth in every person and we are to reflect that in our lives. 

Polite Prophets?

As we have been reading the prophet's, I can't help but think about how people would respond to their aggressive speeches today.  They were clearly working with a different set of rules.

Diplomacy is deeply ingrained in our society.  It is the appropriate and polite way to change things.  And I think this is a great way to bring ideas to the table and discuss openly with others.  Everyone's perspective has value and I think these are all good things.

However, I wonder if we have become too polite? Are there some circumstances that require us to name the evil, to shed light in the dark places?

The prophets were quick to share all the problems they saw within their society.  I think this added a kind of URGENCY to their arguments.  Diplomacy and urgency don't always mesh very well sometimes. But I think we can learn from the prophet's sense that oppressors, exploiters don't necessarily need to be dealt with politely.  A little strength and backbone could help in this area. 

Ezekiel 10:4 "Then the glory of the Lord rose up from the cherub to the threshold of the house; the house was filled with the cloud, and the court was full of the brightness of the glory of the Lord."

Ezekiel is AWE Inspiring. His intricate, complex and descriptive words poetically provoke worship of God. 

Gothic Cathedral Milan or Duomo di Milano

His words reminded me of the cathedrals in Europe who often get a bad rap.  Too much money spent on expensive buildings that go empty and unused today.  

But I think there is a place for ornateness.  When I visited these cathedrals, all I could do was sit and be in awe which was the intent.  The cathedral invited me into the dwelling on the glory of God.   The tall ceilings echoed the worshipful chants of old, the stain glass told stories of saints, the smell of history, the people's silence.The beauty was mesmerizing.  I found myself deep in thought and prayer in one and near tears in the other.  They were very moving places.

The book of Ezekiel is like a cathedral. You don't understand everything you see (or read) but you are made very aware that God is much bigger than you and deserves worship and awe. 

Oh how the tables WILL turn...

One of the major themes in Jeremiah is his insightful understanding that no empire lasts forever.  A time will come when others will have more power.  Are Americans prepared for this? Should we be?  I mean even Christianity is relocating.  The global south is becoming a prominent force. Take a look at the new pope whose homeland is Argentina.

It is not something to be afraid of by any means. But maybe we should start rethinking how we dialogue with others.  As a Caucasian American Christian female, I already feel like I have enough to apologize for from my ancestors mistakes. Taking the Native American's land, the crusades, slavery in America are all things that created huge barriers for me and my declaration of genuine Christian faith. I particularly experienced this while living in Cairo, Egypt.  Now, most of my friends understood the major difference between the people and the government but not everyone.  I do understand that everyone has baggage that comes with their cultural nametags,but there seems to be a greater weight of responsibility when I think about who I am representing and claiming as the author of my faith.


Does anyone else relate to this?  I get so tired of apologizing for the likes of Westboro and explaining to people that what they believe is a complete distortion of the truth.  

I'm afraid, as Americans, our wealth is something we will have to apologize for. Will future generations apologize for our apathy and indifference to those who go without.  

I just finished a book called the Hospital on the River by an Australian doctor, Catherine Hamlin who set up a Fistula Hospital in Ethiopia.  She writes in great detail how she raised funds and got donors. She expresses great stress and disappointment in the fact that the United States was by far the most difficult place to raise money.  People could listen intently and feel awful for the poor women who traveled so far with nothing to get help and yet, do nothing despite their abundance.  Are we as callous as she sees it? Maybe not, but maybe it would be wise to reflect a bit more. 


Fistula Foundation if you want to read more about the hospital.


The fact of the matter is that if everyone in the world wanted to live on American standards, the world could not even sustain it.Is there more we could or should be doing? Wouldn't conversations with our brothers and sisters across the world help us identify our own pitfalls?  And vice versa. I think we could all help each other out in this way.  

Jeremiah's warning cannot be limited to only its time and place.  We can learn from this lesson too and I think it would behoove us to remember that our place in time won't always be this way. 

A common theme in the latter part of Isaiah is NEWNESS.  God wants to write a new story for his chosen people.  Chapter 43:18-19 says, "Do not remember the former things, or consider the things of old. I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?"

A NEW THING.  A NEW STORY.  

One of the goals of social workers is to empower their clients to rewrite their story.  Especially those who were victims of terrible atrocities like rape and abuse.  Instead of seeing themselves as victims, their new story involves redefining themselves as survivors.  Language is important and there is something powerful in the word survivor. It announces that one does not have to continue to be a victim.  There is an activeness about the word.  Rewriting one's story is empowering and transforming.

The RESTORATION language used in Isaiah is a REwriting of the story of the Israelites.  No longer will they be victims. God has not abandoned them. 

RESTORATION is part of the message in the gospels.  The Lord is redeeming. Jesus is restoring. Even death has a different ending. God shows the NEW story through Jesus.  

I think this is part of our call as Christians.  As believers transformed by the power of the story of God's sacrifice, we too share this new hope with others.  Transformed lives transforming others.  

A perspective of the Old Testament prophetic books and writings seen through the lens of a wannabe social worker with a Bapthodist (that is Baptist and Methodist) background. God is good.

We (my class) are starting with Isaiah. I love this book, it's definitely a favorite. The passion of Isaiah is inspiring as an aspiring social worker, phrases like "Seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow" resonate deeply with me.  All those commands in the very first chapter!   (vs. 27)

You can hear the echo of James 1:27 saying "Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world."

The proceeding verses in Isaiah's pleading to seek justice is a call to action.  "Wash yourselves. Make yourselves clean." James' wording of pure and undefiled religion rings true and he must have known the prophet's work well. 

There is clearly a link between pure religion and action.  It seems to me Protestants in particular forget the call to action from fear of it becoming a religion of works ( a common accusation against Catholics).  

Baptists in particular love phrases the prophet Isaiah speaks for the Lord such as Isaiah 1: 11"I have had enough of burnt offerings!" and 1:14 "Your new moons and your appointed festivals my soul hates." Baptists are known to bristle at words like tradition and ritual. 

However, the text seems to suggest a neglect of justice and matters of importance in favor of celebratory festivals that leave the poor and in need behind.  It's not necessarily a condemnation of the festivals but forgetting needs of brothers and sisters while you go about your worship. It's empty.  These two should go hand in hand. How can one truly worship without seeking justice or rescuing the oppressed?  This is a part of worship that doesn't seem to fit in our Sunday morning agendas. 

But there is a call to work, to serve, to love, to do, to act. These are all part and parcel of worship.  

I think it is common in our (American) culture to compartmentalize.  When in reality, things are much more connected than we may think.  I think both Isaiah and James sense this. 

CONFESSION is linked to 

CLEANSING which is linked to learning to 

DO GOOD which is 

SEEKING JUSTICE and 

RESCUING OPPRESSED which is linked to 

PURE and UNDEFILED RELIGION. 

Isaiah, like James, sees a lack of wholeness in the people.  You are doing some things alright but it looks very hypocritical when you lack doing these other things that are just as much a part of worship. 

Worship cannot be divorced from social justice.