Sunday Homily August 26, 2012, 21st Ordinary Time B
Readings:
Joshua, 24,1-2, 15-17, We will serve the Lord, for he is our God.
Psalm 34, Taste & See the Goodnesss of the Lord (3rd week)
Ephesians, 5, 21-32, Wives should be subordinate to their husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is head of his wife.
John, 6, 60-69, Master, to whom shall we go?
Joshua:
Who is Joshua and what is this booklet about: Joshua was Moses' assistant, his lieutenant when the the Israelites wandered in the desert. The booklet is the story of the Israelite invasion of Canaan under Joshua's leadership.
Author: somewhat amusingly, the fundamentalists say that Joshua wrote most of the booklet. More scientific scholars say the work is a compilation of a number of sources.
Date of composition: again fundamentalists state that the booklet was composed 1400-1370, i.e., while Joshua lived. Scholars of a broader vision suggest that even if a Joshua existed the work was put together 800-700 BCE.
The work combines a number of traditions about battles & destruction of cities to create a nationalistic narrative that justifies the Israelites' taking another peoples' land for their own.
Ethical Question: genocide. This is a bloody book. Yahweh commands that the Israelites exterminate every breathing thing, including women & children & livestock.
The battle of Jericho is characteristic. For 6 days the Israelites marched around the city, blowing horns and menacing the people. On day 7 they marched around 7 times and the walls came tumbling down, as in the spiritual. Then every person except one woman & her family were slaughtered. Lots of debate and rationalization over these events.
Our Selection: The last chapter of the booklet. Joshua, who is dying, calls the people together at a place called Sechem and puts it to them. Stick with Yahweh who has done all these things for you (which are mentioned in the text but are long & tedious) or choose another path of your own.
Sources: Good News Bible, Got Questions.org, Wikipedia
Rosemary be Subservient to Me as to the Lord?
A crazy thing happened to me some time ago that I will never forget. I was standing in a line. Around me were families with kids. At one point a nice looking family with two or three young kids got into a small disagreement over something involving the kids. The wife wanted to do one thing, the husband another.
At a point the husband says to the wife, “you are to be subservient to me because the Bible says so.”
I almost dropped my teeth. I could not believe what I was hearing. I even think the wife let him get away with this justification. Can you imagine me getting away with this with Rosemary?
I love this passage because it exemplifies the danger of taking the Bible literally. The passage is so easy to explain in terms of contemporary psychology and the value of a human person, male or female. Here is how we see it today.
Three models of family interaction.
1. The patriarchal. This model considers the male the superior, like in Paul’s instruction. It is based on an old belief that females were inferior. This model certainly exists today.
When I was in East Africa the men considered themselves the master of the household. Muslim examples abound these days, even to horrible stories of disobedient women being beaten, starved, and locked in underground rooms.
2. The matriarchal. In this example the wife or mother is considered the head of the household. There are many amusing examples of families where the male thought he was the head, while everyone knew the household was ruled and organized by the wife.
3. The equality model. Both husband and wife are seen as equal and complimentary. Today this model is more common in many societies, though not all. Today both the husband and the wife have graduate degrees and professional careers. The model is teamwork rather than dictatorship.
Paul sounds pretty archaic and chauvenistic today, but actually at that time he was trying to elevate men’s treatment of women. Treating a wife with respect was pretty radical for Paul’s time.
Whatever the model chosen, it comes down to a choice by the couple. Even this involves equality and mutual input. Today equality is so taken for granted that a husband saying to his wife that she must obey him because the Bible says so sounds ridiculous.
Obviously the one couple I was watching took it literally. I wonder where they are today.
Which of the three models do you choose?