Faith Meets Life: Ethnic divisions continue
In his current best-selling book “The God Delusion,” Richard Dawkins ridicules Christianity. Chapter Two begins with the words, “The [Christian] God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant, character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it; a petty. . . bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a . . . genocidal. . . bully.”
The “Old Testament” to which Dawkins refers is the collection of material in the Christian Bible that tells the story of the Israelites leading up to the life of Jesus. Indeed, it does contain accounts of what we would call genocide. Dawkins quotes them at length and they are disturbing to read especially since, in them, it is God who orders the Israelites to kill.
Jesus lived roughly 1,500 years after those killings. He was active in the same region, Canaan, or Palestine, as it is better known. In one of the (four) accounts of Jesus' life there is a truly intriguing story of Jesus encountering a descendent of one of the people groups who God had ordered to be killed.*
She was desperate. Her daughter exhibited extreme behaviours. There were no doctors and no mental health caregivers. She approached Jesus, known to have healed thousands. “Crying out,” she begged Jesus to heal, of demon possession, her girl who she loved dearly.” She persisted, seeking to end, no doubt, also her own heartbreak.
What makes this story so interesting is that she was a “Canaanite” woman. Canaanites were one of the seven tribal groups the Israelites were supposed to have gotten rid of many years before. And now Jesus, himself an Israelite, was being asked to heal a member of one of those groups.
He was confronted with a choice. His disciples wanted to be rid of the woman. She was nothing to them. Less than nothing actually; she was one of the hated Canaanites condemned in their sacred texts. Would Jesus perpetuate this ethnic hatred?
He himself seems to have had to think this through. First he did not respond to her at all. Then he commented to his disciples that he had not been sent (by God) to those outside of Israel, i. e. Canaanites and all the rest. But she persisted and knelt before him, continuing to plead for her daughter, “Lord, help me!”
Finally, he spoke a saying to her to the effect that she did not deserve what she was asking for. But, tenacious as all get out, she shot back that she would gladly receive whatever meagre crumbs Jesus had left for her. And here, Jesus relented, healing her daughter. One can imagine her relief, her joy - and also the effect this would have had on Jesus.
Through this story of Jesus, we can learn that it is the intention of God to do away with ethnic divisions and to bring people of all backgrounds into a community of healed people. Ethnic violence, even once apparently ordered by God, gives way to God's healing, redemption and community. That's worth pondering in a day when ethnic divisions threaten many communities throughout our globe.
* For this column I'm drawing on an article by Dr. Sylvia C. Keesmaat and Rev. Grant LeMarquand; It can be found on a church website www.thebanner.org.
Editorial opinions or comments expressed in this online edition of Interrobang newspaper reflect the views of the writer and are not those of the Interrobang or the Fanshawe Student Union. The Interrobang is published weekly by the Fanshawe Student Union at 1001 Fanshawe College Blvd., P.O. Box 7005, London, Ontario, N5Y 5R6 and distributed through the Fanshawe College community. Letters to the editor are welcome. All letters are subject to editing and should be emailed. All letters must be accompanied by contact information. Letters can also be submitted online by clicking here.
The “Old Testament” to which Dawkins refers is the collection of material in the Christian Bible that tells the story of the Israelites leading up to the life of Jesus. Indeed, it does contain accounts of what we would call genocide. Dawkins quotes them at length and they are disturbing to read especially since, in them, it is God who orders the Israelites to kill.
Jesus lived roughly 1,500 years after those killings. He was active in the same region, Canaan, or Palestine, as it is better known. In one of the (four) accounts of Jesus' life there is a truly intriguing story of Jesus encountering a descendent of one of the people groups who God had ordered to be killed.*
She was desperate. Her daughter exhibited extreme behaviours. There were no doctors and no mental health caregivers. She approached Jesus, known to have healed thousands. “Crying out,” she begged Jesus to heal, of demon possession, her girl who she loved dearly.” She persisted, seeking to end, no doubt, also her own heartbreak.
What makes this story so interesting is that she was a “Canaanite” woman. Canaanites were one of the seven tribal groups the Israelites were supposed to have gotten rid of many years before. And now Jesus, himself an Israelite, was being asked to heal a member of one of those groups.
He was confronted with a choice. His disciples wanted to be rid of the woman. She was nothing to them. Less than nothing actually; she was one of the hated Canaanites condemned in their sacred texts. Would Jesus perpetuate this ethnic hatred?
He himself seems to have had to think this through. First he did not respond to her at all. Then he commented to his disciples that he had not been sent (by God) to those outside of Israel, i. e. Canaanites and all the rest. But she persisted and knelt before him, continuing to plead for her daughter, “Lord, help me!”
Finally, he spoke a saying to her to the effect that she did not deserve what she was asking for. But, tenacious as all get out, she shot back that she would gladly receive whatever meagre crumbs Jesus had left for her. And here, Jesus relented, healing her daughter. One can imagine her relief, her joy - and also the effect this would have had on Jesus.
Through this story of Jesus, we can learn that it is the intention of God to do away with ethnic divisions and to bring people of all backgrounds into a community of healed people. Ethnic violence, even once apparently ordered by God, gives way to God's healing, redemption and community. That's worth pondering in a day when ethnic divisions threaten many communities throughout our globe.
* For this column I'm drawing on an article by Dr. Sylvia C. Keesmaat and Rev. Grant LeMarquand; It can be found on a church website www.thebanner.org.
Editorial opinions or comments expressed in this online edition of Interrobang newspaper reflect the views of the writer and are not those of the Interrobang or the Fanshawe Student Union. The Interrobang is published weekly by the Fanshawe Student Union at 1001 Fanshawe College Blvd., P.O. Box 7005, London, Ontario, N5Y 5R6 and distributed through the Fanshawe College community. Letters to the editor are welcome. All letters are subject to editing and should be emailed. All letters must be accompanied by contact information. Letters can also be submitted online by clicking here.
