{"id":20966,"date":"2023-06-13T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-06-13T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mailchi.mp\/urc\/urc-daily-devotion13-june-2023"},"modified":"2023-06-13T06:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-06-13T05:00:00","slug":"urc-daily-devotion-13-june-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.trinitywimbledon.org\/index.php\/urc-daily-devotion-13-june-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"URC Daily Devotion\u00a013 June 2023"},"content":{"rendered":"

Genesis 21<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

The Lord dealt with Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah as he had promised. Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the time of which God had spoken to him. Abraham gave the name Isaac to his son whom Sarah bore him. And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him. Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. Now Sarah said, \u2018God has brought laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me.\u2019  And she said, \u2018Who would ever have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n

The child grew, and was weaned; and Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned.  But Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, playing with her son Isaac.  So she said to Abraham, \u2018Cast out this slave woman with her son; for the son of this slave woman shall not inherit along with my son Isaac.\u2019  The matter was very distressing to Abraham on account of his son.  But God said to Abraham, \u2018Do not be distressed because of the boy and because of your slave woman; whatever Sarah says to you, do as she tells you, for it is through Isaac that offspring shall be named after you. As for the son of the slave woman, I will make a nation of him also, because he is your offspring.\u2019  So Abraham rose early in the morning, and took bread and a skin of water, and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, along with the child, and sent her away. And she departed, and wandered about in the wilderness of Beer-sheba.<\/span><\/p>\n

When the water in the skin was gone, she cast the child under one of the bushes. Then she went and sat down opposite him a good way off, about the distance of a bowshot; for she said, \u2018Do not let me look on the death of the child.\u2019 And as she sat opposite him, she lifted up her voice and wept.  And God heard the voice of the boy; and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven, and said to her, \u2018What troubles you, Hagar? Do not be afraid; for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is.  Come, lift up the boy and hold him fast with your hand, for I will make a great nation of him.\u2019  Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. She went, and filled the skin with water, and gave the boy a drink.  God was with the boy, and he grew up; he lived in the wilderness, and became an expert with the bow.  He lived in the wilderness of Paran; and his mother got a wife for him from the land of Egypt.<\/span><\/p>\n

Reflection<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

The stories we tell ourselves!  Sarah\u2019s encouragement of Abraham to rape Hagar, their slave, led to Ishmael\u2019s birth.  Sarah\u2019s resulting jealousy led to Hagar\u2019s oppression and escape.  Hagar was, conveniently, persuaded to return to her oppression by an angel in Chapter 16.  <\/span><\/p>\n

The various editors of Genesis were telling stories from the victor\u2019s perspective; as people who saw themselves descended from Abraham and Isaac.  Of course they also had to deal with the fact that Ishmael\u2019s progeny – seen as the Arab peoples – were also Abraham\u2019s descendants.  One son has written out of the story for the other to flourish; the writers made Sarah and Isaac\u2019s interests paramount.<\/span><\/p>\n

The story assumes that some people can be used for the benefit of others.  The editors have a God disinterested in justice who is content for Hagar and Ishmael to be left to die in the desert.  A toxic story which could be used to justify harm.  Such stories help justify times when we use the Biblical authors\u2019 prejudices and ideologies to support our own.  <\/span><\/p>\n

Yet there\u2019s another story going on here too.  Sarah\u2019s behaviour is both monstrous and ironic – she has an Egyptian slave and her descendants will be slaves in Egypt.  She has, however, been pimped by her husband and, as we saw yesterday, had no choice, power, or agency in that situation.  There\u2019s a story we need to tell ourselves about how we behave when we\u2019re denied our dignity.  A former colleague of mine called this \u201coppression sickness\u201d – we act badly as a response to the toxic web in which we find ourselves.  <\/span><\/p>\n

The central story of the Jewish people is the Exodus. We need to consider how freedom is found in all the situations we inhabit.  Hagar and Ishmael found freedom from their oppression; I hope Sarah and Abraham found it from their complex relationship and behaviours.  I hope you do too.<\/span><\/p>\n

Prayer<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

God of freedom, God of justice,<\/span>
help us to see where we <\/span>
act out of our own oppression.<\/span>
Deliver us, good Lord,<\/span>
from our own injustice, evil and oppression,<\/span>
that we might fight the powers of evil<\/span>
that seek to exclude and oppress.<\/span>
Amen.<\/span> <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Genesis 21 The Lord dealt with Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah as he had promised. Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the time of which God had spoken to him. Abraham gave the name Isaac to his son whom Sarah bore him. And … <\/p>\n

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