Monday, June 19, 2023
Theme : “Widows in action” Text : Ruth 1:1-17
1. In the days of the judges there was a famine in the land. A man from Bethlehem of Judah set out with his wife and two sons to stay in the land of Moab. 2. The name of this man was Elimelech, that of his wife Naomi, and his two sons were called Machlon and Kiljon; they were Ephrathites, from Bethlehem of Judah. When they arrived in the land of Moab, they made their home there. 3. Elimelech, Naomi's husband, died, and she was left with her two sons. 4. They took Moabite wives, one of whom was named Orpah, and the other Ruth, and they dwelt there about ten years. 5. Machlon and Kiljon also both died, and Naomi was left without her two sons and her husband. 6. Then she arose, she and her daughters-in-law, to leave the land of Moab, for she heard in the land of Moab that the LORD had visited his people and had given them bread. 7. She left her place of residence, accompanied by her two daughters-in-law, and set out to return to the land of Judah. 8. Naomi then said to her two daughters-in-law: Come on, each one go back to her mother's house! May the Lord show kindness to you, as you did to those who died and to me! 9. May the Lord cause each of you to find rest in a husband's house! And she kissed them. They lifted up their voices, and wept; 10. And they said to him, No, we will go with you to your people. 11. Naomi, says: Go back, my daughters! Why would you come with me? Do I still have sons in my womb who can become your husbands? 12. Go back, my girls, go! I'm too old to remarry. And when I would say: I have hope; if this very night I should be with a husband, and give birth to sons, 13. would you wait for that until they had grown up, would you refuse for that reason to marry? No, my girls! for because of you I grieved greatly because the hand of the LORD was stretched out against me. 14. And they lifted up their voices, and wept again. Orpah fucked her stepmother, but Ruth became attached to her. 15. Naomi said to Ruth, Behold, your sister-in-law has returned to her people and to her gods; go back, like your sister-in-law. 16. Ruth answered: Do not urge me to leave you, to return from you! Where you go I will go, where you stay I will stay; your people will be my people, and your God will be my God; 17. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Eternal treat me with all his rigor, if anything other than death comes to separate me from you!
Let's remember:
Moving Elimelech, Naomi and their children to the land of the Moabites was too daring because the Lord forbade this kind of alliance. However, what interests us here is the attitude of the widowed Naomi. She stayed on the lookout for news from her homeland. She had her ear attentive to information concerning her nation. When there was peace in her country, she made a commitment to return there; ignoring the place where her husband and two children were buried. It is not easy to leave such a place because one is bound there by family memories. Ordinary mortals would also like to die there to be buried alongside their husband and children. Naomi was not emotional, she had listened to the way of reason which asked her to return to her country. A widow should not continue to mourn over her painful situation. It must advance towards better horizons: to be in action. She must take charge of herself instead of waiting for people to feel sorry for herself. Widowhood is not an end in itself; it is a difficult stage in life yes, but we can overcome it if we decide to continue to rely on the strength of God. The trio of widows could not last long in the combined distress. It was necessary to sort out and part with one. Ruth the other visionary widow understood that her future was not in the past but in trusting in God. Well-informed decision-making is a guarantee of success for anyone and especially for widows. Widows must remain in action. Excellent Monday. Amen Alain Louz.-
Comments