{"id":741,"date":"2013-02-01T11:52:27","date_gmt":"2013-02-01T15:52:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rjr.richardross.annaerossi.com\/?p=741"},"modified":"2013-02-01T11:52:27","modified_gmt":"2013-02-01T15:52:27","slug":"var-_gaq-_gaq-_gaq-push_setaccount-ua-25646250-2-_gaq-push_trackpageview-function-var-ga-document-createelementscript-ga-type-textjavascript-ga-20","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/rjr.richardross.annaerossi.com\/?p=741","title":{"rendered":"<script type=\"text\/javascript\">  var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-25646250-2']); _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']);  (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text\/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https:\/\/ssl' : 'http:\/\/www') + '.google-analytics.com\/ga.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); })();  <\/script>  <\/heat> The Wooing of Rebekah &#8211; Held on Sunday, January 27, 2013"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b>Gen. 24: 01 \u2013 67 \u2013 The Wooing of Rebekah<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>Background<\/b><\/p>\n<p>This story continues the turning point in Genesis from Abraham to his progenitors, in this case, Isaac.\u00a0 However, it is Rebekah who most mirrors Abraham as the one called who in responding leaves family and land to journey to an unknown.\u00a0 The story can be broken up into four episodes:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Vv. 01 \u2013 09: Abraham initiates the journey by commissioning his servant to find a wife for Isaac.<\/li>\n<li>Vv. 10 \u2013 27: The servant carries out the commission.<\/li>\n<li>Vv. 28 \u2013 61: Rebekah and her family respond<\/li>\n<li>Vv. 62 \u2013 67: the marriage of Rebekah and Isaac<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>We devoted our time to the first two episodes and intend to turn to the last two next Sunday, February 3<sup>rd<\/sup>.\u00a0 In the first episode Abraham nearing the end of his life summons his most senior servant to send him back to his [Abraham\u2019s] home land and his own kin there to find a wife for Isaac.\u00a0 Abraham is clear on what the servant is not to do.\u00a0 Twice [vv. 06 &amp; 08] he informs the servant \u201cNever take my son back there for any reason!\u201d In v. 03 he has expressed again what the servant is not to do, \u201cyou will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites among whom I live \u2026\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The servant is hesitant since fulfillment of the oath seems outside of his control, \u201cWhat if the woman is unwilling to follow me to this land?\u2026\u201d\u00a0 Abraham acknowledges the fact that despite God\u2019s providence it is possible for the plan to be frustrated by human decisions.\u00a0 Eventually the two arrive at an understanding, the servant takes an oath, and goes off to fulfill the commission.<\/p>\n<p>In the second episode, the prayer of the servant dominates. \u00a0In prayer the servant utters two Hebrew words that, for me, define the relationship between God and the Israelites, but ultimately God and human kind.\u00a0 The two words are \u201chesed\u201d \u2013 steadfast love \u2013 and \u201cemet\u201d \u2013 faithfulness, see v. 27. Prayer enters in because the servant is faced with a fundamental question, how is he to know who the woman is?\u00a0 Not knowing is a constant theme, not just in biblical stories, but lies at the heart of all of our lives; often we simply do not know.\u00a0 Prayer enters in.\u00a0 [In our course on <i>Creator God Evolving World<\/i> we will probe how it is that prayer asking God to \u201cintervene\u201d and God\u2019s transcendence are to be understood.]<\/p>\n<p>The story is told in what is termed, a type scene, common in the bible as well as other literature, a man, a woman, a well, a marriage.\u00a0 The story teller draws on the culture open to him to convey a meaning.\u00a0 As I continuously do, the story is not an historical account of events; rather it is a theological account of God\u2019s relationship with us, God\u2019s entry into human meaning.\u00a0 It reveals both the human culture of the day and the transcendent values of God.\u00a0 Discerning, distinguishing, and developing are the constant challenge of each generation of believers.\u00a0 So now we turn to our questions!<\/p>\n<p><b>Our Questions<\/b><\/p>\n<p>For the sake of completeness I will include in our blog the basic questions that guide us in hearing the passages we study each week.<\/p>\n<ol start=\"1\">\n<li>First who are the characters and what role does each play? To the extent that we can identify<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ul>\n<li>what the characters say and do, or<\/li>\n<li>don\u2019t say and do but we would expect them to do so, and<\/li>\n<li>finally when they enter into the passage and leave it<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>We can more easily and more accurately know what their role is from the point of view of the author and \/ or the editor of the passage.<\/p>\n<ol start=\"2\">\n<li>The \u201cwhen\u201d question is quite complicated and again for the sake of completeness; there is<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ul>\n<li>The \u201cwhen\u201d within the story \/ passage itself,<\/li>\n<li>The \u201cwhen\u201d of the editor, and most importantly,<\/li>\n<li>The \u201cwhen\u201d of our life at the time we are actually reading \/ studying the passage.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ol start=\"3\">\n<li>What is the plot, the point of the passage?<\/li>\n<li>Finally, because each passage is at one and the same time the word of human beings and the Word of God, there is revealed the values that are part and parcel of the human beings in their time and place and there is the values revealed by God for the believer.\u00a0 Our final question is to discern which values in the passage are attractive to us, we are drawn to and which are we repulsed by, inclined to reject?\u00a0 The more difficult task, if we do identify these two responses in us of the values revealed, which are of God and we are being challenged to embrace and which are not of God and we are being challenged to correct and develop.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><b>My Refrain<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Before we read though, let&#8217;s quiet ourselves, remember whatever we can from the background, our questions and, most importantly, pay attention to what happens inside of us as we read.<\/p>\n<p><b>Reading of the passage\u00a0<\/b><a href=\"http:\/\/www.usccb.org\/bible\/genesis\/22\"><b>http:\/\/www.usccb.org\/bible\/genesis\/24<\/b><\/a><b><\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>Discussion Gen. 24: 01 \u2013 27: \u00a0The servant is commissioned and the meeting of Rebekah at the well.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Tim raised the first question, why is placing one\u2019s hand underneath the thigh a part of oath taking?\u00a0 I mentioned that probably \u201cthigh\u201d was a euphemism for genitals that symbolized the source of life.\u00a0 Such a gesture was very symbolic for the people of this time but escapes us today.\u00a0 Such is the constant reminder of both the human and the divine dimension of the bible.<\/p>\n<p>A host of other questions were raised and discussed:<\/p>\n<p>What is the significance of twice demanding that the servant \u201cnever\u2019 take Isaac back to Abraham\u2019s land of origin?<\/p>\n<p>Why did Abraham select a servant to fulfill this mission and not a family member?<\/p>\n<p>Why did the servant give Rebekah gifts first and then ask about staying at her family\u2019s house?<\/p>\n<p>It seems strange to give Rebekah a nose ring.<\/p>\n<p>Your comments, observations, questions are welcomed.\u00a0 See \u201ccomment\u201d link below<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Gen. 24: 01 \u2013 67 \u2013 The Wooing of Rebekah Background This story continues the turning point in Genesis from Abraham to his progenitors, in this case, Isaac.\u00a0 However, it is Rebekah who most mirrors Abraham as the one called &hellip; 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