Loving God, you continue to surprise us by including those who were once deemed unacceptable.  Open our hearts to others who are part of your family, as well as to those who are in need; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

            There is drought or famine or food insecurity, and so a family leaves their home, crosses a river and takes refuge in a foreign country.  Have any of you ever heard this story before?... Perhaps some of you have even lived it at one time or another.  Biblically speaking, it seems to happen quite often, as the same thing happened to Abraham, and to Jacob and his family.  And even today, the story seems to get repeated, as families are forced to take the drastic step of finding a new country in order to have enough food to eat.

         However, imagine seeking refuge in a country where the people have a terrible reputation.  I have no idea what the modern equivalent of Moab would be, but for an Israelite family this is a rather desperate choice.  The people of Moab are described in Genesis as having shameful origins, as Moab himself was a product of incest (Gen. 19:30-37).  Then later, in Deuteronomy, Moabites are named among those who are to be excluded from the assembly of believers.  Three reasons are given for their exclusion:  They were descendants of one born of an illicit union, they didn’t give food and water to the Israelites when they were on their journey through the wilderness, and they had hired a guy named Balaam in order to curse God’s people (Deut. 23:2-6).

         However, in spite of this reputation, Naomi and Elimelech find refuge in Moab, and their sons even get married to Moabite women.  These women, Orpah and Ruth, turn out to be intensely loyal to their mother-in-law, even after their husbands have died.  Orpah eventually gives in to Naomi’s wishes and returns to her own people.  However, Ruth wants to go with Naomi as she returns to Bethlehem.  In doing this, Ruth is taking a great risk.

         First of all, neither Ruth nor Naomi have a husband who will provide for them.  In addition, will she even be welcome there, seeing as she is a Moabite?  They both go to Bethlehem not knowing how they will provide for themselves or what the future might hold.  In spite of this, however, Ruth speaks some of the most beautiful words in all of Scripture (sometimes called the song of Ruth):

Where you go, I will go; Where you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God my God.  Where you die, I will die—there will I be buried.  May the Lord do thus and so to me, and more as well, if even death parts me from you! (Ruth 1:16-17)

Do these words remind you of anything you might have heard before?...  They are very similar to wedding vows, and many have heard in these words the same kind of loyalty that you might expect in a marriage.  In Ruth’s case, however, she was in effect adopting a new people, a new ethnic identity, and a new faith.  And thus begins the radical widening of God’s circle of inclusion that will eventually encompass all people.

As many of you might already know, Ruth is, in fact, welcomed in Bethlehem, and even finds a husband among Naomi’s relatives.  Ruth and Boaz have a son, Obed, who is the father of Jesse, who is the father of David.  Thus, Ruth turns out to be the great grandmother of king David, as well as one of the non-Jewish ancestors of Jesus the Messiah.

This connection between Ruth and Jesus is also seen just outside of Bethlehem, as the shepherd’s fields look out over the fields that belonged to Boaz, where Ruth gleaned during the harvest.  At the same time, it is at least a little bit ironic that there is a famine around Bethlehem at the beginning of the story, as the name “Bethlehem” means “house of bread.” In fact, even today bread and water are left out near the entrance to the town - left there for anybody who might need them.

It is perhaps hard for us to imagine being desperate enough to eat some stale bread that has been left out, or even to leave our homes in order to go and search for food.  In fact, it is not bad at all for us to think about these things on Thanksgiving weekend – especially when most of us have an abundance of food and drink.  Even though there are probably times for all of us when we are not feeling particularly thankful, sometimes it helps to be aware of those who have far less than we do.

The reality is that food insecurity continues to be an issue world-wide, and organizations like Canadian Lutheran World Relief continue to work on projects that promote food security, especially in Africa. This means working on things like irrigation in drought prone regions and preventing soil erosion.  They are projects that promote a sustainable source of food, rather than just a one-time handout.  In doing this, they are living out the vision of Jesus in which the hungry are fed, and the thirsty have water to drink, and the naked are clothed.

We, too, participate in that vision in our own ways, through things like providing a food bank, or providing meals and food to Lutheran Urban Ministry, or supporting Trinity Food Pantry.  We also participate in that vision through NEST – the North End Sponsorship Team for refugees.  God continues to be at work in our world, often using us as the hands and feet of Jesus along the way.  And so, today we give thanks.

We give thanks for those who find refuge and welcome and food in a foreign land.  We give thanks for those like Ruth who exhibit unwavering loyalty and faithfulness.  We give thanks for companionship on the journey, and for the gifts of food and drink.  And, above all, we give thanks for Jesus Christ our Lord, who has opened the way for us into the family of God, and ultimately, into eternal life.  Thanks be to God!  Amen.

Pentecost 18 / Thanksgiving (NL 2)         Ruth 1:1-17

October 13, 2019

St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church

Pastor Lynne Hutchison

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