In Chapter 49 we have the second of the four Servant of the Lord oracles. The Servant is identified with the people of Israel. The Servant’s vocation will be not only the restoration of Israel but the conversion of the world.
It is about this chapter that Rev. Michael Piazza in Liberating Word writes, “The middle verses of this chapter(vv. 14-16) provide one of the most moving images of God, a feminine personification: But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me, my Lord has forgotten me.” Can a woman forget her nursing child, or show no compassion for the child of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you. See, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands; your walls are continually before me.” For decades, I have been waging a losing struggle to get people to stop referring to God as “He.” I realize it is a hard habit to break, but I don’t think it is really a habit. My concern is that we only know the masculine side of God;...It isn’t a matter of gender either. For me, it is a matter of letting go of the gods of our childhoods and living our lives in the arms of the God who birthed us.”
In today’s on-line Liberating Word message Piazza further comments “One of the gifts I have tried to give my two daughters has been to disabuse them of society's definition of what it means to be a man or a woman. This, of course, has meant instilling in them values that serve as an antidote to sexism and that liberate them to be themselves despite anyone's role expectation. Wouldn't it have been a wonderful thing if someone had given us that freedom when we were kids? It isn't too late you know. “Sisters and brothers, you are free in the name of the Living God who is both masculine and feminine.”
In chapter 50, Israel’s faith in God is weak. She does not answer his call, nor believe in his promises of deliverance. How often do we neither answer nor believe? Instead we obsess on wanting life as we want it and refuse to detach from that which in reality is not in our best interest. In the third Servant of the Lord oracle the Servant speaks. The Servant does not refuse the divine vocation. He willingly submits to insults and beatings. All the while he remains confident in God’s sustaining help. How long do we remain confident in the face of resistance or abuse? We, like the Israelites, usually rely on our own device, to our own destruction. Who should we really blame for evil?
In Chapter 49 we have the second of the four Servant of the Lord oracles. The Servant is identified with the people of Israel. The Servant’s vocation will be not only the restoration of Israel but the conversion of the world.
ReplyDeleteIt is about this chapter that Rev. Michael Piazza in Liberating Word writes, “The middle verses of this chapter(vv. 14-16) provide one of the most moving images of God, a feminine personification: But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me, my Lord has forgotten me.” Can a woman forget her nursing child, or show no compassion for the child of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you. See, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands; your walls are continually before me.”
For decades, I have been waging a losing struggle to get people to stop referring to God as “He.” I realize it is a hard habit to break, but I don’t think it is really a habit. My concern is that we only know the masculine side of God;...It isn’t a matter of gender either. For me, it is a matter of letting go of the gods of our childhoods and living our lives in the arms of the God who birthed us.”
In today’s on-line Liberating Word message Piazza further comments “One of the gifts I have tried to give my two daughters has been to disabuse them of society's definition of what it means to be a man or a woman. This, of course, has meant instilling in them values that serve as an antidote to sexism and that liberate them to be themselves despite anyone's role expectation.
Wouldn't it have been a wonderful thing if someone had given us that freedom when we were kids? It isn't too late you know. “Sisters and brothers, you are free in the name of the Living God who is both masculine and feminine.”
In chapter 50, Israel’s faith in God is weak. She does not answer his call, nor believe in his promises of deliverance. How often do we neither answer nor believe? Instead we obsess on wanting life as we want it and refuse to detach from that which in reality is not in our best interest. In the third Servant of the Lord oracle the Servant speaks. The Servant does not refuse the divine vocation. He willingly submits to insults and beatings. All the while he remains confident in God’s sustaining help. How long do we remain confident in the face of resistance or abuse? We, like the Israelites, usually rely on our own device, to our own destruction. Who should we really blame for evil?