Reflect On Ancient Israel

To The Editor:

As Christians frantically prepare for the celebration of Christmas 1999 – some in exile, others causing people by their exclusiveness to be in  such a predicament – I would suggest that we reflect for a few moments on the position of the people of ancient Israel. Yes, Christians can learn important lessons from their elder spiritual ancestors.

Reflect if you will on the community of Jews who were sent into exile in Babylon, 587-538 BC (or BCE).

As you sit on the edge of the stream of either the Tigris or Euphrates Rivers and grieve over this separation from your homeland (be it family, community, church, etc.), pray Psalm 137:

“By the streams of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion,

On the aspens of that land we hung up our harps,

Though there our captors asked of us the lyrics of our songs,

And our despoilers urged us to be joyous ‘Sing for us the songs of Zion!’

How could we sing a song of the Lord in a foreign land?”

In spite of the situation – being in exile – with all if its physical and emotional hardships, consider the fact that it was those people in exile who continued Israel’s history and heritage. These potential candidates for revolutionary efforts against their captors had been removed from the homeland.

During this period, the Prophet Jeremiah encouraged these people to accept the exile as Yahweh’s will and to await His good pleasure for the redemption of Israel (Jer. 29):

– to remain active as good, prosperous citizens in the community;

– to not become discouraged by their separation from the homeland;

– to continue to minister to the needs of the greater Babylonian community.

Some of Israel’s finest moments took place during this captivity, namely, extensive work on many of the sacred books and traditions of Israel; the codification of Hebrew law in the form in which it appears in the Pentateuch; the first appearance of the Synagogue as a substitute for worship in the temple.

We need to appreciate diversity and to not abandon people into “exilic conditions,” aware that they, too, are our brothers and sisters, children of the same God who is father and mother to us all.

Other potential exiled people might include widows; divorcees; people abandoned in nursing homes without visitors; those former members of worshipping communities who were stripped of the use of their charisma and ministries to the community by those in hierarchical power; and those removed from mental health facilities without appropriate community care.

If you find yourself in such a situation as this during the coming celebration of the Nativity, consider the history of the Jews as well as the lives of the following famous exiles: Martin Luther King, Jr/Birmingham Jail; All Prophets/Reformers; Nelson Mandella/South African prison – 25 years; St Paul/Rome; Cardinal Mindzenty/Poland; The Dalai Lama; Mahatma Gandhi; Helen Keller; Dorothy Day – although they were in exile, they sang to the Lord.

Leo McIlrath

Corpus Christi/a Catholic community

13 Sugarloaf Road. Sandy Hook     December 21, 1999