Pesach - Passover

PASSOVER

Hi,

I have not met a nice Jewish girl who I am trying to impress or anything like that, so don’t worry (or get too excited), but this goy is going to write yet another blog on a Jewish theme. You see, hot on the heels of Purim, comes the Jewish celebration of Pesach (Passover.) There is a close link for Christians to this particular celebration.

Passover celebrates the liberation of the Children of Israel (as they were known at that time) from slavery in Egypt. The tenth plague was more than the tenth plague, but the beginning of the release of the Children of Israel from Egypt. It was, as far as I can see, the only plague where God told the Children of Israel to be prepared. They were to take a year old sheep without blemish, slaughter it, and paint the blood onto the doorposts and the lintels of the door, so that when the angel of Death passed over the land of Egypt he would not touch the firstborn sons of the houses that had the blood on the doorposts.

While the Egyptians were still mourning their terrible loss, the Children of Israel picked up their belongings and took the gap, heading for the border - well, not really the border. In those days there were no customs and excise, or immigration officers waiting to stamp the passports. If there were, it is doubtful that Rameses would have sanctioned the issuance of such passports to the “workforce.” After almost 400 years in Egypt they didn’t really know the way back to Canaan. God appeared to them as a pillar of cloud by day, and a pillar of fire by night. Now when you look at a map of Egypt, you note that there is a little isthmus (a small piece of land that links two larger landmasses) at the top, by which presumably, Joseph, and later his brothers and his father came into the land. This is not where the clouds lead the Children of Israel. Instead, they were lead to the edge of the Yam Suph (Red Sea). Somewhere in the region of two million Israelites were milling around. (In the Bible we are told there were about 600,000 men. The women and children were not counted, so we can guess there were about two million Israelites in all.) The average Israelite, at this point was feeling rather confused and somewhat anxious as they became aware that they were being pursued by the Egyptian army. People really got uptight with Moses and were calling into question his sanity. “Were there not enough graves in Egypt that you have brought us into the desert to die?"

Moses spoke to God, God spoke to Moses and then Moses addressed the people – “Fear not, The Egyptians you see today, you will not see again. Stand and see what God will do. The Lord will fight for you, you need only to be silent.”

On God’s command, Moses held out his staff over the waters as a tour guide might hold out his umbrella indicating to his party the general direction in which they must move. And, in a sense, that was what he was doing. As he pointed his staff, there was an unbelievable gale, and the waters of Red Sea divided and formed two walls of water, between which there was a corridor of dry land. The children of Israel passed through and every one of them made it to the other side, but when the Egyptian troops started pursuing them along the same corridor, God let the walls of water collapse and the Egyptian troops were all drowned.

Subsequent to this the celebration of Pesach was instituted as an annual commemoration and celebration of those events. Please note that this celebration wasn’t some Israelites idea for a reason for a party, it was COMMANDED by the Lord. God organized the whole thing, and for a very important reason. The whole Pesach Seder (Order of events at a Passover meal), is designed to teach the children about what God had done. I note, as an educator, that God employs the techniques of repetition, modeling and involvement. Firstly repetition, every year of a child’s life, he/she hears how God saved His children from the slavery of Egypt and how He meted out justice to the Egyptians, particularly the Pharaoh, for their cruelty. The modeling – each element and food item included in the Passover meal has specific relevance and symbolism and these symbols are explained to the children each time. I shall not describe now the whole meal, as frankly I don’t know as much as I would like to about that, but suffice it to say there is significance. The involvement of the children in the seder is an integral part of the celebration. Though one could say it’s scripted, it is the responsibility of a child to ask “Why is this night different from all the others?” giving the father the chance to tell the family the marvelous story of the Exodus. From this too I learn the significant role of FATHERS in the spiritual nurture of their children. I am not suggesting that only fathers should take this responsibility, but I do feel that in many cases fathers are missing out on this aspect altogether. What message does this send to children (particularly boys) about the things of God?

Roughly 1400 years later, in Jerusalem, Jesus was gathered together with his disciples in an upper room, and they were celebrating the Passover. At some point during the meal, Jesus got up, picked up the bowl for the washing of the guests’ feet, and he started washing the disciples’ feet. This caused some confusion, and Peter objected. This was not what Jesus, His master should have been doing, he thought, but Jesus insisted. He then made His point. He told them, “If I, Your Lord and Master wash your feet, you should also wash the feet of your brothers and sisters.”

During the meal, Jesus took a piece of the unleavened bread, (Matzos) and having given thanks for it, He broke it and said, “Eat this, all of you, for this is my body, broken for you. Do this, as often as you eat it, in rememberance of me.” Later, He took the cup, and after having given thanks for it, he said, “Drink this, all of you, for this is my blood in the New Covenant, given for you. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” Thus was the beginning of the Christian Communion Service. Very simple – involves two elements – Bread representing Jesus' body, and Wine, representing Jesus’ blood. These things remind us that Jesus gave himself for our Salvation. His death on the cross that would take place before the end of that day (remember the Jewish day ran, as it does now. from Sunset, to sunset)

After what has become known as The Last Supper, Jesus was betrayed by Judas with a kiss, arrested, tried not once but at least four times (two illegal trials before Jewish leaders, one before Herod Antipas, and one before Pontius Pilate), given over to be lashed with a cat-o-nine-tails, and then ultimately crucified on a wooden cross between two criminals. But that was not the end of the story. After Jesus had died, the Roman officer presiding over the crucifixion pierced his side to ensure that he was dead; his body was removed and placed into a borrowed tomb. On the third day, a group of women went down to where he was buried to perform the normal rites relating to death. But instead of finding His body, they found an open tomb, and an angel appeared, who said to them “Why do you look for the Living amongst the Dead, He is not here, He is alive”. And so the events of the resurrection unfolded until all of the disciples and many others saw Jesus alive again. Christians commemorate this day on what is called Easter Sunday. That, like Pesach, is an annual celebration of our liberation, by means of Jesus and His Resurrection. But most Christians celebrate Communion a lot more frequently than just once a year.

I think it is safe to say, that for the Jew, Pesach is the “high holy day” of their year; the most important event on their annual calendar. In the same way, for Christians, Resurrection Day, (or if you like, Easter) is the most important event on our calendar. It is not important that we become hung up on ritual and rigmoral, but just as it is important for Jewish children to understand why “this night is different to all the other nights of the year”, so it is very important that Christian children understand that the holiday is not about the “Easter Bunny and Easter eggs” but what the day is really all about.

I had wanted to explore a question that was provoked from an article I read this morning about how, regardless of the current circumstances Jewish people are experiencing, every year, they celebrate Pesach. As we know, and as I alluded to in my last blog, Jewish people have been subjected to awful cruelties and difficulties over the centuries, like the exiles in Babylon and Assyria, the attempt at their annihilation during the Third Reich, to name just a few, but like Hannah in the concentration camp, they celebrated Pesach regardless. (I refer you to my previous blog “Genocide” for this story.)

Some might wonder why God had to COMMAND the celebration. Why make it a matter of law. Surely the jubilant Israelites having seen God move so mightily would want, of their own accord to celebrate this wonderful day, and tell the future generations too. Well, considering that they wondered in the wilderness for 40 years after that, I wonder if they would have still been celebrating by the time they got to Canaan? And then when other difficulties, occurred, it may have been quite easy for the Jewish leaders to declare, “In view of our current circumstances, this year there will be no Passover.” Once you let it slide once, it is easier to let it slide again. Once we miss church one Sunday, it is easier to give it a miss the next time, and so on. Many people have not left the Church, but have simply drifted off. But God COMMANDED that every year on the specific date, Pesach should be celebrated. No riders, no conditions. And so, thankfully, even today, the Passover is celebrated. In the same way, Jesus COMMANDED us to remember Him in the Bread and the wine. It is not an optional extra. It is integral to being a Christian. Just as children participate in the Pesach, I believe that Children should be allowed to participate in the Communion Service. The custom in my church is that a couple will lead the service in the Lord’s Table, and quite a number of those couples are parents, and they will involve their children, in the distribution of the elements (the bread and the wine.) I remember watching with wonderment as one little boy carried out his duty of carrying the basket with pieces of bread to the people with an earnestness and seriousness that made me humble. I have found that when we give children a responsibility, and they understand that this is a very important thing that you have asked them to do, they more often than not rise to the occasion, and bless us with the way they put so much effort into that responsibility.

How and why?

How could they say we are free, when they were in the midst of such terrible circumstances? This reminds me of the psalm that inspired the Boney M song, “By the rivers of Babylon” – The psalm is Psalm 137. “How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land?”

Sometimes it is hard to sing when everything around us seems disastrous, but instead of becoming despondent, it is in times like these that Jews need to remember Jerusalem – and remember that they have been liberated. Christian need to remember the Resurrection. Regardless of the prevailing circumstances, there is no opt out on Pesach. Christians, even in the midst of persecution and difficulty, we must continue to remember that Jesus IS alive, and we ARE saved.

This is cause for rejoicing. Habakkuk 3:17 – 19 says:

“Though the fig tree does not blossom, and there is no fruit on the vines, the produce of the olive fails and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord. God the Lord is my strength. He makes my feet like the deer’s. He makes me tread on my high places.”

When we look around and see things falling apart, we can still rejoice, because our security is not in the circumstances but in our relationship with the Lord. We know that the Lord will see us through and that ultimately we will spend all eternity with him. As we look back at our liberation, the death and resurrection of Jesus, and look forward to the consummation of that liberation when Jesus returns. Just as, having passed through the Red Sea, the Israelites looked back and saw the waters cover over and destroy their enemies, so we, when Jesus comes back, will see how God will deal with those who refused to bow the knee to Jesus.

If you’re feeling down today, start singing, and rejoicing and celebrating your victory. It’s not a case of wishful thinking, and it is not a case of “being positive”, but having faith in our God to accomplish that which we are not capable of. Another verse that springs to mind, and I will end off with this, was written by Jesus half-brother, James, in his letter to the church in Chapter 1, verses 2 . “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of many kinds”

Genocide

Genocide

 

I watched a movie the other day, unfortunately I cannot remember its name, but it was a fictional story based on the true events of the holocaust. A young lady in our present day falls unconscious at a party and then is taken back to 1940’s Germany. The Jewish community she finds herself in is celebrating a wedding. While the wedding ceremony is in progress, a large contingent of German Soldiers arrive and the commandant orders everyone onto the trucks as they are to be “relocated”. They are taken first by truck and then by train (as if they were cattle) to Poland, where they are placed in concentration camps and made to wear yellow Star-of-David patches. At nights they are herded into longhouses, which were very crowded, and which were very unhygienic, and during the day they had to work, work, work. If anyone became too ill to work, they would be killed. There were to be no children under 10 as they could not work and were in the eyes of the German authorities, a waste of resources. One of the Jewish women were pregnant at the time. They managed to hide the pregnancy from the Germans but of course when the baby was born, word got out and the authorities came looking. They were going to take the baby away, but the mother refused to let go of the child. So she, the baby, and another women who protested too much got dragged off and executed. A very touching moment of the show was where Hannah, our heroine, decides that they must have a Seder to celebrate Pesach (Passover), there were many things missing from the seder (This speaks of the order of events at a Passover celebration) because of their circumstances, but there was a group of Jewish ladies celebrating what has to be their most holy celebration, in this awful situation. The irony of Jewish people celebrating their liberation from slavery in Egypt, by the hand of G-d, when all around them is evidence that the Germans sought to wipe them off the face of the earth. Towards the end of the celebration, when it is customary for someone to “Open the door” for Elijah” it was decided who would do this important task. They opened the door of the long house, and standing outside was not Elijah, but a geman guard, armed with a gun. “What are you doing?” asked the guard. The Jewish woman answered, “We needed some fresh air!” “But you are not supposed to open the door” he responded. “Oh, We’re sorry.” Not long after this Seder, they were out digging in the grounds of the camp when we overheard a senior German officer state that he was not satisfied with the numbers of Jews who were being “exterminated.” Hannah’s friend was very ill, coughing badly. Hannah could see that her friend would be discovered and so she told her to try and control her coughing, also, she said, give me your scarf, that the friend was wearing on her head, she put it on her own head, and started to cough louder. The guard took Hannah off, and we see them being herded into the gas ovens. When the gas finally overwhelmed them, we are taken back to the modern times and there lies Hannah on a bed and she recovers. She relates to her aunt what she experienced, and her Aunt recognises that it was she whose life was saved by Hannah. Though the story was fiction, the background was factual, and as such was very moving. The German’s eventually wiped out 6 million Jews, but they did not succeed in eradicating them altogether (Hitler’s ultimate objective).

 

He was not the first either. This weekend is Purim. The celebration of how the Jews were saved from being annihilated in one day. Purim means lots, that is the casting of lots, because Haman cast lots to determine the day on which he planned to eradicate the Jewish nation, but I am getting ahead of myself. You can read the whole story in the Book of Esther, in the Bible.

 

I’ve been reading a lot on this celebration on the Internet. I have learnt so much from www.askmoses.com and http://www.aish.com/purimbasics/purimbasicsdefault/Lively_Megillah_Overview.asp. Very interesting stuff. I do not wish to re-invent the wheel, but I just wanted to reflect on one or two of the customs associated with Purim that I found interesting.

 

Children on the feast of Purim dress in disguise. Fun for children to play “dress up” but there is more to it than just dressing up. The reason they do that is that G-d is working in the background. The reason, according to Ask Moses is that there are two types of Miracle – the patent obvious miracle, for which there is no other explanation (The Red sea Crossing, the axe head floating, Naaman being healed of leprosy in the Jordan, to pick a few Old Testament examples) and then where circumstances work to cause a favourable outcome – what some might say was a “co-incidence.) The unique thing about the Book of Esther in the Bible is it is the only book where G-d’s name is not mentioned at all. However, clearly He was clearly at work in this desperate situation. Though G-d may be incognito at times, he is not being deceptive, which is what disguise suggests to me, but He uses everything at His disposal for His purposes. This includes the hearts of leaders. King Ahasuerus may have thought that his extending the scepter to Esther was his decision to make, but it was G-d who caused the decision to go His way. Haman may have thought that the 13^th day of Adar was merely due to the rolling of the dice. As you know, the meaning of the word Purim is “lots” as in the casting of lots. But G-d controlled the fall of those dice, or however the lots were cast, as much as He moved to get Esther into her position of influence, and He caused Mordechai to hear the plotting of the men to assassinate Ahasuerus. In a local magazine a reader wrote saying that she had recently been attacked by muggers and felt “abandoned by G-d,” She briefly related what happened, and it turns out that just as the attack was starting a car turned into the avenue where it was taking place. The presence of the car frightened the attackers away. The counsellor pointed out that that car didn’t just happen to turn into the street.

 

Another custom, and this one took me surprise, is that people celebrating Purim are expected to get drunk. Apparently this has to do with the party that the King had at which Vashti was deposed and executed. Of course, they are not too insistent on this dictum these days.

 

Nowadays a highpoint in the Purim celebrations is the Purim Shpiel which is a play akin to the Christian Nativity play, in that the story of Esther is acted out. Part of the tradition is that the audience cheers for Esther and Mordechai and boo at Haman.

 

One last thing before I wish all my Jewish friends a very happy (not to say merry) Purim. There is a book that has been put out called One Night with the King – It follows a film of the same name, all about the  story of Esther. I intend to buy it when I get some money.

 

G-d Bless.

 

John

 

Well, I’m a bit late for Purim, but I hope you enjoy reading it.

 

 

 

 

 

Citizenship

Not wanting the grass to grow beneath my feet this time, I have decided to quickly post another post before too long.

Citizenship – the last of the six pillars of character that are taught by the Character Counts Foundation.

Today is Australia Day – and apparently 30,000 became citizens of Australia – or as my friend Kerry said “True Blue Aussies.” The same type of ceremony takes place in many countries where immigrants are accepted as citizens, whether USA or Canada, or the United Kingdom to mention a few. Becoming a citizen of a country other than your birth is not an easy thing. They want to ensure that if you become a citizen, you are the kind of person who would be an asset to their society, and not a liability. They will look at your employment prospects and they would want to ensure that you have no criminal record in any country you have stayed for any significant period. They would want to establish that you are financially able to keep yourself and your dependants without needing to call on the state to bail you out. Reasonable requirements when you think about it.

However there is another citizenship that does not include these criteria, in fact, to gain this citizenship you do not need to fill in a single form, you do not have to show any personal wealth – actually you have to be willing to give up all personal wealth because you can’t take it with you. You do not have to prove qualification or employability prospects at all, but you do need to be willing and available to do the bidding of the Leader. You do not have to produce a police clearance and you can gain citizenship regardless of whether or not you have a police record. However, on application you are required to admit to all wrongdoing (whether you have a record or not) and undertake to stop doing them, and where feasible make restitution. If you have not worked it out already, the citizenship I am speaking about isn’t citizenship of a country, but it is the citizenship of Heaven. (Phil 3:20, Eph 2:19)

The Bible says, speaking of Christians, that we are citizens of Heaven. And just as on earth if you are a citizen of one country you are an alien in others. Yes, there are countries that permit dual citizenship, but a Christian, on becoming a citizen of Heaven by second birth, renounce citizenship of the world by their first birth. 1 Peter 2: 9-12 says

“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Dear friends, I urge you as aliens and strangers of this world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.”

We are a people BELONGING to God. – That speaks of citizenship to me.

- We belong to our country. Some people may object to this, saying that they are free agents, belonging to no-one. They own themselves and nobody can tell them what they can or cannot do. They may object and say belonging implies ownership and slavery was abolished many years ago. “I don’t belong to …” – in fact, they might add, “it’s the other way round – my country belongs to me – I have a share in it, like one has shares in a public company.” Sounds good on paper, doesn’t it? But is it really the case? The fact is, everybody starts out as a slave to sin. We are born in sin and thus we are slaves to sin. If it were not for Jesus Christ dying on the cross, that situation would have persisted and we would have all been doomed to eternal slavery, but Jesus dying on the Cross, bought our Salvation and set us free from the law of sin and death. But having been bought, we belong, now to God, and not our former slave master, the Devil. That is why that verse speaks about being “called out of darkness into His marvelous light.”

- Being aliens and strangers in the world – As I mentioned above, citizenship of Heaven implies being an Alien in the world. Nobody likes to be regarded as an alien or a stranger. They want to be accepted, welcomed, and made to feel “at home”. In the musical “Oliver” they sing the song, “Consider yourself at home, consider yourself, one of the family.” Think of the different ways the term alien is used, and all of them have negative connotations. Aliens from out of space – regarded with suspicion and hostility. Alien Invaders – plants growing in places and causing havoc to the environment. In South Africa, there are plants such as bugweed, that you are required by law to remove and destroy if you it growing in your garden – they don’t belong in South Africa. People who have permanent residence status in a country, but are not citizens, may have the term “Alien” stamped on their identity document. When crime escalates, it is often the “foreign nationals” – read “aliens” who are blamed. Xenophobia – the fear of strangers – is rife in our world today, so who wants to be an alien and a stranger? Thinking again about that song from Oliver! Young Oliver is taken into Fagin’s home – he’s invited join his band of pickpockets and thieves. He has a very different reception to the one he was used to in the orphanage and when he was sold into slavery to the other family (I’m sorry, I’m relating this from memory and so it’s a bit sketchy in parts). He is told what a wonderful life he will have, how much fun he will have. After all he is loved and accepted and …all he has to do… is “pick a pocket or two”! Yes this kind of love came with a price tag. Oliver was still enslaved, only he had a new master! He might have thought he was free, but that was an illusion. Charles Dickens was writing through the novel a comment about lives of children in his day and age, and though His book was fiction, those things really did happen.

- It’s one thing to be an alien in a friendly country, it is entirely a different matter if you happen to be an alien in a country that is at war with the country of your citizenship. Then you are not only an alien, you’re an enemy. Even if you don’t agree with the reason for the war, you are still treated with suspicion and may find yourself imprisoned or even have your life threatened by the people of that country. This was the lot of many Japanese nationals living in the USA after Pearl Harbor happened. Well, as I have stated already, we are Citizens of Heaven, and we are strangers and aliens in the world, and we affectively in enemy territory, in a hostile environment. Our enemy, the devil, wants to imprison us in sin and chain us up with chains of addiction and guilt. We, however as citizens of Heaven, have a higher code to live by, and so Peter implored us to “live such good lives among the pagans, that though you may accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds…” They may not admit it, in other words, but they know that you are better than they are, and they will want to be like you. However, don’t expect a friendly reception. More than likely you will find yourselves falsely accused, and persecuted in this land. Don’t become disheartened or discouraged, the Lord is with you, and He will strengthen you and give you the endurance that you need.

Coming back to the theme of citizenship, one of the marks of good citizenship is that you are a “law-abiding” citizen. Even if you are not in the country of your citizenship you are required to abide by the laws of the country you are in. In effect you have to satisfy the requirements of both the country of your citizenship and the country where you reside at any particular moment. So, being strangers in the world, does not give you a licence to be rebellious and break the laws. It has been said, “You don’t break laws, they break you.” – Ultimately I think that is true. No as Strangers in this World we have to satisfy the requirements of the Heavenly laws, which we find in the Holy Bible, and we have live according to the statutes and laws of the countries we live in, in so far as these do not conflict with the Heavenly laws – i.e do not require us to stop worshipping God and praying. Our example in this case may be Daniel, the Prophet who was constrained by law not to pray to anyone other than the Emperor. In this case, Daniel, went right ahead and prayed openly to His God, and not at all to the emperor. He did not do this secretly, but openly prayed to God. What was the result? He was thrown into a den of lions. That may have been the end of the story, except, God closed the mouths of the lions, and Daniel was released from the den unscathed. But in other respects Daniel submitted to the laws of Babylon and Assyria and he rose through the ranks to become an important advisor to the emperor.

Actually, in 2 Corinthians 5:20 we are described as Christ’s ambassadors. Ambassadors are held to a higher standard of ethics than a general citizen, since he represents his country in the country that he is working. Are you Christ’s ambassador in the community that you live? Are the people in your community aware of this? You may not be a pastor, an elder or hold any “office” in a church, but that does not stop you from being an ambassador.

Till next time then, be good ambassadors!

John

It’s been a while since I last posted, but this article has been sitting on my PC all this time and if I don’t post it now, it will not make much sense to post it at all, so here goes. So far we have looked at the Biblical call to care, we have looked at just a few old testament examples of Carers and I shared a skit about the Good Samaritan, In this post, I intended to highlight the kinds of excuses that people for not helping.

“I do care, but…”

1. It’s dangerous. If we consider the Samaritan, one might argue that he was putting himself at risk of attack by helping the man. The thieves might have been waiting for someone to stop to attack him too. The man lying there might have been a trap. Sad to say, many modern Good Samaritans have fallen prey to this ploy. While I would always advise us to be cautious when we see someone in danger, such as a person drowning, there are times when you will be stirred to take drastic action to help a fellow human being, at great personal risk. If you really care, you will not shrug your shoulders and pretend you can do nothing, but will do what you can to help.
   
   
2. It’s their own fault. Let’s face it; most predicaments that we find ourselves in are due to our own fault. We have been negligent or taken unnecessary risks. We were driving too fast, or we were overly tired, or we had had one too many, before embarking on our journey. We did not check our tyres had enough tread, etc. People who use this excuse conveniently forget that they too have done things that they’ve regretted later. The fact is, it’s not our place, to analyse why the situation exists but to help the affected people to the best of our ability.
   
   I was thinking about prison ministries: a less deserving group of people, one can hardly think of - unless one remembers that in many countries there are prisoners of conscience, as well as people who have been wrongfully convicted and people awaiting trial. But whether they are there because justice has been served, or because of an injustice, these people are in prison. I don’t believe it is our place to judge these people. Jesus spoke in the parable of the Sheep and the Goats (Matt. 25) and said to those who he designated sheep, “You saw I was in prison and you visited me.” We will not be able to reach out and help these people unless we are willing to get beyond our prejudices and see that they are people too. The law does not say, Love your neighbour, unless he’s in prison. I could say the same thing about prejudice and misconception with regard to people suffering with HIV/AIDS.
   Compassion does not say, “See, I told you so!” or “It’s your own fault, you should have been more careful.”
   It says, “I’m sorry you’re having a bad time. Is there anything I can do to help?”
   
   I didn’t know.
   If this were the case every time, then, I would not be able to argue against this, but many choose not to know. They either pretend that they don’t know, or deliberately avoid looking. We use the idiom, to turn a blind eye, meaning we deliberately choose to overlook something that is wrong. With the murders of the five prostitutes in Suffolk, the police investigating the murders received many calls giving them information. One of the girls, was found within feet of a roadside. A few days after they found her body, a caller phoned in to say that he had seen the body a few days before but had thought it was a discarded manikin. This astounded me: The person should have realised that it was a strange thing to be discarded by the roadside, and on closer examination, would have realised that it was not a manikin, but a woman. I do believe that by the time he saw the “manikin,” there were public announcements about woman having gone missing in the area, and that should have made him think again. I may be wrong, but it seems to me that that person chose to turn a blind eye (and explain away what he saw) because he did not want to get involved. I wonder what difference it would have made had he called the police on the day he saw “the manikin”?
   
   There is an advert on TV that I find very provoking: It features a single mother with two children. In the background, they play the song, “She works hard for her money.” They show this woman sending her children off to school, and then boarding a bus. You realise she is blind. She gets off the bus, stands on a corner and pulls a sign out of her bag that reads “Help. Mother of two children” She is begging on the street corner. Then a statement put on the screen about how many blind people cannot find work and the last statement is what hits home. It says, “… because YOU are blind.” Disabled people can be productive and useful people to have on the staff, but it means that employers need to give them a chance. It means that they may have to spend some money in setting up the necessary supports, to make employment of a disabled person. It may affect the bottom line in the short run, but I believe, that it will not be a permanent situation, and every dollar or rand spent will be worth it. It is time we stopped looking at disabled people and seeing what they cannot do, but let us see that they too are people and there is a lot that they CAN do, if given the chance. There are of course jobs that their disability would disqualify them from, but, the probability is that they would not apply for such jobs. People with disabilities need to prove that they are qualified to the work just as any other person applying for work has to do, but the reality is that many of them have to prove a lot more before they are even considered. As Christians, we need to see beyond the disability and see the person.
   
   You can’t help them all??
   
   This must be one of the most inane and irritating excuses. Of course you can’t help them all, but you can help someone. There is a well known modern day parable about child throwing starfish into the water at the seaside. Another person comes along and asks the child what he/she is doing. When the child explains that these starfish will die because they are stranded on the beach, the person says, but there are so many, you’d never be able to help them all. The child bends over picks up another starfish and throwing it into the water, says, “I just helped that one!”
   
   There will always be people who are better off or worse of than we are. See who you can help today.
   
   In conclusion
   
   Through writing this blog on caring, I have realised that there are so many areas in which we can care for other people. We need to stop looking for cop-outs and be ready to touch the lives of the people around us. I’d like to conclude with a quote from a devotional by J.C. Ryle:
   
   “What are we doing, each in his own sphere, to prove that this mighty parable is one of the rules of our daily lives? What are we doing for the heathen at home and abroad? What are we doing to help those who are troubled in mind, body and estate? There are many such in our world all around us. What are we doing for them? Anything or nothing at all?”[i]
   
   
   [i] Ryle J. C. (Compiled by Sheehan R. J.) Daily Readings from all four Gospels: For Morning and Evening, 1998, Evangelical Press, Darlington, UK. (Taken from the reading for 4 August – Morning.

Caring means Loving our Neighbour

This picture was painted by my mother especially for the blog

Hi,

I’m still talking about the 6 pillars of Character – Remember what they are? That’s TeRRiFiCC!! Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Caring and Citizenship.

In my last blog, I was talking about Caring, and I pointed to a few examples of Caring that I found in the Old Testament. I mentioned I would write about the “Good Samaritan” in my next blog.

1 John 3:16-18 says

This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down His life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.

Read the parable as Jesus told it in Luke 10:25 – 37. Instead of merely recounting the story, I hope you will allow me a little artistic licence and since it is Christmas time, I thought it would be fun to relate the story Pantomime style. This panto is set in South Africa, in 2006. (Actually, it’s more of skit than a full on Panto!)

The Cast

The Narrator: Jesus himself.

A Bible school student: Young man, early 20’s, rides a mountain bike, carries a Bible in a Bible bag, complete with notebook, and pen.

The traveler: Ordinary South African, middle-class, drives a nice car, but not too flashy.

Hijackers: need I say more?

Tele-evangelist: Flash looking, tailored suit, fancy hair-style. Chauffer driven Merc (latest model.) Speaks with an affected American Drawl.

Tele-evangelist’s chauffeur: Wears a chauffeur uniform.

Deacon Fred: Middle aged, conservative dress (smart), short back and sides haircut. Drives a Ford pick-up. His accent suggests he was educated at a private Boys school in Kwazulu-Natal.

Sam: Rather eccentric, a bit hippie, drives a multi-coloured VW-Beetle. Wears a bandana round his bald head. Accent and language is hip and happening. “Yeah dude!, W’sup?”

NB: All characters (except Jesus) are fictional and any similarity between them and people in real life is entirely, co-incidental.

Note all vehicles, except the student’s bike are stage set facades, only the side of the vehicle.

The Story

Curtains open and the Narrator is walking down a road. The Bible school student recognizes the Narrator as one of his/her lecturers. He catches up and stops to talk to him.

Bible Student (BS): Good morning sir! Having a nice day?

Narrator: Yes, actually thought I’d take advantage of the lovely weather to get some exercise, and you, where are you off to today?

BS: Oh, just taking a ride down to the local shop, thought I might see if there’s anyone I can persuade to come to church tomorrow. Tell me sir, what would you say, if someone asked: “How can I inherit eternal life?”

Narrator: Well, what would you say to them?

BS: Well in Deuteronomy 6 verse 5 it says “Love the Lord your heart and all your soul and all your strength”

Narrator: Mmmm

BS: And Leviticus 19 verse 18b says: Love your neighbour as yourself.

Narrator: So, what’s the problem, if you can do that, you will be alright.

BS: Yes, well, I suppose so, but suppose they ask “Who is my neighbour?” What do I say then?

Narrator: Let me tell you a story…..

Narrator and BS move to the side. As the Narrator speaks, the traveler comes on stage in his Peugeot Station Wagon. He’s traveling alone.

Narrator: A young businessman was driving down to Durban, from Jo’burg. He was going through Van Reenen’s Pass, when he pulled into a lay-by to stretch his legs. No sooner had he pulled over, [Enter hijackers – they act out the attack as it is being told] when a whole lot of hijackers jumped out of the bush, and knocked him down. They punched and kicked him, and he was in a bad way. They hit him so hard on the head that his ears were ringing. He felt like his whole body was on fire. They frisked him and relieved him of his wallet and his cell-phone. They then jumped into his car, and drove away at top speed down the highway. [exit hijackers and traveler’s car] The poor man just lay there, hoping that someone might come past and notice him.

BS: What happened next? Did the guy die?

Narrator: No, but he needed medical attention. A few minutes after the attack, a big chauffeur driven Mercedes drove past. In the back, rode a well known tele-evangelist, The Reverend Matt Bishop.

Chauffeur and Tele-Evangelist come on stage in a Merc. Emblazoned on the side of the car are the words “BISHOP MINISTRIES INTERNATIONAL”

Chauffeur: Hey, did you see that man lying on the ground? It looks like he’s been attacked. Do you think we should stop and help him?

Tele-Evangelist: Are you mad, man? We have a HEALING SHOW, I mean service tonight at 6 p.m. in Durban and we need to get to my hotel room by 3:30 p.m. so that I can get in my beauty sleep, before I start getting ready. We haven’t got time to stop and mess around.

Narrator: So they carried on their merry way, without a second thought for the poor man. A short time later, Deacon Fred came along the road. He was heading up to Jo’burg. He saw, our traveler lying on the ground and writhing in pain.

Deacon Fred: (to himself but out loud) That’s truly awful! The crime in this country is out of control. That poor fellow’s probably lost everything he has. Hope, he’s insured. The government really should do something about all this crime. I’d love to be able to help him, but you can never be too careful. After all, it may be a trap! As soon as I stop, they will jump out and steal my car. Still, I suppose I should pray for him…

BS: What did he pray?

Narrator: I don’t know, I don’t think God heard him.

BS: Well, did the guy just die there?

Narrator: No, not long after Deacon Fred, Sam drove past in his VW Beetle.

Sam comes on stage in the multi-coloured VW beetle and almost immediately notices the traveler in the lay-by. He pulls over.

Sam: Hey dude, what happened to you, man? You look pretty bad, man. Ag Shame. What can I do? Hey Dude, all this blood you’re losing, we need to get to a doc, like yesterday man. Hijacked hey? Poor guy. Hey, I’d give you tea or something, but you shouldn’t drink anything, in case you need an operation and they need to give you an anesthetic. Got this first aid kit in my car, carry it just in case. [takes out first aid kit, puts on Rubber gloves, removes bandages, ointment, etc.] Chill dude, it’s okay. Don’t thank me, it’s the least I could have done. Let me just get some ointment on this cut here, and then I will bandage it up. My bandages aren’t much, but they’re only temporary. The hospital will do a much better job. Now let’s see. How should we do this? Wait! I can’t move you, in case you’ve broken your back, or something. [Pause – puts ear near the traveler] What? You think your back’s ok. Okay listen, I’ll just get Herbie over here then, and you can lie down on the back seat while I take you to the nearest hospital. Sam, gets in “Herbie” and drives closer to the traveler. Sam gently helps Traveler to his feet and moves. Easy does it now! He helps him “get in” and then drives off stage.

Narrator: Later at the hospital, Sam made sure that the traveler was settled in, and had been seen by a doctor. He paid a deposit to cover the man’s hospitalization, and left his name and address, so that the hospital could forward the full account to him.

The Narrator: Well, who was a neighbour to that traveller?

BS: It the guy who stopped and helped him.

The Narrator: Yes, now you see, we need to be like him. He may not fit your mould of the “ideal Christian,” but he showed his love in practical ways. The best preaching is often done without words!

In the parable, as Jesus told it, the supposed heroes, the priest and the Levite, actually turn out to be the villains. The Samaritan, who was despised, emerged as the real hero of the story.

The message of the parable is clear: Your neighbour is everyone and anyone you come into contact with, regardless of race, religion or any other perceived difference. From the passage in 1 John quoted at the beginning, and many more beside, we learn that loving our neighbour means much more than merely mouthing the words, it must come from the heart, and it must be practical. It means being compassionate to everyone. It means we must care.

I’d like to say thanks to Mum for reading through umpteen drafts and giving her input especially in regard to correct English. Thanks too, to my nephew, and gave me a few pointers in writing this script. You input is valued. Thanks to you readers, and those who give me feedback. Now I wrote this skit just as kind of different way to tell the story, but if you want to use it, feel free. (I’d appreciate being told about it.)

In next blog, (the last on this topic) I will look at some of the excuses people make to justify their own failure to care.

Caring

No, It is not Valentine’s Day. The subject of this blog is the value of Caring, the fifth of six values promoted by The Character Counts foundation.

 

Caring occurs at many levels and in many different ways. Because of this, it is hard to define in a succinct sentence. For the purpose of this discussion, I shall restrict myself to “caring for people,” although we also should care for animals, our environment, and property. I have highlighted the word in RED because Red is the colour ascribed to it by the Character Counts! Foundation.

 

 

What springs to mind when I think of CARING is the relationship between a parent and a child. Either the parent cares for the child, in terms of the child’s physical and emotional needs, or later in life, the child is caring for his or her parent in a similar way. It is widely accepted and expected that a parent should take care of his her child, provide food, shelter and clothing and then beyond an atmosphere in which the child can develop intellectually, physically and emotionally. A parent provides security for the child and a parent does his or her best to shield their child from harm.

 

Not wanting to undermine or diminish the familial obligation to care, it does stretch beyond that.

 

If we look in the Bible, we can see many examples of caring:

 

Pharaoh’s Daughter & Moses.

 “Then Pharaoh’s daughter went down to the Nile to bathe, and her attendants were walking along the river bank. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her slave girl to get it. She opened it and saw the baby. He was crying, and she felt sorry for him. “This is one of the Hebrew babies,” she said.

 

Then his sister [Miriam] asked Pharaoh’s daughter, “shall I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?”

 

“Yes, go,” she answered. And the girl went and got the baby’s mother. Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I will pay you.” So the woman took the baby and nursed him. When the child grew older, she took him to Pharaoh’s daughter and he became her son. She named him Moses, saying, “I drew him out of the water.”- Exodus 2:5-10

 

Shobi, Makir and Barzillai bring needed supplies to David and his men during the revolt of Absolom;

When David came to Mahanaim, Shobi son of Nahash from Rabbah of the Ammonites, and Makir son of Ammiel from Lo Debar and Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim brought bedding and bowls and articles of pottery. They also brought wheat and barley, flour and roasted grain, beans and lentils, honey and curds, sheep and cheese from cows’ milk for David and his people to eat. For they said, “The people have become hungry and tired and thirsty in the desert.” – 2 Samuel 17:27-29

 

These are just two examples, in the Old Testament that speak of people who showed compassion, and as a result took practical steps to help. Clearly, God used these people, in circumstances that God’s people found themselves. Clearly Pharaoh’s daughter was not Jewish. As I will point out in the next blogs,

 

Caring should be not be reserved for our own families, or even our own racial, ethnic or cultural group, but should be extended to everyone.

 

 Pharaoh’s daughter did not focus on the fact that Moses was a Jew, though the text makes it clear that she knew he was one of the Hebrew babies, but what she focused on was that there was a baby in need. Yes the Lord moved in her heart and so orchestrated the situation to bring about his desired result, just as he may call on you to be caring to fellow human being who needs your help.

 

I had not previously read this story of Shobi, Makir and Barzillai.

Shobi	The son of Nahash. Nahash, king of the Ammonites was no friend of the Jewish people. It is not clear here if the word “son” is literally implied, or meaning descendent of Nahash but the point to note in this context is that Shobi was not Jewish. Interesting background on Nahash can be found in 1Sam. 11 and 12:12
Makir	Son of Ammiel. He was Jewish. He lived in the land of Lo Debar (meaning pastureless). Makir cared for Mephibosheth, the lame son of Jonathan from the time he was a child of 5 years old into adulthood. It would be reasonable to assume that Makir took on the role of foster father of Mephibosheth when he was brought to him. Some years later, David called for Mephibosheth, and to honour his covenant with Mephibosheth’s father and David’s very close friend, Jonathan, David took steps to ensure that Mephibosheth was provided for the rest of his life. You can read it in 2 Samuel 9:1-13 . Looking at the timeline, we can safely assume that Makir was by this an old man.
Barzillai	Described as a Gileadite , Barzillai was of the half tribe of Mannasseh. Gilead, the place, was east of the Jordan River. Could it be that Barzillai was regarded as a bit of an “outsider?” We read more about Barzillai in 1 Sam 19 where the account of David’s return to the palace. We learn from that passage that Barzillai was an old man, 80 years old.

 

Two or possibly three old men, one of them not Jewish, came to the aid of David and his men. They brought much needed supplies to them. Sometimes, we are tempted to make excuses as to why we are not in a position to help or care, but these three men serve as an example of how they served despite their age, or their social status. They may not have been able to become fighters alongside David, but their role of bringing food to David and his men, was as essential as the role of those on the frontline. We should not waste time bemoaning the fact that we can’t help in some “BIG” way, but see what we CAN do and know that our contribution is important too.

 

Caring, is I think a value in life that demands more of us than the other values we’ve been discussing. If you love someone, caring comes as a natural outflow of that love.

 

John 13:34 – [Jesus said,] “A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you so you must love one another. By this all men will know you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

 

1 Corinthians 12:25b-26 “..., but that its parts [parts of the Body – the Church] should have equal concern for one another. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honoured, every part rejoices with it.

 

1 Corinthians 13:3-4 “If I give all I possess to the poor….but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind, …”

In other words Caring without love is a waste of time, but love is caring.

 

Galatians 6:2 “Carry each other’s burdens and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.”

James 1:27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

 

James 2 – The whole chapter has relevance, but I highlight just verses 15 to 17: “Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you say to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith, by itself, if not accompanied by action, is dead”

 

1 Peter 4:10 – Each of you should use whatever gift he has received  to serve others, faithfully administering God’s Grace in its various forms.

 

1 John 4: 19-21 “We love because He first loved us. If anyone says, “I love God,” yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And He has given us this command: Whoever loves God must love his brother. (I need to point out that Peter was not speaking merely about blood-relative, but anyone and everyone.)

 

The quintessential text about caring is the story of the Good Samaritan. We will examine the Parable of the Good Samaritan in the next blog.

 

Coming Soon, to a computer screen near you!

The Good Samaritan

 

SIX PILLARS

 

In the last few blog submissions, I have been looking at the values extolled by The Character Counts Foundation, known as the “Six Pillars.”  I pointed out that the six values spell the consonants in the word TeRRiFiCC. I thought that was my clever observation, but on further research, I have noticed that the Character Counts foundation already had that mnemonic on their website, and I realised that it was no co-incidence that they wrote the six values in that particular order. Not only do have the Terrific mnemonic, but they have a colour scheme too. The Colour Scheme for the values already discussed are as follows:

 

TRUSTWORTHINESS – BLUE (“True Blue”).

 

R    E    S    P    E    C    T – GOLD (“The Golden Rule”)

 

R E S P O N S I B I L I T Y – GREEN  (“Solid and reliable like an oak.”)

 

F    A    I    R    N    E    S    S – ORANGE (“Sharing an orange fairly.”)

 

The webpage goes defines the six values briefly. Those that I have already discussed, I shall briefly define here as they are defined on the webpage:

 

TRUSTWORTHINESS: Be honest, don’t deceive, cheat or steal. Be reliable – do what you say you’ll do. Have the courage to do the right thing. Build a good reputation. Be loyal – stand by your family, friends and country.

 

RESPECT: Treat others with respect. Follow the Golden Rule. Be tolerant of differences. Use good manners, not bad language. Be considerate of the feelings of others. Don’t threaten, hit or hurt anyone. Deal peacefully with anger, insults and disagreements.

 

RESPONSIBILITY: Do what you are supposed to do. Persevere: keep on trying! Always do your best. Use self-control. Be self-disciplined. Think before you act – consider the consequences. Be accountable for your choices.

 

FAIRNESS: Play by the rules. Take turns and share. Be open-minded; listen to others. Don’t take advantage of others. Don’t blame others carelessly.

 

 

I’d like to finish off this blog by thanking Mr. Michael Josephson for the marvelous work he is doing through the Character Counts Foundation. His commentaries that I get weekly by e-mail, are really inspiring and thought provoking. Although Mr. Josephson is, as far as I can gather, an observant Jewish man, and I am a Christian, I can honestly say that in terms of values and morality, we both have a lot in common, and I truly admire the fervency with which Mr. Josephson advocates a high moral standards across society.