Ruth 2
Ruth and Naomi have returned to Bethlehem but are destitute and it does not seem that any of the family have yet come to their aid.
Ruth decided to go out into the fields and glean some grain from the harvest, which appears to be an option for the destitute at the time. Don't try running behind a combine harvester these days by the way!
The field that Ruth has chosen to glean in belongs to Boaz, who is a relative of Elimalek, Ruth's father in law and husband. When Boaz paid a visit to the harvest, he spotted Ruth gleaning and did nt recognise her, so he asked the field supervisor who she was. "She is the Moabite woman who returned with Naomi." she asked for permission to glean and has been at it since morning with a short break in the shelter. (Presumably the heat of the day was proving a bit too much).
Boaz went and spoke to Ruth, saying stay in this field and follow the women - I've given the men instructions that they are not to harm you, and if you are thirsty help yourself from the water jars that are there for the harvesters.
Ruth asks why Boaz is showing such care for a foreign woman he does not know - "I've heard about how you are looking after your mother in law since your husband died and have left your family and home to care for Naomi" Replied Boaz.
At the mealtime Boaz invited Ruth to share in the food, and instructed the harvesters to deliberately leave stalks and grain for Ruth to glean
By the end of the day Ruth had gleaned about 12-13 kg of barley wheat - which is enough for them both for the day and with some left over in all probabilitty.
Naomi, once she finds out where Ruth had been, advised Ruth to stick with Boaz and glean in his fields for the whole season.
Now in the UK at the moment there is a constant background, I'm going to call it "whinge" when it comes to the subject of immegration. Just this year there were fears that a flood of Bulgarian and eastern European immigrants would flock to the UK and immediately demand treatment on the National Health service, claim benefits and take all our jobs for much less money that we would work for.(The fact that these 3 are not really mutually compatible seems to escape journalists and politicians)
I was actually disgusted to hear of the treatment of non-EU immigrants and asylum seekers who are detained and one asylum seeker with dementia was retrained in his bed as he died.
When I compare this with the care and compassion of Boaz I cannot help feeling that we, in the UK, are extremely likely to undervalue immigrants both to the economic detriment and the cultural detriment of this country, after all as we shall see Ruth is pivotal in the story of Israel but also of Christianity.
What is more to the point in the UK - my own family name indicates that we came to the UK as Saxons in about 580 a.d. Is being accepted simply a matter of time. (Which physics tells us is entwined with space to form a single entity space-time continuum (sorry I had to get the phrase space-time continuum in here somehow, and now I have done it twice!)
I moved to God's own county of Yorkshire some 2 decades ago and only need to wait another 3 of 4 more generations before I can be considered a "true" Yorkshireman!
So - as we are instructed in the Bible law, and following the example of Boaz let us welcome strangers, foreigners and yes even asylum seekers and immigrants into our land and culture.
I'd personally be prepared to welcome the occasional "bad egg" into this country than to stop somebody who genuinely needs help or protection from getting it.
Sorry I rather went political here for a moment, but I felt I wanted to share a point that is kind of missing in the media these days.
Normal service will resume next post.
Ruth and Naomi have returned to Bethlehem but are destitute and it does not seem that any of the family have yet come to their aid.
Ruth decided to go out into the fields and glean some grain from the harvest, which appears to be an option for the destitute at the time. Don't try running behind a combine harvester these days by the way!
The field that Ruth has chosen to glean in belongs to Boaz, who is a relative of Elimalek, Ruth's father in law and husband. When Boaz paid a visit to the harvest, he spotted Ruth gleaning and did nt recognise her, so he asked the field supervisor who she was. "She is the Moabite woman who returned with Naomi." she asked for permission to glean and has been at it since morning with a short break in the shelter. (Presumably the heat of the day was proving a bit too much).
Boaz went and spoke to Ruth, saying stay in this field and follow the women - I've given the men instructions that they are not to harm you, and if you are thirsty help yourself from the water jars that are there for the harvesters.
Ruth asks why Boaz is showing such care for a foreign woman he does not know - "I've heard about how you are looking after your mother in law since your husband died and have left your family and home to care for Naomi" Replied Boaz.
At the mealtime Boaz invited Ruth to share in the food, and instructed the harvesters to deliberately leave stalks and grain for Ruth to glean
By the end of the day Ruth had gleaned about 12-13 kg of barley wheat - which is enough for them both for the day and with some left over in all probabilitty.
Naomi, once she finds out where Ruth had been, advised Ruth to stick with Boaz and glean in his fields for the whole season.
Now in the UK at the moment there is a constant background, I'm going to call it "whinge" when it comes to the subject of immegration. Just this year there were fears that a flood of Bulgarian and eastern European immigrants would flock to the UK and immediately demand treatment on the National Health service, claim benefits and take all our jobs for much less money that we would work for.(The fact that these 3 are not really mutually compatible seems to escape journalists and politicians)
I was actually disgusted to hear of the treatment of non-EU immigrants and asylum seekers who are detained and one asylum seeker with dementia was retrained in his bed as he died.
When I compare this with the care and compassion of Boaz I cannot help feeling that we, in the UK, are extremely likely to undervalue immigrants both to the economic detriment and the cultural detriment of this country, after all as we shall see Ruth is pivotal in the story of Israel but also of Christianity.
What is more to the point in the UK - my own family name indicates that we came to the UK as Saxons in about 580 a.d. Is being accepted simply a matter of time. (Which physics tells us is entwined with space to form a single entity space-time continuum (sorry I had to get the phrase space-time continuum in here somehow, and now I have done it twice!)
I moved to God's own county of Yorkshire some 2 decades ago and only need to wait another 3 of 4 more generations before I can be considered a "true" Yorkshireman!
So - as we are instructed in the Bible law, and following the example of Boaz let us welcome strangers, foreigners and yes even asylum seekers and immigrants into our land and culture.
I'd personally be prepared to welcome the occasional "bad egg" into this country than to stop somebody who genuinely needs help or protection from getting it.
Sorry I rather went political here for a moment, but I felt I wanted to share a point that is kind of missing in the media these days.
Normal service will resume next post.
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