Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“At mealtime Boaz said to her, ‘Come here, and eat some of this bread, and dip your morsel in the sour wine.’ So she sat beside the reapers, and he heaped up for her some parched grain. She ate until she was satisfied, and she had some left over.”
NL Daily Devotion for Wednesday, August 24, 2022
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
Boaz now goes even further in his radical hospitality. Radical hospitality is crossing boundaries to love and serve our neighbors. It’s what Jesus did constantly—with lepers, women, people from other cultures, outcasts, people who were poor. He flew in the face of convention, calling social norms out as unjust, and healed, taught, fed, and welcomed everyone, no matter what. Boaz’s act of welcoming Ruth in many ways prefigures this—how fitting that (spoilers!) Boaz is Jesus’ direct ancestor. Note, too, how Ruth “ate until she was satisfied, and she had some left over.” Sound familiar? The same thing happened when Jesus fed the multitudes with bread and fish. It makes the point that Boaz’ generosity was of great abundance—that God provides more than we need.
Ruth, for her part, is no passive recipient here. It is brave of her to glean in the first place, risking harassment and even rape by the harvest workers. It is bold of her to accept hospitality from this stranger as she is unsure of the culture and whether she might be inappropriately breaking social norms. It is brassy of her to eat her fill instead of acting demure. But if you think this is bold, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.
These are some wonderful characters in a wonderful story. Stay tuned!
When have I practiced radical hospitality in my life?
