Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“Naomi said to Ruth, her daughter-in-law, ‘It is better, my daughter, that you go out with his young women, otherwise you might be bothered in another field.’”
NL Daily Devotion for Saturday, August 27, 2022
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
“Bothered” is a euphemism, I think. In the midst of this touching and engaging story, it’s a sobering reminder of the reality of Ruth’s world. As a widow she had no place in society. As a widow she could not support herself financially. As a woman, she was a second-class citizen, subject to the whims of those with power—men. A single woman, alone, gleaning in a field, would have been subject to harassment or even rape. Possibly it wasn’t even out of the ordinary. So maybe this brief reminder is intentional, lest we get too caught up in the romance of it all. The truth is that the stakes are high—Ruth and Naomi’s very survival is entirely dependent upon the goodwill of other people, and the divine intervention of a God who so recently had abandoned them both to their tragedies.
Let it be a reminder to us in our own realities, too. There are people in our lives—maybe it’s even us—whose circumstances are precarious, and who lack the power to guarantee positive outcomes. We can ask God to help us be aware of these realities, and to spur us to action on behalf of those who need help.
What things serve as stark reminders to me of the challenges of life?
