April 15, 2014

AM Psalm 6, 12; PM Psalm 94 Lam. 1:17-22; 2 Cor. 1:8-22; Mark 11:27-33

Selected Verses from Lamentations of Jeremiah 1.1-22

³ Judah has gone into exile with suffering
   and hard servitude;
⁵ Her foes have become the masters,
   her enemies prosper,
because the Lord has made her suffer
   for the multitude of her transgressions;
her children have gone away,
   captives before the foe.
⁸ Jerusalem sinned grievously,
   so she has become a mockery;
all who honoured her despise her,
   for they have seen her nakedness;
she herself groans,
   and turns her face away.
⁹ Her uncleanness was in her skirts;
   she took no thought of her future;
her downfall was appalling,
   with none to comfort her.
‘O Lord, look at my affliction,
   for the enemy has triumphed!’
Look, O Lord, and see
   how worthless I have become.
 Look and see
if there is any sorrow like my sorrow,
   which was brought upon me,
which the Lord inflicted
   on the day of his fierce anger.

¹³ From on high he sent fire;
   it went deep into my bones;
he spread a net for my feet;
   he turned me back;
he has left me stunned,
   faint all day long.

¹⁴ My transgressions were bound^* into a yoke;
   by his hand they were fastened together;
they weigh on my neck,
   sapping my strength;
the Lord handed me over
   to those whom I cannot withstand.
 Zion stretches out her hands,
   but there is no one to comfort her;
the Lord has commanded against Jacob
   that his neighbours should become his foes;
Jerusalem has become
   a filthy thing among them…
¹⁸ The Lord is in the right,
   for I have rebelled against his word;

In this horrific reading from Lamentations, we find God portrayed as a male abuser, while Jerusalem is portrayed as a woman, and a victim of God’s abuse.  In the verses leading up to today’s reading, Jerusalem has been called “a mockery”, and “filthy thing”.  All have  “seen her nakedness…and her uncleanness was in her skirts”. Jerusalem is abused and beaten by the God she trusted. And even more horribly, she blames herself, and says she deserves this abuse.

Some might say, “It’s not really a women, it’s just a metaphor for Jerusalem.” I would counter with a question: Down through the centuries, how often have these lines been quoted to justify the abuse of women? How can this reading possibly be good news for our time, when statistics of violence against women are so frightening? (For example, a 2014 government health study concluded that 1 out of every 14 women worldwide have been sexually assaulted, and one in four college women have been subjected to sexual violence.)

I would like to turn tables in my meditation and ask, “How does this scripture affect you? What do you think about the images in this reading?”  To help, I invite you to follow the link below to the Episcopal Words Matter Project. http://www.episcopalwomenscaucus.org/wordsmatter.htm

This project seeks to explore the words, images, language, and symbols used in worship and every day life to talk about God, self, and other human beings. It focuses on  “expansive language”, a term used to indicate that respectful language that honors all of God’s people is more than just gender inclusive. This project seeks to find words, phrases and images that neither offend nor reinforce stereotypes that may be harmful to anyone.

The site includes resources for a group study. Would anyone like to join me in a study of this timely topic?

Julie Mankowsky