Defying Custom
Scripture: Ruth 1
Naomi’s story begins when her family is forced to leave Bethlehem, the City of Bread, not because they were concerned about carbohydrates, but because there was a famine in the land. So Naomi, her husband, and their two sons traveled to Moab to stay.
Naomi’s husband dies, and her sons marry Moabite women. Yes, we’re talking about those Moabites. The ones who, according to Deuteronomy 23, should not be admitted to the assembly of the Lord “even to the tenth generation.” To make matters worse, Naomi loses both sons after living in this foreign land for ten years. She’s left with her two daughters-in-law, Orpah and Ruth. This is not a good situation — the Ancient Near East was a patriarchal society; thus, Naomi, Orpah, and Ruth were in a vulnerable position.
About this time, Naomi hears that the famine in Bethlehem had ended, and she plans her return. We don’t know her motivation, but Naomi tells her daughters-in-law that they should return to their mothers. They resist, saying they will go with Naomi to her people, but Naomi insists they will be better off in their homeland; without a husband herself, she would not be producing sons for them to marry anytime soon.
Orpah follows custom, kisses Naomi goodbye, and stays behind. (It’s unfortunate that it was Orpah in this situation and not Oprah, who would have proclaimed, “And you get a husband and you get a husband and you get a husband!”)
Ruth, on the other hand, chooses to defy custom. She stays with her mother-in-law, deviating from a path that likely would have allowed her to remarry quickly; she also follows Naomi to a foreign land, one that practices a foreign religion, and does not look upon Moabites favorably.
Custom is a powerful force, so I take pride in being part of a faith tradition in which custom is regularly defied. We defy custom by being part of the church, by gathering for worship, and by living by a different set of values. And yet I wonder: Does our discipleship include adequate attention to the climate catastrophe that is underway?
We know that the air pollution we generate results in lower cognitive performance, mental illness in children, dementia in adults, premature births, and respiratory diseases. Global warming will create 200 million climate refugees by 2050. And maybe you’ve heard some of the outcomes that will be faced by our descendants, those among us who will live to see the year 2100: In the best-case scenario, the ice sheets will collapse, 400 million more people will suffer from water scarcity, and many major cities will become unlivable. In the do-nothing scenario, two-thirds of the world’s major cities will be flooded and almost none of the world’s land will be capable of growing the food we currently eat. (Wallace-Wells, 12–15)
The church has played a critical role in many important humanitarian issues through the years. Faith leaders have helped lead efforts to create laws around child labor, equal rights for women, safety nets for the poor, and racial justice. We’re not known, however, for our efforts toward protection of God’s creation.
Ibram Kendi links inaction on climate change to other justice issues. As he wrote, “do-nothing climate policy is racist policy, since the predominantly non-White global south is being victimized by climate change more than the Whiter global north.” (Kendi, 21) Indeed, whenever our public or personal policy favors customary practices around fossil fuel consumption, it is the marginalized who suffer.
Custom dictates that buying gasoline is part of getting around, but when we pull the trigger at the gas pump, we are committing a proxy act of violence against the bodies of people of color.
Custom dictates that beef is what’s for dinner, but when we consume beef, we are indirectly denying subsistence farmers the ability to grow food.
Custom dictates that single-use plastics are simply a part of life, but when we buy bottled water or other drinks in plastic bottles, we are in effect submerging islands and coastlands, creating refugees.
When we follow custom, we help instigate the type of humanitarian crisis that displaced Naomi’s family to begin with.
At the end of Ruth chapter 1, there doesn’t seem to be much hope for Naomi and Ruth. But if you read on to chapters two, three, and four, you can see there are better things on the horizon. Ruth’s loyalty and commitment — the Hebrew word is hesed — defy custom. To the readers of the scripture that bears her name, Ruth serves as an example of someone from another race who upholds their own values.
Ruth adopted a foreign land, a foreign culture, and a foreign faith, which led to redemption for herself and for Naomi.
Perhaps it is time for us — as part of our Christian discipleship — to adopt some foreign practices as well. If most of the folks around us drove electric cars, if that was the custom, we would, too. Most people don’t . . . but we are not afraid of adopting the foreign.
If single-use plastics weren’t all around us, we would not seek them out. Unfortunately, single-use plastics surround us . . . but “we embrace change for the sake of Christ,” (Reyes, 135) and will thus choose other containers for the items we consume.
If beef was only rarely offered in restaurants, we would not eat it. In our depraved food supply chain, however, it is ubiquitous. Fortunately, our desire to do less harm exceeds our desire for convenience, so we will choose the narrow path.
Following custom is easy, but we are not a customary people. And the good news today is that we are surrounded with the instruments of our liberation: cars and lawn mowers that plug in, metal and reusable containers, electric choice, sustainable food options, and eco-justice veterans who can advise us along the way. On a larger scale, some denominations are already taking action, and there are a variety of organizations with which we can partner at an individual or group level to influence corporations and governmental policy.
My friends and siblings, the road of discipleship is not always easy, but I am happy to be journeying with you, defying custom. Ruth and Naomi’s story ends with redemption. Ours can as well.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
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References
Berlin, Adele and Marc Zvi Brettler, eds. The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Collins, John J. Introduction to the Hebrew Bible: Third Edition. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2018.
Kendi, Ibram X. How to Be an Antiracist. New York: One World, 2019.
Robertson Farmer, Kathleen A. “The Book of Ruth,” in New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume II. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Wallace-Wells, David. The Uninhabitable Earth: Life After Warming. New York: Tim Duggan Books, 2019.
Yee, Gale A., Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber, editors. Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014.
