Post Women’s History Month: Ruth – Women of the Bible
Where do ideas come from? I was in Rite Aid Pharmacy on Third Avenue in the Bronx, looking for a pair of nylons to wear to my brother’s memorial service, when I noticed the book and magazine section. I wasn’t pressed for time, so with nylons in hand, I went over to the section to see what books were on offer. I spotted, Women of the Bible, a CBS Collector’s Edition and thought since Easter is just around the corner, it may be worth reading. This blog post is not about religion, it’s about demonstrating the actions of some women, and the lessons we can learn from them. Lessons can come from anywhere.
Later in the day, the creative juices started flowing, and it occurred to me to write a post that would work for Women’s History Month and Easter, and this is how the idea for Post Women’s History Month: Women of the Bible was born. The point is that you never know where you will get your next idea. To execute my idea for the blog post, I knew that it was doable because I had the book, All the Women of the Bible by ML Mastro, so I had another information source. I knew that I wanted to feature Esther, Mary Magdalene and Ruth, but after browsing through both books, I added Jezebel and Delilah. Life is filled with good and bad, ups and downs, so I thought it important to feature a couple of women of the Bible who are not well-loved because you can learn lessons from everyone.
I will start off with Ruth, and over the Easter weekend, feature the other women.
Ruth: I have always liked the story of Ruth in the Bible because some of the choices she made were very different from the ones I would make, had I been in her situation. Imagine that your husband dies, what would you do? Stay with your mother-in-law or return to your own family. Remember that Ruth was living in a time very different from today. Naomi and Elimelech had two sons – Chilion and Mahlon – whom they raised to be good husbands – to treat women with respect, and take care of their wives. Mahlon married Ruth and Chilion married Orpah. Elimelech died, then both sons, leaving the women to fend for themselves. Back in the day, women had fewer choices than they do today. Mother-in-law, Naomi decided to return to Jerusalem, encouraging her daughters-in-law to return to their family.
Ruth stayed with Naomi, and this emotional Bible passage has always touched me, even though I cannot see myself responding in that way.
“And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God.” King James Bible Authorized Version, Cambridge Edition
Ruth and Naomi made the trek to Bethlehem. For food, each day, Ruth worked in the barley fields belonging to Boaz, Naomi’s distant cousin. It was very hard work, and not the kind that Ruth was accustomed to, but she didn’t allow that to stop her. We do what it takes to survive. When the harvest season was almost over, Naomi encouraged Ruth to court Boaz. Imagine a woman courting a man in those days? Ruth’s action paid off, she and Boaz married, producing a son from the joining. I like Ruth because she was loyal, kind-hearted and a woman ahead of her time. These are lessons that we can learn from her.
If you were in Ruth’s situation, what would you have done differently?
Get Started Here – I want to help you get started on your learning journey. Read The Invisible Mentor 2015 Reading Challenge, then Join the Facebook Group for the Reading Challenge today, connecting the ideas from the books you read!
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