Sabbath

So, this is far more personal reflections than deep theological consideration, but it's what's been rolling around my heart for a while.

As I look back at the creation narrative in Genesis (and here's where my theological lens will come in), I see it far less as a story of how the world came into being, and far more a story of how God is always manifesting in the world, and initiating relationship with each of us.

The original narrative of God's creating in our lives is one of goodness. It is not perfection. This is important. I don't see any implications in the text for a theology of original perfection. God creates us, and sees us as good.

God creates us in a context. There is a world going on around us. Specifically there is a world created out of the imagination of God, that is filled with wonder and excitement. Moreover, we are created for and in communion and community with other people, with God, and with nature.
The original story is one of hospitality. God invites us to celebrate in creation. We are born not perfect, but good. We are dependent on the hospitality of others to care for us in our deep neediness.

In the grander scale, we are to care for others, for creation, to give and receive in harmonic interdependence.

The challenge and struggle is in the breaking of community. The betrayal of our desire for acceptance and trust. In the Genesis story, there is a breakup of trust. Deception and isolation lead to shame that causes us to think we can care for ourselves.

I believe that In Christ, and indeed, from the beginning, God seeks to continually bring us into the tension of community (watch for more on this phrase "tension of community" and how it relates to a Contra Dancing metaphor for trinitarian theology in a later post). This restoration takes so much courage and pain. It involves God (and us, as extensions of God's body in the world) reaching out to speak honestly about the places of depravity that are in all of us.

God called to Adam and Eve in the Genesis story, asking deep questions that revealed their shame, and fear. Their return to relationship with God, and the continuing story of redemption in the whole Bible, was based on God deepening their sense of shame, through the dramatic loving-kindness of God's merciful justice. God spoke to their violation of community, set boundaries, and offered them reconciliation.

God invites us back into community. We are to invite others back into community. This is not supposed to happen through ignorance (ignoring what is in front of us) or through denial of the shame and great need for forgiveness. Instead, we are called to enter into the shame and brokenness that exists between us. This requires courage to enter into our own shame and deal with our own need and desire for community with God and one another. Only then can we press into the hurt, shame, and defensiveness of those who most need our hospitality and welcome back into community.


So, what does this have to do with Sabbath?

Great question. I think there is something here. Some connection. I am going to try to outline a few ways that I think these ideas are related, and then I'd like for some other folks to help me put flesh on these ideas.

1) I think that there is something important about God creating Sabbath as a part of the original model of hospitality, relationship, and community.

2) There seem to be elements of celebration and hope in Sabbath.

3) It seems that the theme of reconciliation pulls up the cyclical nature of God's establishing a pattern of creation and celebration/rest (rest-oration?), and this may be connected to the continual tension of the dance of community as moving in and out of the goodness and depravity of our humanity.

4) Sabbath seems to be a recognition and building in of the idea of our neediness. We need rest, celebration, hospitality, and communion with God, other people, and nature.


I'm sure there are more categories that you can identify, so please feel free to branch off of this.

I'm interested in fleshing these ideas out, and also in incarnating them. The difference being one of discussion vs. implementation. I think we need both.

I honestly don't participate very often in a Sabbath that looks anything like this. When was the last time your regular Sabbath was restful, restorative, brought you into true communion with God, nature, and other people, led you into an experience in which your shame was openly confronted with hospitality?

Just some thoughts.

Grace and Peace,
Daniel