LEPER’S CHALLENGE (24)
Scripture: 2 Kings 5:1-14
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Leper’s Challenge (24)
Lectionary, Year C, Proper 9
Christopher B. Harbin
2 Kings 5:1-14
Intrigue, deception, subterfuge, and hidden agendas make politics a dirty game. It is often very difficult to see past surface words and actions to understand one’s hidden purposes. Then again, we may find ourselves too focused on seeking hidden agendas that we miss those which are out in the open. We may project bits of ourselves onto others in ways that speak louder about who we are than those we are trying to uncover or understand. In the mix, we may miss the fact that deception is a tool of weakness, not of strength. Is our reliance upon God sufficient to obliterate hidden agendas from our toolboxes?
Today’s passage comes amid a cycle of stories establishing Elisha as Yahweh’s prophet called to take over Elijah’s mantle in Israel. Elijah is still held as the greatest of the prophets next to Moses, and Elisha was his immediate successor. This cycle of stories establishes that Yahweh was working with and through Elisha just as powerfully and visible as through Elijah. As Yahweh’s prophet, his role was that of representing Yahweh’s presence, announcing Yahweh’s will, and calling the political leadership of the nation to accountability before Yahweh.
The narrative before us almost seems to treat Elisha as a marginal character. He is mentioned by name. He sends a message to the King of Israel. He sends a messenger out to meet Naaman, but Elisha is not himself visibly present in any of the dialogue. He remains out of the spotlight, even as much attention is focused on him. He does not appear very engaged in the narration and seems absent from all the unfolding action and drama. This story should be about Elisha, but it is as though he plays a greater role by his absence than by being present.
The slave girl in Naaman’s household is the first to mention Elisha, though not by name. She refers to him as ‘‘that prophet in Samaria.’’ It’s a rather blase description. S ...
Lectionary, Year C, Proper 9
Christopher B. Harbin
2 Kings 5:1-14
Intrigue, deception, subterfuge, and hidden agendas make politics a dirty game. It is often very difficult to see past surface words and actions to understand one’s hidden purposes. Then again, we may find ourselves too focused on seeking hidden agendas that we miss those which are out in the open. We may project bits of ourselves onto others in ways that speak louder about who we are than those we are trying to uncover or understand. In the mix, we may miss the fact that deception is a tool of weakness, not of strength. Is our reliance upon God sufficient to obliterate hidden agendas from our toolboxes?
Today’s passage comes amid a cycle of stories establishing Elisha as Yahweh’s prophet called to take over Elijah’s mantle in Israel. Elijah is still held as the greatest of the prophets next to Moses, and Elisha was his immediate successor. This cycle of stories establishes that Yahweh was working with and through Elisha just as powerfully and visible as through Elijah. As Yahweh’s prophet, his role was that of representing Yahweh’s presence, announcing Yahweh’s will, and calling the political leadership of the nation to accountability before Yahweh.
The narrative before us almost seems to treat Elisha as a marginal character. He is mentioned by name. He sends a message to the King of Israel. He sends a messenger out to meet Naaman, but Elisha is not himself visibly present in any of the dialogue. He remains out of the spotlight, even as much attention is focused on him. He does not appear very engaged in the narration and seems absent from all the unfolding action and drama. This story should be about Elisha, but it is as though he plays a greater role by his absence than by being present.
The slave girl in Naaman’s household is the first to mention Elisha, though not by name. She refers to him as ‘‘that prophet in Samaria.’’ It’s a rather blase description. S ...
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