{"id":151,"date":"2015-11-25T18:48:39","date_gmt":"2015-11-25T22:48:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/chartingchurchleadership\/?p=151"},"modified":"2016-02-08T18:43:47","modified_gmt":"2016-02-08T22:43:47","slug":"our-model-for-leadership-is-a-pagan-prostitute","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/chartingchurchleadership\/2015\/11\/our-model-for-leadership-is-a-pagan-prostitute\/","title":{"rendered":"Our model for leadership is a pagan prostitute"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>
American governors<\/a>\u00a0and presidential candidates<\/a>\u00a0are calling for the United States to reject\u00a0immigrants and refugees. A leading candidate is beating the drums for\u00a0an incipient police state, complete with informants on every block<\/a>. Many of these voices claim the Christian faith as their own.<\/p>\n
The signs are clear: it\u2019s high time we talked about Rahab.<\/p>\n
What is a Canaanite prostitute from Jericho doing right next to \u201cour father Abraham\u201d as an example of \u201cfaith with deeds\u201d in the most famous passage of James\u2019 letter (2:14-28<\/a>)? Shouldn\u2019t Sarah or Ruth\u00a0have that place of honor among women?\u00a0Shouldn\u2019t James\u00a0point to\u00a0Moses or Elijah instead?<\/p>\n
<\/a>
Rahab converted\u00a0the\u00a0art\u00a0of seduction into a\u00a0source\u00a0of mercy and thus won mercy for herself.
Image of this\u00a0non-prostitute model with a penetrating\u00a0gaze\u00a0by BestPhotoStudio on\u00a0Shutterstock.com<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
The short answer: Rahab\u00a0is a model of faith in action because she risked her life to protect the spies Joshua and Caleb from discovery and execution by the soldiers of Jericho. She stood against bloodshed and showed loyalty to vulnerable people, and that is the kind of faith James wanted to commend.<\/p>\n
But why did James want to commend\u00a0Rahab\u2019s\u00a0act\u00a0of faith? And why should American Christians\u00a0care about our interpretation of James on this Thanksgiving weekend in 2015, amid the Islamic State\u2019s threats,\u00a0the Syrian refugee crisis,\u00a0and partisan political grandstanding?<\/p>\n
We misread James and mangle\u00a0our ethics<\/h3>\n
The answers to those\u00a0questions\u00a0require that we address a\u00a0longstanding defect in our interpretation of the Bible and, therefore, in our contemporary Christian ethics.\u00a0We, the whole church for many generations, going back at least to the Reformation and earlier, have been misreading the epistle\u00a0of James and impoverishing our understanding of faith in action. Now would be a good time to get it right, to let the agony of James\u2019 world soak into our bones, and to remind us how perfect love casts out fear<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Our reading is missing a crucial lens: that\u00a0James has a\u00a0coherent theme driven by concrete, real-world events. Just as I Corinthians is a response to\u00a0an incestuous relationship and Philemon is a response to an escaped slave, James is a response to a horrific event or pattern of events. If we discipline\u00a0ourselves to apply a lens that expects to find coherence in spite of our historical and cultural\u00a0distance, we can readily find it.<\/p>\n
Yet we\u2014and in \u201cwe\u201d I include most of our leading theologians\u00a0and scholars, with all our literary and historical expertise\u2014have read James\u2019 letter\u00a0as a disjointed collection of pastoral proverbs, warm-hearted snippets of pastoral\u00a0wisdom beneficial mainly for our\u00a0personal piety. (A rare exception who\u00a0reads James with an expectation of coherence is\u00a0Lutheran scholar David Scaer<\/a>.)<\/p>\n
When laypeople are asked what the letter\u00a0is about, we are most likely to remember \u201cfaith without works is dead\u201d (2:20<\/a>), and we\u00a0argue most about how to reconcile that idea\u00a0with \u201csalvation by grace through faith.\u201d We reduce \u201ctaming the tongue\u201d (3:8<\/a>) to \u201cdon\u2019t gossip or say bad words,\u201d and we think of \u201cresisting the devil\u201d (4:7<\/a>) as saying a\u00a0tearful\u00a0prayer for aid in resisting\u00a0the\u00a0temptation to lust or gluttony.<\/p>\n
But if we read with the lens of internal coherence, we find that James is not that kind of letter. Not at all. James is the kind of letter a church leader writes when rebel\u00a0soldiers slaughter\u00a0innocents, when believer\u00a0betrays\u00a0believer, when borders are contested, and when the rich use money to buy the persecution of the poor. James is about murder and mercy, life and death, blood and betrayal.<\/p>\n
James\u00a0likely writes in the late 40s AD, probably not long\u00a0after Stephen\u2019s stoning, Saul\u2019s brutal but legally-sanctioned persecution, and the diaspora of Jewish Christian believers. It was a time when religious and nationalist leaders and movements jockeyed for position, trying to duck\u00a0below\u00a0the awesome power of Rome while clawing a way out\u00a0of\u00a0the suffering of the masses of poor and slaves.<\/p>\n
James is a timely letter for today, for a time of Islamic terrorism, rumor- and fear-mongering, racism, ideological puritanism, and moral confusion.<\/p>\n
<\/a>
Rembrandt\u2019s Jeremiah Lamenting from Wikimedia Commons<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n***
**
***The\u00a0letter from James is emphatically NOT a curio shelf of moralistic rhetorical knickknacks about personal piety and morality. On the contrary, it is a jeremiad, speaking clearly with the voice of Jesus and the prophets, indicting the self-righteous hypocrisy of religious leaders who extol their own national\u00a0pedigree and sexual purity\u00a0while backstabbing and cheating and persecuting the vulnerable and the poor.<\/p>\n
James insists on subordinating personal piety to\u00a0collective mercy. That is why a pagan prostitute is compared favorably to Abraham: her story\u00a0proves that God honors\u00a0mercy over morality. Her adulterous life is redeemed by her prevention of a murder. The\u00a0mention of Rahab in 2:25 follows directly from 2:8-11<\/a>, where James writes that avoiding adultery does not excuse complicity in murder.<\/p>\n
A letter from an\u00a0angry\u00a0king to traitors among his subjects<\/h3>\n
James is likely\u00a0the first, oldest text of the New Testament, written by the first major leader of the church in Jerusalem to Jews and Jewish Christians all over the world. Tradition and contemporary scholarship agree that the most likely author was Jesus\u2019 brother, identified by Paul as a leader of the church in Galatians 1:19-20<\/a>. In verse 20, Paul essentially says, \u201cdude, I\u2019m not lying, I met James!\u201d\u2014evidence that the\u00a0meeting was so\u00a0distinct an honor that Paul had to defend his\u00a0claim. Why? In a culture very interested in royal genealogy (Matthew 1:1-17<\/a>, Luke 3:21-38<\/a>),\u00a0James, as Jesus\u2019 brother, was the leader of the church and<\/em> the rightful\u00a0heir to the throne, the true king of Israel! This claim\u00a0is not essential to the interpretation below,\u00a0but reading James imaginatively\u00a0as a letter from a rightful\u00a0king\u00a0helps to reveal its\u00a0urgency and coherence.<\/p>\n
As\u00a0a pagan prostitute, Rahab is contrasted as an unlikely candidate for virtue with the conventional appeal to Abraham\u2019s righteousness. Yet Rahab is one of Jesus\u2019 and James\u2019 honored ancestors in the royal line of Israel (Matthew 1:5<\/a>). James\u00a0holds up his own family as a model, drawing on the history of Israel\u2019s royal line.<\/p>\n
The key to understanding the narrative coherence of James is revealed, as in every riveting, epic story, in the climax near\u00a0the end of the letter, in chapter 5, verses 1 to 6<\/a>:<\/p>\n
1\u00a0<\/span>Now listen,\u00a0you rich people,\u00a0weep and wail\u00a0because of the misery that is coming on you.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>2\u00a0<\/span>Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes.\u00a0<\/span>3\u00a0<\/span>Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>4\u00a0<\/span>Look! The wages you failed to pay the workers\u00a0who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries\u00a0of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>5\u00a0<\/span>You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves\u00a0in the day of slaughter.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>6\u00a0<\/span>You have condemned and murdered\u00a0the innocent one,\u00a0who was not opposing you.<\/span><\/p>\n
If we read this passage through the lens of coherence, these verses are not a litany of unrelated sins; they are telling the story of rich landowners protecting themselves from religious persecution by turning traitor, accusing their farm laborers of being traitors to Rome in order to scapegoat them and get richer by withholding\u00a0their\u00a0wages. James is righteously angry because of the mass murder and persecution of fellow\u00a0believers\u00a0by wealthy people\u00a0who were claiming to serve God as children of Abraham while using their power to expand\u00a0their\u00a0wealth. The unpaid wages \u201ccry out\u201d like Abel\u2019s blood from the ground because they are covered in\u00a0blood. The \u201cday of slaughter\u201d they fatten themselves in is the day the laborers were executed.<\/p>\n
We misread the letter if we do not\u00a0keep this background of bloody, traitorous crime\u00a0constantly in mind. It weighs on James\u2019 mind, and every word\u00a0of the letter is colored by his righteous anger, even when he counsels against human anger (1:19-20<\/a>).<\/p>\n
Taming our\u00a0tongues is a matter of life and death<\/h3>\n*****
**
*****Once we have the key, the thematic coherence of James is much easier\u00a0to follow throughout the letter. James demands that we reckon with\u00a0the violent consequences of our self-serving words and actions. He condemns self-righteous finger-pointing. He demands we put the interests of the weak above our own.<\/p>\n
The theme of reining in the tongue running throughout the letter is\u00a0not about avoiding four-letter profanities,\u00a0lewd talk, or petty office \u201cbackstabbing.\u201d It\u2019s about talk that leads to literal stabbings, along the lines of the \u201cloose lips sink ships\u201d posters of World War II. The Greek word for devil is diabolos, <\/em>accuser or slanderer. We resist the devil (4:7<\/a>)\u00a0by refusing to be<\/em> devils, by not accusing and slandering others (4:11<\/a>). We should keep a tight rein on our tongues (1:26<\/a>) by not using the sins of\u00a0fathers in the courts to get them condemned, so that their wives become widows and their children become orphans; instead, we serve and protect the many widows and orphans already produced by war and violence.<\/p>\n
When James says that \u201cevery good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father\u201d (1:17<\/a>), it\u2019s not a sweet saying to put on flowery greeting cards or\u00a0refrigerator magnets. The previous verse, \u201cDon\u2019t be deceived\u201d (1:16<\/a>) should convince\u00a0us\u00a0it\u2019s a warning, not an encouragement.\u00a0 James does not use a\u00a0common Greek word for a physical gift (doron<\/em>) nor for a spiritual gift (charisma<\/em>). Instead,\u00a0<\/em>he actually\u00a0uses two rare Greek words with pecuniary\u00a0connotations:\u00a0\u201cEvery good quid-pro-quo donation [dosis<\/em><\/a>]\u00a0and every perfect bonus [dorema<\/em><\/a>].\u201d The message is to resist the deception of\u00a0\u201cfree\u201d payoffs and bribes from rich, influential patrons. These payoffs are\u00a0inducements, temptations:<\/span><\/p>\n
\nto be double-minded or traitorous (1:8<\/a>);<\/li>\nto forget that the person\u00a0in the mirror is also a member of a vulnerable, persecuted religious minority (1:23-25<\/a>);<\/li>\nto show favoritism to the rich (2:1-13<\/a>);<\/li>\nto neglect charity out of greed (2:14-17<\/a>);<\/li>\nto curse human beings (3:9<\/a>);<\/li>\nto indulge our envy and selfish ambition (3:13-15<\/a>);<\/li>\nto quarrel and fight, befriend the world, slander our fellows, and boast about our success (chapter 4<\/a>);<\/li>\nand ultimately to betray poor fellow\u00a0believers\u00a0into imprisonment and death (5:1-6<\/a>).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
James likely alludes here to Judas\u2019 betrayal of Jesus for the infamous 30\u00a0pieces of silver (Matthew 26:14-16<\/a>), the ultimate treason against God himself; he means to shame his readers with the realization that they are committing the sin of Judas.<\/p>\n
When James writes that \u201csin, when it is full grown, gives birth to death\u201d (1:15<\/a>), he does not have in mind a hairsplitting theological distinction between physical and spiritual death. He means that accusations, slanders, and curses\u00a0cause death, the death of the accused, and\u00a0their blood is on our hands. When James\u00a0says that the tongue is a \u201cworld of evil\u201d (3:6<\/a>) \u201ca restless evil, full of deadly poison\u201d (3:8<\/a>) with which we \u201ccurse human beings,\u201d (3:9<\/a>), he\u2019s not talking about saying \u201cdamn\u201d or even about speaking heresy. He\u2019s talking about uttering words of accusation and judgment that ruin lives and lead to bloodshed.<\/p>\n
Mercy triumphs over judgment<\/h3>\n*******
**
*******During our long\u00a0obsession with\u00a0how to read \u201cfaith without works is dead,\u201d we have been prone to bitter strife and infighting among Christians over who\u00a0has\u00a0the proper theology. Nothing could be more at odds with the purpose of chapter 2, which begs us to stop the strife and make peace with\u00a0each other.<\/p>\n
The theological center\u00a0of\u00a0James is not \u201cfaith without works is dead\u201d (2:17<\/a>), but \u201cmercy triumphs over judgment\u201d (2:13<\/a>), words\u00a0that set the stage for the text about\u00a0faith and deeds. Immediately after reminding us that murder is sin, James writes:<\/p>\n
12\u00a0<\/span>Speak and act as those who are going to be judged\u00a0by the law that gives freedom,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>13\u00a0<\/span>because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful.\u00a0Mercy triumphs over judgment.<\/span><\/p>\n
Like everything else in James, this triumph of mercy over judgment is not a gentle, subtle\u00a0event.\u00a0\u201cTriumphs\u201d is a Greek power verb (katakauchomai<\/em><\/a>, to \u201cboast against\u201d or \u201cexult over\u201d) with a\u00a0connotation of unsportsmanlike gloating and dragging the prisoners down the main boulevard in chains. Mercy wins because God makes the rules, and God grants mercy total victory over self-righteousness and finger-pointing.<\/p>\n
Being judgmental does not have a pretty future. Mercy\u2019s going to be a cruel victor. It will surely feel like burning coals heaped on our heads<\/a>.<\/p>\n
<\/a>
Jericho\u2019s walls fell inward. There\u2019s a lesson in that.*******
*******Tissot, The Taking of Jericho from Wikipedia Commons<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nMake it real:\u00a0repent, and show mercy<\/h3>\n*********
**
At work and church, in politics and business, are we like Rahab? Do we forgive mistakes, overlook faults, offer relief, protect the vulnerable, and repent of our own errors, sins, crimes, and atrocities? Do we attack the plank in our own eye?<\/p>\n
**
*********Or are we like the bloodthirsty, self-indulgent people of Jericho, whose walls will fall? Do we point self-righteous fingers at others, boast about our own success, use our wealth and power to afflict and slander others? Do we damn the speck in the eye of the partisan, the addicted sinner, the homeless refugee?<\/p>\n
\u201cJudgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.\u201d (James 2:13<\/a>)<\/p>\n
God have mercy on me. God have mercy on us all.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Please join in the discussion on our Facebook page<\/a>. And please take action and show mercy as best you can. Please\u00a0consider\u00a0donating and advocating\u00a0for Syrian refugees in the US (through Bethany Christian Services<\/a>, for example) and\u00a0overseas (through World Renew<\/a>, for example).\u00a0Advocate for immigrants through the A Blessing Not A Burden Campaign<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n
Coming soon: a discussion of <\/em>Team of Teams by General Stanley McChrystal. Not long after that, \u201cShould the church be run like a business? A surprising answer from sociology.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n
Stay in touch! Like Charting Church Leadership on Facebook:<\/em><\/p>\n
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What is a Canaanite prostitute from Jericho doing right next to “our father Abraham” as an example of “faith with deeds” in the best-known passage of the Biblical letter from James (2:14-28)?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2443,"featured_media":154,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19,18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-151","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bible-study","category-religion"],"yoast_head":"\nOur model for leadership is a pagan prostitute<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"What is a Canaanite prostitute from Jericho doing right next to "our father Abraham" as an example of "faith with deeds" in the best-known passage of the Biblical letter from James (2:14-28)?\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta 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