Recently,
I’ve been hearing a lot about the year 2040.
Does anyone know why that’s such an important year? [answers].
Right. According to U.S. census
projections, 2040 is the year when the percentage of non-Hispanic Whites will
make up less than 50% of the U.S. population.
We will be a country made up of different racial-ethnic minorities. And most of this population changeover is due
to immigration. As of 2010, one in four
U.S. children had at least one “foreign-born” parent. In 2040, the United States will be a lot less
White, and a lot less Western. These
trends have fueled a lot of anxiety in America, and not just among Trump
supporters. Businesses, schools,
community organizations, and churches are trying to figure out how to adapt to
a society that encompasses many different languages, traditions, and
worldviews. Some of these efforts are effective, some are not.
The
way we talk about the year 2040, and our suggests that we are in an
unprecedented moment, that we are dealing with opportunities and challenges
that humankind has never had to navigate before. But when we turn to 2 Kings, we find a story,
thousands of years old, about a Syrian general, an Israelite slave girl, and
YHWH’s prophet. A story about a culture
clash, and how it lead to restoration and salvation.
Naaman, a general for the king of Aram, was
a great man and highly regarded by his master, because through hi YHWH had
given victory to Aram. This man was a
mighty warrior, but he had a skin disease.
Now Aramean raiding parties had gone out and captured a young girl from
the land of Israel. She served Naaman’s
wife. She said to her mistress, “I wish
that my master could come before the prophet who lives in Samaria. He would cure him of his skin disease.”
When the king of Israel read the letter, he
ripped his cloths. He said, “What? Am I
God to hand out death and life? But this king writes me, asking me to cure
someone of his skin disease! You all must realize that he wants to start a
fight with me.”
When Elisha the man of God heard that
Israel’s king had ripped his clothes, he sent word to the king: “Why did you
rip your clothes? Let the man come to
me. Then he’ll know that there’s a prophet
in Israel.”
Naaman arrived with his horses and
chariots. He stopped at the door of
Elisha’s house. Elisha sent out a
messenger who said, “Go and wash seven times in the Jordan River. Then your skin will be restored and become
clean.”
But Naaman went away in anger. He said, “I thought for sure that he’d come
out, stand, and call on the name of YHWH his God, waive his hand over the bad
spot, and cure this skin disease. Aren’t
the rivers in Damascus, the Ababa and the Pharpar, better than all Israel’s
waters? Couldn’t I wash in them and get
clean?” So he turned away and proceeded to leave in anger.
Naaman’s servants came up to him and spoke
to him: “Our father, if the prophet has told you to do something difficult,
wouldn’t you have done it? All he said
to you was, ‘Wash and become clean.’” So Naaman went down and bathed in the
Jordan seven times, just as the man of God had said. His skin was restored like that of a young
boy, and he became clean.
He returned to the man of God with all his
attendants. He came and stood before
Elisha, saying,
“Now I know for certain that there’s no God anywhere on earth
except in Israel. Please accept a gift
from your servant.”
Before
I delve in, let’s get situated by exploring our main character a bit. Naaman is the commander of the Aramean –the
Syrian—army, the man responsible for the defeat of the Israelites. A “great man,” a “mighty warrior,” the
consummate macho man. He represents the
Center. Let’s remember that the Bible
has always been written from the margins, and for the margins. My—and most of our—power and privilege as native-born
United-States-of-Americans connect us to Naaman. That’s who we are in this story. That’s where I’m going to challenge us to
stay.
Now,
Naaman also has a skin disease that is unsightly, one that is supposedly
incurable. Now we know that Naaman is a man
of means, so we can assume that he’s consulted dermatologists far and wide to
find a cure for his skin affliction. He’s
tried the local magicians, the court priests, poultices, salves, juice
cleanses, hot yoga, everything. He’s
exhausted his own society’s knowledge and resources and has come up short. Now this is important, and a point that I
want us to pay close attention to. Naaman may be powerful and privileged, but
he is still suffering from a skin affliction.
Aramea may have great riches and reach, but that society is still
limited.
Naaman
learns that an Israelite prophet may have the cure for his affliction. And who delivers this information? An
Israelite slave girl. This girl is often
overlooked in the retelling of Naaman’s healing, but let’s pay some special
attention to her. Her entrance into the
story comes right after Naaman’s introduction, and these two characters
couldn’t be more different.
General:Slave. Male:Female. Adult:Child.
Native:Foreigner. It is her situation as an outsider—as other—that
uniquely qualifies her to give the Good News.
She
is an Israelite. She knows about
Elisha. She knows that the God Elisha
serves – YHWH – not only has the power to cure afflictions, but the desire to
do so. She knows all of this because she
was born in a particular part of the world, to a particular people and culture,
and thus sees through a very particular cultural lens. Her other-ness, her difference from Naaman’s
dominant culture, gives her a unique understanding.
So
here is lesson number one from the story of Naaman’s healing: that cultural
differences are not a burden, but a blessing.
Traditions and beliefs that are different from our own are not only
valid and true, but equally valid and
true. Naaman has to take this foreign-born
girl’s witness seriously in order to find healing. And this is where we often fall short in our
attempts to meaningfully engage with diversity.
There
is a prevailing notion in our culture—Western, predominately White,
culture—that there is some universal “truth” that transcends
culturally-specific worldviews. If we
all check our cultural baggage at the door, we can peacefully coexist. This view pervades most of our approaches to
engaging diversity, to cross-cultural interactions. The problem is that this belief is culturally
specific—to Western, predominantly White, Enlightenment-revering
societies. We demand that people from
different countries and cultures disengage from their traditions, so that we
might meet on “neutral ground,” – our ground.
Only then can we come together in harmony. Our idolatry of “objectivity” blinds us to
the Divine presence in difference. It is
often this view that undermines our attempts at cross-cultural dialogue, that
often results in pressure on our immigrant brothers and sisters to assimilate
to our culture. The witness of the slave
girl suggests that the dominant culture would do better to acculturate
ourselves to the riches of diversity that immigration brings.
 |
| Other-ness gives a unique perspective, one that is equally true |
Now
let’s get back to Naaman, to the moment right after he takes the slave girl’s
advice. What does Naaman do with this
information? He puts on a display of
repeated cultural ignorance and arrogance that seems to only hinder his
healing. He first sends a message to the
Israelite king because of course the Prophet works at the will of the
monarch. Not in Israel. He then goes to the prophet’s house and
expects to be greeted by Elisha in person because of his own great
stature. I mean, obviously, a prophet
would welcome the general that conquered the prophet’s people. Not in Israel. Finally, Naaman expects the cure to be
immediate, for Elisha to wave his hands, say “abracadabra: affliction be gone!” That’s how miracles are performed. Not in Israel. Again and again, Naaman is obstructed by his
own discomfort to step outside his particular worldview. He arrogantly holds onto the notion that the Syrian
way – his way – is the right way. This
all comes to a head when Naaman flat-out refuses to follow Elisha’s
instructions. How in the world could a
foreign river be better than his nation’s own?
We
laugh at this part of the story: poor, ignorant, Naaman. And we’re supposed to laugh, the Hebrew Bible
loves irony. But, let’s not skip over
the second lesson of this cross-cultural encounter: they’re often messy, and
intimidating; they’re difficult. That
doesn’t mean we should avoid them, or soften the experience by tiptoeing around
our differences. Even us progressives step back from fully engaging with
cultural difference because it gets tricky.
There is a fine line to walk between appreciation and appropriation;
between orientalism and respect. The
“safe” thing to do is to limit cross-cultural interactions to sociological
study and sterile encounters that do not demand our vulnerability. We segregate ourselves into native and
immigrant communities.
Naaman’s
frustrated outburst at Elisha’s prescription reveals that underlying anxiety we
all have about changing demographics in the United States: our own
vulnerability. To take other cultures seriously, is to change our society. It’s
hard, we have a lot invested in our own myths and traditions. We stubbornly
cling to our culture’s dominance.
Are not Abana and Pharar, the rivers of
Damascus, better than all the waters in Israel?
Could I not wash in them and be clean?
Is
not our academic system the best measure of knowledge and wisdom? Is not our
version of Democracy the most fair? Is
not the scientific method the most objective way to understand the universe? Is
not the academic study of Scripture the purest way to discern God’s will? Is not the Mighty Mississippi better than the
Rio Grande?
At
the moment of extreme frustration, when Naaman bumps up against the limits of
his own worldview,his servants, probably fed up with his ranting, chime
in.
If the prophet had told you to do something
difficult, wouldn’t you have done it? All he said to you was, “wash and become
clean.”
Dude,
chill out. All he’s asking you to do is
to wash in the Jordan River. It’s right
down the road. It’s here that Naaman
realizes that he’s misinterpreted the entire encounter. Elisha wasn’t insulting the Syrian nation or
Naaman himself. All Elisha did was tell
Naaman what to do to be healed. Naaman
bathes in the Jordan, and in that action humbles himself to an understanding of
God and nature that is foreign to him. And
as soon as Naaman gives the Israelite Prophet the same respect he would for Syrian
priests—as soon as he opens himself up to an Israelite truth—he is healed.
And
here is the third lesson of culture clashes: we are better for them. For all their messiness, for all the
discomfort we feel, for all the revelations – good and bad -- it is through these
engagements that we find salvation. Naaman’s
engagement with the Israelite religion and culture – his acculturation to a
different truth – will make him a stronger and wiser leader.
Like
Naaman, I have had my share of culture clashes, and I am better for them. There is one particular experience that has
been at the forefront of my mind all week as I was reading this Scripture and
doing my sermon prep. Three years ago, I
spent the summer in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia doing research for a social service
organization. While I was there, I made
friends with a young Ethiopian man – Nahom.
One day, Nahom and I went to the National Museum in Addis, where we saw
Lucy – the skeleton that provides “conclusive” proof of evolution. Ethiopians are very proud of Lucy. While at the exhibit, I asked Nahom (who grew
up in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church) about that church’s views on
evolution. I told him that there was a
big argument about it in the United States and wanted to know what he thought.
“Oh,
the Ethiopian church doesn’t believe in that.”
“Really?
Huh. Do you believe in evolution?”
“No.”
Mind
you, there are three people in the conversation: me, Nahom, and Lucy who is
lying between us. Lucy, who is one of
the national treasures of Ethiopia.
“But,
what about Lucy?”
Nahom
looked at Lucy, and then looked at me, and shrugged. “It’s just science.”
 |
| Lucy has her own café outside the National Museum -- really good coffee |
The
story of Naaman’s healing reveals that cultural differences do not impede
salvation, but are the vehicle for it.
The slave girl draws on her particular traditions and beliefs to provide
a path of relief to Naaman. It is the
waters of the Jordan River – which Naaman accepts as sacred although he may not
fully understand why– that cure Naaman of his affliction. The whole encounter may have been awkward and
messy, and Naaman may have come across as a fool, but he also leaves
transformed—a better person.
As Sergio has mentioned, this October, University
Church is celebrating Latin@ Heritage month.
This is our opportunity to honor and engage with some of the cultures
that enrich this congregation, the relationships that have blessed us with
revelation. This is one of the ways that
we are affirming our identity as an immigrant-welcoming congregation.
