Though today's reading moves from life-threatening famine (43:1) to elaborate feast (43:34), I'm struck by all the intrigue along the way. First, there's the irony of this two-layered story. Joseph's brothers seek a bail-out from the very one whose demise they (think they) have orchestrated; they blame Benjamin's fate on their honesty but have utterly deceived their Dad about Joseph's. It's a good reminder that none of us lives as consistent a life as we imagine. Like the brothers, we desperately need those whom we've somehow wronged or dismissed. Like them, we proclaim our honesty even as we find reasons not to live in the truth.
But there's something more hopeful in this chapter as well. In the midst of such human contradictions, we find another very human impulse to bridge the gaps they create with acts of generosity. Notice the story's detailed account of gifts and menu items. In this dance between brothers alienated long ago, both the brothers and Joseph reach across a perceived divide of culture and language and religion to offer something of themselves.
It's important to notice too, though, that those distinctions blur but don't fade away entirely. The brothers eat separately, as was the Egyptian custom. They're seated according to Egyptian protocol, not their own. And yet, the chapter's closing line captures a snapshot of harmony that all dysfunctional families long for: a meal shared among those long at odds over power and ego and inequity. Can't you just hear the laughter? Might this be God's vision for us?
- What role do gifts and meals play in your relationship with others?
- Have you ever needed someone with whom you'd been at odds? What happened? How did you feel?
- What other details did you notice in today's reading?
Prayer: Thank you, O God, for the vulnerable moments that nudge us to depend on others. Open our eyes to see and our hearts to delight in your presence in the midst of it all. Amen.
Breath Prayer: They drank // and were merry.
