The Kitchen Sink
An occasional piece of paper
November 19, 2006
Vol. 9 no. 45

Everything But...
           Hardly a half-verse of the New Testament Gospels is written without the memory, overt or subliminal, of an event or a person in the Old Testament. The reference may be really subtle, and it is possible that the Gospel writers were not always consciously aware of the language and allusions they were utilizing. The Bible had simply permeated every pore of the writer’s body. Many Christians still wonder why we bother with the Old Testament with all its violence, misogyny, and a jealous and vengeful God. The reason is that if we did away with the Old Testament, there would be barely anything left of the New.
           Ruth’s story is complete and now the prime time character is another woman, Hannah, the “favourite wife” of Elkanah who has not borne any children. Elkanah is a kind man who loves Hannah deeply, but the culture of the day bruises her soul, demoting and deriding her because of her infertility. This is The Standard Story told one more time: Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, and much later Elizabeth were all barren at first. In fact, it seems Biblically required to be barren in order to amount to anything. Distraught nonetheless, Hannah is in the temple at Shiloh when it becomes too much to bear. She prays to God for a son and promises to commit the son to a rigorous and devout way of life. Many people promise such things; Hannah will carry through on her promise.
           A funny thing happened on the way to this blessed event. The priest thought she was drunk. Didn’t they think the Apostles were drunk as well when they received the Holy Spirit during the feast of Pentecost? In both cases, Hannah and the Apostles were stone sober, but then again, God’s presence makes the best of us a little blurry.