Openness, to the Glory of God

It's the Jewish holy day of Purim.  The story of the Jews defending themselves against their enemies strikes a relevant tone with recent news headlines including stories about anti-Semitism.

These headlines and the occasion at hand remind me of the debt I owe to the Jewish people for making strong my faith in Christ.

As I have written before on this blog in reflecting on my extraordinary experience at Julian Middle School, I can only recall knowing one Jewish person and her family before middle school.  When I got to Julian, that number jumped astronomically.  It seemed I met another Jew among my new friends and classmates every time I turned a corner.  And they talked so openly and naturally about being Jewish.  The exposure gave me an opportunity to become more familiar with Jews.  This was happening at a time when I was getting greater exposure to the diversity of peoples that Oak Park is renowned for.

The openness of the Jews I interacted with caused me to turn inwardly and reflect on who I am.  It caused me to turn from lukewarm to deeper appreciation of who I am, especially as defined by my Christian faith and relationship with God.  I say this especially in light of the reality that the Jewish people were the first God called into a relationship with Himself, and they were the foundation upon which Christ built the church, which I give thanks to God that I am part of.

The story told in the Biblical book of Esther relates that Mordecai told his cousin Esther, who he raised, to keep her background a secret when she entered the palace.  He then told her to open up about her background before King Xerxes when her people's lives were at stake.

As an aside, there's one detail in the story that speaks to Lent, in that Esther recognizing the stakes were high to go before King Xerxes uninvited, and so requested a fast before she approached King Xerxes.  In this time of Lent, before celebrating the Paschal Triduum, we recognize the seriousness of how sin has damaged our relationship with God, and so we fast that we may enter more deeply into a
relationship with Him.

In great courage--one of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit--did she approach King Xerxes.  She found favor in his eyes, and he worked to spare the Jews throughout the Persian Empire.  Then Mordecai was given an honored position in the government.

Thinking about my own experience in middle school, I am thankful for the Jews I interacted with who were so open about who they were.  That has helped me be open about faith, and embrace it as an important part of my life.

So as the Jews celebrate this occasion, rejoicing that God spared them from their enemies in Persia, I stand with the Jews and thank God for using them so wondrously in my life for His Glory.