My favorite love story is Ruth and Naomi. It's of two women of different cultures and different values, brought together by marriage. They form a bond so strong that Ruth leaves her home and her own family to accompany her mother-in-law, Naomi, to a foreign country that will never recognize her as a worthy person. And that deep bond is rewarded by a 'jealous' God who makes Ruth the great grandmother of the great king David. Who, we all know is the line which produces the Messiah.
Pastor Deb,
I’ve heard accounts of Ruth and Naomi actually having a romantic relationship. What’s your opinion on that?
Lou, I don’t really have an opinion. I think the Bible leaves the question open. The truth is we really don’t have information about the sexual practices of women of that period. It seems that men kept the history, and told it from their viewpoint. I also think that relationships between women are much more ambiguous than most men realize. Clearly Naomi and Ruth had a deep bond. If they did have a sexual relationship, it does not seem to have caused Naomi to hesitate to help Ruth strategize how to gain a protector (for them both).