“And how it came from the Old World
Was anybody’s guess –
Light as an exile’s suitcase,
A belly of emptiness:
That was the one I chose –
Not the one of flame –
And teachers turned in their practiced hands
To see whence the sad notes came.”
'Two Violins' by A. E Stallings
In her poem, this contemporary American poet reminds us of the tragedies of dislocation and displacement, sometimes chosen, often not.
What would you pack if you only had a backpack to travel with away from your home, exiled, perhaps forever?
This is not a theoretical question for millions of people on the planet right now - displaced by war, by weather or by the world’s often cruel turn of the tides.
For Ezekiel, who was forced to leave his home in Jerusalem as a refuge, among the first wave of exiles to Babylon, this was not a theoretical situation. But in today’s chapter he picks up where other prophets dealing with this dilemma began and takes the notion of ‘exile gear’ to a deeper, symbolic level. He is instructed to perform a public act that demonstrates the harsh conditions of exile -- as a way to chastise the still-rebellious Judeans, who refuse to take responsibility for their part in their nation’s demise:
וְאַתָּ֣ה בֶן־אָדָ֗ם עֲשֵׂ֤ה לְךָ֙ כְּלֵ֣י גוֹלָ֔ה וּגְלֵ֥ה יוֹמָ֖ם לְעֵינֵיהֶ֑ם וְגָלִ֨יתָ מִמְּקוֹמְךָ֜ אֶל־מָק֤וֹם אַחֵר֙ לְעֵ֣ינֵיהֶ֔ם אוּלַ֣י יִרְא֔וּ כִּ֛י בֵּ֥ית מְרִ֖י הֵֽמָּה׃ לְעֵ֨ינֵיהֶ֜ם עַל־כָּתֵ֤ף תִּשָּׂא֙ בָּעֲלָטָ֣ה תוֹצִ֔יא פָּנֶ֣יךָ תְכַסֶּ֔ה וְלֹ֥א תִרְאֶ֖ה אֶת־הָאָ֑רֶץ כִּֽי־מוֹפֵ֥ת נְתַתִּ֖יךָ לְבֵ֥ית יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃
“Therefore, mortal, get yourself gear for exile, and go into exile by day before their eyes. Go into exile from your home to another place before their very eyes; perhaps they will take note, even though they are a rebellious breed...
before their eyes, carry it on your shoulder. Take it out in the dark, and cover your face that you may not see the land; for I make you a portent to the House of Israel.”
Ezekiel 12:3-4
What then are the tools of exile? What does one take on the road from home - to survive as best as one can?
The Talmudic sages offer two different packing options: Rabbi Hiyya was living in the 3rd century CE Galilee, in the aftermath of the Great Revolt that displaced the remaining Judeans under Roman rule. He suggested that the exile gear includes a durable leather hide, a mat, and a bowl. Each of these offer basic utilities --holding flour or water, used for sleeping, and for eating. In another rabbinic version, the skin is replaced by a portable lamp.
Each of these exile-objects speaks to our basic human needs and also to what helps us see beyond the basics - candle to the future, rug with which to fly in our imagination far beyond, and a second skin, to armor us against all cruelty, like a caress. For generations yet to come this list would grow, adjust, be used, despite our hopes, again and again. What are today’s tools for exile, not just the pocket knives but the backpocket wisdom that will help each one of us survive, thrive, support and transcend?
Maybe poems, memorized, should always be part of what we pack for the road?
Hope and healing, care and love, peace and ease for all, everywhere, always and right now.
Join me TODAY November 15 2023, 5pm ET to explore Ezekiel’s prophecies and focus on the multiple meanings of his suggestion to Jerusalem’s refugees to pack ‘tools for exile’ - in order to survive.
Next Below the Bible Belt Zoom Live Conversation:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88915392821
Mid war, mid horror and confusion, as so many are displaced physically and so many are losing the sense of footing in a once seemingly safe world — we turn to these ancient words with curiosity, and ask some big questions.What do we learn from these chapters about the ways we face our own big questions, and keep cultivating hope?
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