The story of Joseph and his brothers comprises more than 1/4 of the Genesis narrative. Why does the author of Genesis give so much attention to this one patriarch, over and above all others? To quote James L. Kugel:
"In short, to modern scholars, Joseph looks like the very model of the ancient Near Eastern sage. Indeed, he is the only one of Israel's ancestors who is called "wise" ... and throughout his whole story of ups and downs ... Joseph reveals that cardinal sagely virtue of patience. An ancient Near eastern sage was patient precisely because he believed that everything in this world happens according to the divine plan; things will always, therefore, turn out for the best, no matter how bade they may appear now. To scholars, the Joseph story thus looks like an altogether didactic tale designed not only to capture people's attention but to encapsulate, and inculcate, the basic ideology of wisdom" (How to Read the Bible, 183).
The story of Joseph is one of the main texts used by modern day Christians to support their belief that God is so in control that no matter what happens in one's life, good or evil, God always works it out for the good of his people. After all, when Joseph forgave his brothers, who feared his reprisals, he said to them, "And now do not be distressed, or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life" (Gen 45:5). and, again, after Jacob's death, Joseph's brothers need his reassurance that he will do them no harm: "Do not be afraid! Am I in the place of God? Even though you intended to do harm to me God intended it for good, in order to preserve a numerous people, as he is doing today" (Gen 50:20).
No more than now, in the midst of all the suffering and uncertainty of a global pandemic, the rise of powerful autocrats and the increase of violent protests, do I hear (and read) Christians proclaiming that "God is in control." But what do they mean when they say, "God is in control"? And for whom do they believe God is working good? And what about those people–especially the impoverished, the elderly, the orphans, the refugees, the marginalized, the disenfranchised, etc.–who are suffering the most right now? How is God working for their good?
One theologian, with whom I have become familiar, is promoting a perspective on God's nature and work in this world that challenges the traditionalist view that God is in control and is working all things together for good. His name is Thomas Jay Oord. Prior to the present and specific global challenges, he wrote the book, "The Uncontrolling Love of God: An Open and Relational Account of Providence." (A more popular version of this book is titled, "God Can't: How to Believe in God and Love after Tragedy, Abuse, and Other Evils.")
In upcoming posts, I will review "The Uncontrolling Love of God," chapter-by-chapter, because the idea that God is in control and working out all things for good just doesn't fit with my 64 years of my life experience nor with my observation of events in this world over the last 7 decades. I, like Oord, believe we need a very different understanding of God's nature and how God works in this world, if we are going to hold to the idea that “love” is at the heart of God’s nature.
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