Reading between the Lines: Hagar & Sarah

This week on Reading between the Lines, we are learning more about the story of Hagar & Sarai/Sarah.

The intertwined stories of Hagar and Sarah can call us to examine things like how those in power, either willingly or unknowingly, cause harm to those without that same power and privilege. These stories can call us to work toward an end to sex trafficking and creating a culture of consent surrounding how our bodies are used by others. This has implications for intimate sexual relationships as well as how individuals with disabilities receive care and are included in decision-making processes.

 

These stories can call us to examine how people with various intersecting identities and varying amounts of power currently treat others and how we can work toward equity. Learning these stories may uncover the church’s tendency toward hiding abuse that happens within its structure and calling us to rehumanize those who have been harmed and work toward justice. These stories can be models of how to talk with God, being honest with where we are struggling to be faithful, and God’s continual presence in the midst of heartache.

 

These stories are reminders that we simply cannot take them at face value; we are called to look more deeply, to notice the small details that humanize the characters, and to wonder about the pieces that are missing so that we can work toward a more wholistic understanding of God and God’s presence from the time these individuals lived all the way to us today.

 

CW: infertility, rape and sexual violence, slavery, child abuse, and domestic abuse