Exile: Duane W.H. Arnold, PhD
Often in the pages of this blog, we speak of being in exile. Yet, when we speak of this, it is often with the question of “how” we are to live this life of exile, whereas the better question might be “where”.
The question of “how” has to do with us, our activity, our response to a life of exile. On the other hand, “where” we spend our exile may well be beyond our control. We can see this very clearly in the Old Testament. Noah and his company are adrift on the high seas for forty days and nights as a flood rages that is beyond their control. The Children of Israel wander for forty years in the wilderness, something not of their choosing. Moses spends forty days and nights on Sinai, enveloped in a cloud of fire and smoke. After being established in the land, the entire nation is carried off into exile in Babylon and Persia for not heeding the message of the prophets. In the New Testament, we even read that Jesus is driven by the Spirit into the wilderness for forty days and forty nights. In all these instances, there seems to be a common thread (beyond any numerical significance). It is “where” the events took place. Noah in an unrelenting flood, the Israelites in a harsh wilderness, Moses shrouded in smoke as lightening flashes, a nation by the rivers of Babylon surrounded by strange gods and customs, Jesus in the desert in the company of his demonic adversary. None of these places were of their choosing. All of these places were wild, unfamiliar and frightening, as is the real experience of exile.
While I appreciate much that Rod Dreher has presented in ‘The Benedict Option” it seems to me that he is proposing a self-exile to be undertaken on our terms, dependent on our control of the situation. After all, if we are to be in exile, we want that exile to be orderly, contained and, if possible, reasonably comfortable. As I look at the biblical examples of exile, however, I see a very different picture. Isaiah in the temple watches his well laid plans for life spin out of control among the sounds of the cherubim. Jeremiah forced into a prophetic role, is cast into a pit of lamentation and then carried off to distant Egypt to meet his death. Daniel in Babylon finds the angel of God in the midst of a fiery furnace and receives a vision of the future. Jesus comes out of the desert strengthened and prepared to engage the world in which he lived.
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
Exile, in my opinion, is not the same as withdrawal. Indeed, our exile will often be in those places in which we encounter that which is frightening and disorderly, unruly or out of control, those places that cause us the greatest fear and anxiety. Our exile will often be in the presence of those who, quite frankly, frighten us with their strangeness, their difference, their demands. Exile is not a place of safety, in which we are left to our own devices, but rather an opportunity for engagement. It is the opportunity to remember who and what we are as believers.
As culture and politics shift, as many churches become pale reflections of what they once were, we may feel like the Psalmist saying, “How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a strange land?”. Yet, it is in this strange land of exile that the ancient song needs to be heard. Yes, we are in exile, one not of our own choosing. It is an exile that may last for days, years or decades. That is not under our control. In this strange land, however, we can sing that ancient song.
Good words, Dr. Duane. They speak clearly to some of the things I’ve been pondering lately….
wish i loved living up here in the mountains, but after 8 years i realize that i really don’t….
That said, the old timers, who made this area bloom are now dying off, – salt of the earth. Their kids are taking advantage of the high prices and we’re now being invaded by suburban expats – shallow posers building their side by side getaways…. ?
So at 85, later this month, i will adjust to being in exile… 😇
Em
Sometimes it is “exile in place”…
Yes, it is. 😏
Much to pray for, wherever we are
“Exile, in my opinion, is not the same as withdrawal. “
As you are probably aware, Duane, this question was central to the Reformers. Obviously I agree with your conclusion.
I might add that as far as I can recall, God imposes genuine exile; His people do not impose it on themselves.
Jean
“I might add that as far as I can recall, God imposes genuine exile; His people do not impose it on themselves.”
It is interesting that even those who take up the religious life in community, do so at the prompting of the Holy Spirit. My dear friend, Sr. Mary Owen, is an enclosed Benedictine. She prayed about her calling for two years. As she was preparing to enter into the convent, she said to me, “I’m not running away from the world, I’m running toward God”…
Exile is an interesting word….forced out of one’s comfort zone….
As i sit here i can think of 5 locals in need of prayer… 2 dying of cancer and others coping with BIG challenges of various kinds. It is a privilege to sit outside among the tall evergreens, looking at the clear (not today – fires north of the border)blue sky and talk to God about their souls…. and bodies. Then i move on to the Phoenix peeps here and … me. 🙏
Here’s the point that I’ve been trying to make.
“Exile” is the assumed status of every Christian in the NT.
Therefore…it is ours as well.
Thank you for this, Duane…
Michael,
It is what we are…
“Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.”
Exactly…and until the church wholeheartedly embraces this and acts accordingly, it has abandoned its true place .
Michael
I agree, but I think it is more than the church embracing a new identity. It is also the church repenting of its love affair with politics, culture wars, and the consequent influx of cash and perceived power. Even if they might give up the illusory power, they won’t give up the money that politics and culture wars generate…
Duane,
I fear you’re right…but for me and my house…
I am not a fan of the idea of running away from where God put us and starting up new, faith based communities because they almost always sour. I agree we should do what we can where we are.
However, that doesn’t mean we can engage in everything. For example, I can, in good conscience, be a member of the local Dickens Society whereas I had to quit the city’s book club because they kept choosing works of fiction that I, as a Christian, could not in good conscience, read. That’s the case with a lot of things. I can engage certain aspects of the local culture- for now, at least- but I have to be picky. I feel the same way about public schools. Where my son’s family lives, I wouldn’t hesitate to send my children to the public schools. Some places, no way. If people want to stay in these places and fight everything, God bless them if He gave them the constitution for continual battle, which in the US, will seldom result in godly outcomes, but maybe worth a try, and I am not faulting them, just noting that I don’t have the personality to engage. I am more of a “Let’s do something good” rather than “Let’s (perpetually) fight the bad.” I am an introvert and that’s how I do things. But some will choose differently than I do, and if God is in it, all I can say is Amen. My idea of “good” is finding alternatives, doing an end-run around the devil if I can. But some will stay and fight and God bless them.
What a ramble. Sorry!
Exile is not something a Christian can avoid or escape from in this evil age. It’s the definition of the Christian life.
However, if he/she has the means to provide a better life for himself/herself or their family somewhere else, then it is not a sin to go there. But that lessening of exilic experience is not a total removal from exile.
The real fight (or better put, test) of exile is the fight against temptation to assimilate into the surrounding pagan world and its practices. When a Christian is at ease and in peace, that is actually the most dangerous moment, because one lowers their guard and can be seduced to assimilate into the surrounding culture.
I live in a very peaceful, patriotic, self-professing Christian, conservative community. Guess what the most full parking lot is on an average spring Sunday morning? Answer: The youth sporting venues, such as baseball diamonds and soccer complexes. I would venture a guess that Sunday youth sports do more harm to young people in growing up to be practicing Christians than anything taught in a public schools. But how much consternation is there by Christian parents?