Rosemarie Daher

Here's another thing that makes me wonder about Abraham's leadership and character. In Genesis 16 (read it below), there's a puzzle. Sarah can't have children. She and Abraham are old. They are desperate to make the promise of God come true. It's the cultural right of a wife to give her slave to her husband and claim the children as her own. That happens in subsequent generations, too. (2 generations later, more than half of Jacob's children are born by his wives' servants. In the times of the judges of Israel, Naomi claims her grandchild as her own, though born by her daughter-in-law Ruth.) But here's the strange thing I'm thinking about. Abraham never asks God if this is his plan. He takes the easy way out. That backfires after the servant Hagar becomes pregnant. She begins to disrespect Abraham's wife and her mistress. Most of us would think: "Sarah, how can you blame Abraham for this turmoil, when it's your own fault? You asked Abrah...

 Abraham avoids conflict. He and his family prosper in the land God is giving them. But when his nephew Lot's herdsman and his own fight over grazing land, Abraham gives the land away. Did God tell him to? Not as far as we know. But Abraham values peace, whatever the cost. Lot claims the best pastureland near the Jordan River. His offspring are the Moabites and Ammonites, bitter enemies of Abraham's own tribe. Because Abraham gives Lot the choice of God's country, their grandkids and progeny will be at war for hundreds of years. Question: Where am I avoiding hard decisions and solutions? What consequences might result? Read the whole story in Genesis 13 . Verses 8-11 are below. So Abram said to Lot, “Let’s not argue with each other. The people taking care of your herds and those taking care of mine shouldn’t argue with one another either. After all, we’re part of the same family. Isn’t the whole land in front of you? Let’s separate. If you go to the left, I’ll go to the rig...