Who's tan, rested, and ready for another full week of saintly action? That was rhetorical. Of course you're tan. Today we have an intriguing Biblical matchup between Esther and Lazarus. Courageous queen vs. friend of Jesus. Who will advance? That's up to you.
After a depressing weekend without any voting, you may have forgotten what transpired on Friday. Edith Cavell, yet another one of the 2018 Cinderellas, took down theological heavyweight John Wesley 68% to 32%. She'll face Anna Alexander in what should be a lively Saintly Sixteen matchup.
It's hard to believe we're exactly halfway through the first round. But it's true. Eight matchups down, eight matchups to go before it's on to the the next round. Hang on to your halos!
Esther
Esther, a saint from the Hebrew Bible, lived between 520-450 BCE, in the Persian Empire. She was an orphan raised by her devout cousin Mordecai. King Ahasuerus was king of Persia, but he was not known for being a nice guy. When we first meet him, he summons his wife Vashti to appear before a room of visiting dignitaries. When she refuses to appear, he orders her to be killed. Yikes.
To replace Vashti, the king holds an ancient beauty pageant: Women from all over the empire are summoned so that he may choose his favorite. Esther is declared the most beautiful in the kingdom and becomes queen—but she has not told anyone at the court, including the king, that she is Jewish.
Meanwhile, Haman, the king’s chief advisor, is struggling with some major ego issues. Because he believes Mordecai slighted him on the street, Haman convinces the king to order the murder of all Jews in the kingdom.
Mordecai informs Esther, urging her to do something. So Esther concocts a plan. In Persia, a law forbade entering the king’s presence unless he sent for you, under penalty of death. Esther asks the Persian Jews to pray and fast with her. Then, she gets dressed up and goes before the king—unrequested—and risks her own life.
Thankfully, the king has pity on her and grants her an audience. She takes the opportunity to invite the king and Haman to dine with her that evening. That dinner party goes so well that she suggests a second dinner party the next evening. The second night, after dinner is winding down, and everyone is in a good mood, Esther seizes the opportunity to come out as Jewish and announces that if Haman is to kill all the Jews in the land, then that would include her. MIC. DROP.
The king immediately decrees that Haman should be executed. He stipulates that the Jews will now be allowed to fight in their own defense on the day of the proposed mass execution. And so Esther saves the Jews of Persia.
Esther’s story has come to be seen as emblematic of how a minority can wield power within a majority culture. She negotiates power imbalances and exercises her privilege on behalf of her people and in the service of God. Through her story, she is wholly herself and still protects her people.
Collect for Esther
O God of the dispossessed, kindle in us the confidence and certainty of Esther, that we may hold fast to who we are, and seek to do your will, even in the most difficult of circumstances, through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Lazarus of Bethany
Lazarus of Bethany (also Lazarus of the Four Days, referring to the time he was dead for four days) is intimately connected with the life of Jesus.
According to the New Testament witness, Lazarus and his sisters, Mary and Martha, were some of Jesus’ closest friends. The eleventh chapter of John’s Gospel recounts Jesus’ deep grief over the death of Lazarus, and the subsequent miracle of his resurrection.
Like many biblical figures, Lazarus only makes a brief appearance in the text itself, but numerous extra-biblical traditions have been handed down and provide deeper detail. According to John 12, Lazarus’s resurrection garnered a great deal of attention, both from those who were inspired by the story and from those who were threatened by it. Later tradition suggests that Lazarus fled Judea for someplace safer, perhaps in response to threats upon his life.
Two theories developed about Lazarus’s flight from Judea; a more recent tradition tells of his travels to Marseille, France, while an older tradition tells of him settling in Cyprus. In both traditions, Lazarus lived for another three decades and continued to witness to the work and message of Jesus.
Although there are few details of Lazarus’s personality, it is not hard to imagine that his death and resurrection must have profoundly changed him. According to one story, seeing death made him very somber, and he smiled only once in his remaining thirty years.
Some scholars have suggested that Lazarus is the unnamed “Beloved Disciple” of John’s Gospel, a view that adds even more poignancy to the scene of Jesus’ grief outside the tomb of Lazarus.
In Western traditions, the witness of Lazarus is remembered, along with his sisters, on July 29. In the Orthodox church, the day before Palm Sunday is known as Lazarus Saturday—a foretaste of the joy of Easter Sunday as the church prepares for Holy Week.
Collect for Lazarus
Generous God, whose Son Jesus Christ enjoyed the friendship and hospitality of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus of Bethany: Open our hearts to love you, our ears to hear you, and our hands to welcome and serve you in others, through Jesus Christ our risen Lord; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
[poll id="213"]
215 comments on “Esther vs. Lazarus of Bethany”
Esther has always been one of our favorites from the Old Testament, so voted for her.
Esther has a whole book of the Bible named for her which, in the throes of Madness, is reason enough to give her my vote.
Her name, by the way, is the Persian word for “star,” and after millennia its identity with our word is still clearly recognizable. Her Hebrew birth name was “Hadassah.”
Oh, dear, poor Lazarus is getting THUMPED. I might just as well have voted for him, on the principle that “any friend of Jesus is a friend of mine.” So sorry.
That is a beautiful bit of etymology! Also, Stella (Latin/Italian), estrella (Spanish), stern (German) and étoile (French).
Esther is BOSS!
I love Esther's action, her strength, courage, and intelligence; but that so very human relationship Jesus and Lazarus had; that is what inspires me to accept and abide in that unfathomable resurrectional love. That love is the mystery of our faith. And that's why I voted for Lazarus.
I voted for Lazarus as representing the early Christians who came to Southern France and founded their own branch of Christianity. From what little we know about it, it sounds very Gnostic and similar to some of the Nag Hammadi texts. It was suppressed and mostly lost after the twelfth century crusade which exterminated unorthodox believers.
What can I say? My wife is Jewish. This is the week of the Purim festival in which the Jews will celebrate Queen Esther's quick thinking and risk taking. And I can't read the name Haman without following it with loud "Boos" and clanging sounds. Purim spiels at synagogues are a real hoot. Sorry, Lazarus.
I have always admired Esther. Back in my days of teaching Religion (and science) in as small Episcopal school I had a Jewish student in class. When Purim came around, I taught the story of Esther to the 3rd grade class and the young man shared how his Synagogue celebrated Purim with us. What a wonderful learning experience for both the class and for me!
I voted for Esther - we named one of our daughters after her - enough said 🙂 It is for such a time as this that each of us is where God planted us 🙂
As an Eastern Star member we have five heroines of the Bible.......Esther represents the wife as the third star of the five........so must go with her. The odd moment is that the fourth point of the star is represented by Martha. To me, Queen Esther stifled her fears and planned a way to save her people!
While I don't know how I'll vote today, I have a question for the Lent Mdness community: why did Jesus weep? Was he sad for Lazarus's suffering? Sad for all his friends who thought Lazarus was dead and should have known He could raise him? Or sad he had to pull Lazarus back from Paradise for the sake of the greater Kingdom? This is one of those Biblical mysteries I have to ponder every Easter season!
Good questions, Ruth. I had never thought of these. I always assumed it was because Jesus grieved for his friend like we would. But of course you're right, He knew He could raise Lazarus. Something more to think about on this gloomy (we haven't seen sunshine for several days) Monday morning.
I think Jesus wept because Martha dressed him down for being late and letting Lazarus die; a lack of faith and trust in her BFF. Besides, as Jesus had not died and resurrected, Paradise wasn't open yet.
I've always taken it as his own very human feelings of grief at even the idea of losing his friend, and his empathy with all who were grieving -- his humanity at play even though he knew what divine action he was about to take.
Why do any of us weep? Weeping, particularly the weeping of grief, has a language and a logic all its own. Sometimes when I weep it takes me by surprise and goes on longer than I might think convenient. Then it may conclude before any indication that it's reaching a true stopping point. Like the wind of the Holy Spirit it moves in and out on its own terms. Jesus' weeping is comfort to me in my weeping, in in helping me to trust the awful language of grief. One other thing, when I am weeping I do sense that I am experiencing all previous losses amidst a fresh loss. Perhaps Jesus was weeping for all who had been lost up to that day, all who died alone or without hope, and for all who were yet to die, including himself. The love and grief of his friend Lazarus was, perhaps, a foretaste of the cross where all griefs find their reconciliation.
Thus endeth this homilette and my midday break. Back to emails and bulletins.
Thank you,, Matthew, for a really lovely entry--talking about the awful language of grief and experiencing all previous losses amidst a fresh loss. I hope your time is not completely taken up with emails and bulletins but that you write more.
That said, it is interesting, on a lighter note, how important meals are--Mary, Martha with Jesus as a guest, Esther with her successful dinner parties. Oh yes, I voted for Esther the outstanding hostess.
Yes, Nancy, I agree, the best transformations happen around the meal table! Thank you for encouraging my writing. I voted for Esther!
Thank you Matthew, especially the part about weeping about prior losses as well. Now that I consider it, it is certainly the case for me. Marti (formerly of SMAA, SB)
Thank you for this perceptive and pastoral response. I was going to add that Jesus wept in anticipation of his own battle with Death, and in the same way as he experienced agony in Gethsemane. Death is a formidable enemy, however and whenever we face it.
Lazarus, because he is the promise that though we are unworthy, God too will raise us.
Esther all the way. She was a female savior, risking death for the sake of her people.
Had to go with Ester. She was willing to put it all on the line for God and her people.
To use one's wits, wiles and every opportunity at one's disposal (and to usurp, in faith, those things which are NOT at one's disposal) for the good of others took a profound act of faith. The execution of Esther's plan which could have led to her own execution bespeaks the kind of courage we often see lacking in today's challenges. That she is held in such high regard by people of many faith traditions is of no small matter!
Lazarus: for having the guts to come out!
Like
Thinking through this choice...
What did Lazarus do but be dead? Jesus is the act-er. Lazarus is the recipient of the action. Being raised from the dead may be halo enough.
Going with Esther, a beauty pageant winner who made a difference.
Yeh, Lane, I'm with you— all Lazarus did was be dead.
From what we know from the Gospels, Lazarus and his sisters stood by Jesus and his disciples and gave them shelter and food repeatedly. It can't have been easy for Lazarus, who was apparently supporting two sisters and possibly other family members, to find food and room on the floor for thirteen more people. Lazarus and his household provided succor and comfort and we never hear any complaints or criticism of the visitors -- only Martha's complaint that Mary isn't helping her with the extra work required to receive guests. I think of Lazarus as one of the supporters of Jesus and his apostles who made their three years of traveling, teaching, and praying possible, no less than Zachariah or Joseph of Arimathea.
Happy Purim, everybody!
This is looking like the year of the women, "for such a time as this".
Well, my sister, brother-in-law, niece, and nephew all work at a boarding school that has a Lazarus project of its own. It's the school of last resort for kids who have been kicked out of other schools for one reason or another, some as many as half a dozen schools. St. Johnsbury Academy has designed its curriculum and support services to assist these kids as they complete their high school education and get into college, and they've had a really good success rate. However, my home parish has become a center for interfaith dialogue, and our Bible studies have almost always featured Esther in a prominent position, so after the usual vacillation I went with Esther.
Esther all the way because it sounds like EASTER.
never thought of that... Esther for the win
Can't vote for someone who smiled only once in 30 years.
Mary, you made me smile, and laugh! Really -- lighten up, dude!
Maybe Lazarus was one of those guys who had to constantly say, "But I AM smiling!"
I voted for Esther because of her bravery and courage. She stood out even when it could mean risking her life. But in the end, she defeated the enemy, and saved thousands upon thousands of people.
Go. Esther.
Jesus is always doing for and with us that which we cannot do for ourselves. Our job is to let Him love and guide us, and love Him so completely that God's will may be done through us. This is not nearly as passive or as easy as it sounds. Lazarus heard the voice of Jesus and came out of the tomb to live with and for Him He gets my vote.
Amen Lucy.
When I thought about Lazarus and his sisters and their inclusion of Jesus into their family and their deep friendships, I was reminded that friends can become family. As a single person, the families that always have a place for me at the table hold a special place in my heart!
I voted for Esther. She showed courage in the face of discrimination and danger and I see parallels in her story to events going on today. Much can be learned from her story.
I voted for Esther because of her courage, because we know quite a bit more about her than we do Lazarus, and because she was a woman who persevered. Besides, without the story of Esther, we wouldn't have hamentaschen... https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/traditional-hamantaschen-13706
Esther “negotiates power imbalances and exercises her privilege on behalf of her people and in the service of God”. What a great example for
our present culture! Although I have always been fascinated by the Lazarus story, this particular choice was obvious to me. GO ESTHER!!
Thank you , Celeb. Blogger Megan & the SEC author of our email intros for your great humor --Love the morning smiles you bring!!
I have always loved Ester’s story, but I have to ask - are we Americans rewarding Ester for acting and diminishing Lazarus for being passive, the recipient of Jesus’ action?
Is that not what we are called to do - to accept Gods grace?
An interesting perspective. Thanks for the insight.
Tan? Surely not everyone who plays Lent Madness is white.
And where do you get tan in February in Chicagoland?