"Turn to God - rejoice in hope": reflections on the theme of the eighth assembly from a woman's perspective - "Turn to God - Rejoice in Hope": Unfolding the Eighth Assembly Theme

Ecumenical Review, The, April, 1998 by Elisabeth Raiser

The next assembly of the World Council of Churches will take place in Harare, Zimbabwe, and the African context -- its rich culture and tradition on the one hand, and the suffering of the continent on the other -- will be of major importance for this event. In our days Africa is often seen as the "lost continent". The terrible civil wars of recent years, the suffering of the millions of refugees, the droughts or floods, hunger and diseases of all kinds: all this is very present in the media, and in our minds. But the image suggested by these reports does not do justice to Africa; it is one projected by that Western and white way of looking at reality which we find so difficult to overcome.

Perhaps it is also a rather male perspective. African women certainly see the suffering around them, and they suffer themselves. They analyze the root causes of this suffering, and describe the devastating effects of economic globalization, neocolonialism, environmental catastrophes and diseases like AIDS. I could continue this list with the critical analyses which women have made of many other issues; but when African women speak, their pride in their culture, their love for their countries, and their joy for life are very often stronger than their expressions of suffering. They tell you about the strong community, and the mutual solidarity in family and village life, which is the base of their self-understanding. They tell you, and make you feel, the incredible strength of African women who not only keep life going but, even with the most modest means, bring it to fullness. When one dialogues with them about emancipation and the rights of women they agree to a certain extent, and they act effectively -- one of the strongest movements for the emancipation of women worldwide has marked the liberation of South Africa -- but African women also insist that in that emancipation process they would never give up their communitarian identity. Transforming without betraying the strength of their African traditions -- this is their strategy. And Christian women witness again and again to how crucial their faith, and their hope in God, are for them in this transformation process, with all its many tensions. The theme of the next assembly, "Turn to God -- Rejoice in Hope", seems to speak from their heart.

An African artist has given expression to this language of the heart with a beautiful sculpture inspired by this theme. It depicts a man or woman in deep concentration, expressed by the circle which is formed by the body and by the upraised clasped hands. The head is turned upwards in a movement of openness and expectation, full of confidence and trust. Has she found consolation in his suffering? Are the two strokes on her cheek tears which will be dried? Does this person see God? One of the texts which has served as an inspiration for the assembly theme says:

Come, let us return to the Lord; for it is he who has torn, and

he will heal us... Let us know, let us press on to know the

Lord; his appearing is as sure as the dawn; he will come to us

like the showers, like the spring rains that water the earth

(Hos. 6:1-3).

"Turning to God" implies a conversion of the mind and soul. It begins with looking and seeing things as they really are, with overcoming our blindness. It leads to the refreshing healing which Hosea promises. From a woman's perspective you may ask: What does this conversion imply for men, what does it imply for women? What does healing mean for men, what for women? Is there a difference?

In the context of Hosea, as in most other biblical texts which speak of conversion, it is the men at whom these words are aimed: Hosea invites to conversion those who had killed their brothers in wars and had usurped power. Women had no active share in this; conversion and turning to God implies a different transformation for them. In most cases, "being far from God" does not mean for women being too involved in power games, but rather being caught in the trap of low self-esteem, in doubts, being fearful of responsibility and risk, in depression. The tears of the sculpture may be tears of those women who feel their alienation, and who turn to God in their hope for healing. They may also be the tears of all those who have seen God, and who tremble in front of the new horizon which opens up through this encounter. Or are they the tears of those who feel that they are close to God because, in the unjust conditions in which they are forced to live, God is the only one to whom they can turn? They are close to God since he is always "taking sides" on behalf of the marginalized, the poor, the strangers, the widows and orphans of the Bible. We all know how many people in our own day belong to this group, especially women and children.

Or are all these interpretations valid? What makes art so fascinating is that it doesn't tell you what it means, but rather invites you to make your own journey of associations, reflections or questions which are never just "right" or "wrong". Art invites us to a dialogue and to an encounter, as does the Bible. And with this sculpture in mind I try to reread some biblical stories.