Scripture: Exodus 23:19b – “You shall not boil a kid in its mother’s milk.” (NRSVue)
When I was in college, one of my best friends was Lisa, a Conservative Jew from New York City. For those who are not familiar with all the various Jewish denominations, Conservative Jews see Jewish law as binding, but coming from a faith in the tradition of the people rather than as unbending revelation like Orthodox Jews do. This also differs from Reform Judaism, which stresses the ethical nature of Judaism in connection with more progressive values.
One of the things that was always noticeable about Lisa was her adherence to Jewish dietary laws. She did not eat pork or shellfish, as everyone knows. But she also refused to eat any meat that was prepared with any dairy component. She quoted Exodus, which says, “You shall not boil a kid in its mother’s milk.” I accepted this as a moral idea, but I struggled with its practical application. This is because she cited it when she refused to eat a chicken sandwich with cheese. I thought, “chickens don’t have milk, therefore there should not be a problem.” Moreover, Jewish law allowed chicken to be prepared with eggs, which would seem just as bad based on the same idea. But I left my opinions unstated because I learned that was not the point.
Instead, as a Conservative Jew, Lisa was following the laws not because they were based on ethical principles or because they were unquestionable divine revelation, but because they were a tradition. As anyone who has ever seen Fiddler on the Roof knows, traditions are very important to Jews. I think this is because ever since the bronze age, Jews have resisted being like other peoples, and have often suffered greatly for it. They maintain their cultural traditions, like eating kosher, that mark them as special and do not just allow them to assimilate completely into the dominant society, no matter how hard that dominant society tries.
Since almost the beginning, Christians have taken a cavalier attitude to the Jewish laws, following Paul who saw faith in Jesus as being more important than following Jewish traditions. But looking back at my experience with Lisa, I thought about my own heritage. What makes us as Christians—specifically Congregational, Christian (the denomination from which my congregation, the United Church of Assonet, descended), or UCC Christians—unique? Is it a way of thinking, a way of worship? Is it a theology or an ideology? Is it the spoken and unspoken rules of faith and living passed on from generation to generation?
It is important to maintain a religious heritage, even when we are open to the changes of the world and transformative power of the Holy Spirit. I feel sometimes like Christians, and Mainline Christians in particular, are at risk of disappearing into the larger culture. This week I hope we can pray about what makes our faith different from other faiths and how we can cherish our heritage such that continues to reflect the truth and light that God is still speaking to us.
Prayer: Lord, help me remember my heritage as I seek to serve you in new ways in a shifting and changing world. Amen.
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