Find the Rus in You!

         Though the school year has officially ended, those of us with only two blogs this quarter have the privilege of writing a third. Unfortunately, we were not able to finish Megillas Rus in as much depth as we could have with more time, but Mrs. Perl still gave us an overview of the meaning behind the story. We learned in Perek Alef that a man named Elimelech was moving from Beis Lechem to Moav with his two sons and his wife, Naomi. Though it may seem that they were simply escaping the widespread famine in Beis Lechem, it actually looks as though they were escaping responsibility. We learned that the words used to describe Elimelech and his family are the words that are used to describe those who are wealthy. Therefore, Elimelech and his family should have been perfectly comfortable even in the midst of a famine. Therefore we conclude that Elimelech left Beis Lechem to avoid the responsibility of helping those who were not as fortunate. He didn't want to give up his money and his time to help others, so he left.

         Now, when Elimelech and his family arrived in Moav, the two sons found two wives: Rus and Orpah. Coincidentally, Elimelech and his two sons pass away soon after arriving in Moav (perhaps a punishment for abandoning their duties....?), leaving Naomi and her daughters-in-law widows. Naomi decides to return to Beis Lechem after hearing that the famine ended, and she tries to convince her daughters-in-law to stay behind. She tells Rus and Orpah that she cannot give them new husbands and that they should stay in their own land. Orpah decides to leave, though Rus is persistent. Rus tells Naomi that wherever Naomi goes, she will follow. Naomi's nation is her nation, Naomi's G-d is her G-d. Rus willingly takes on Judaism as her religion, abandoning her old lifestyle.

         Naomi responds to Rus is a very odd way. She stops talking to her. Naomi allows Rus to follow, though gives her the silent treatment. Upon arriving in Beis Lechem, Naomi tells her old neighbors to call her "Marah" because G-d embittered her life. No introduction of Rus, who would be an outcast as a foreigner, and Noami even seems to be blaming G-d for her predicament. She says that G-d was the one who brought her out with everything and returned her with nothing.

         So, in the beginning of the Megillah we can see that Rus was not very well respected. She had just lost her husband and she decided to leave her faith and her home behind to travel with a "bitter" mother-in-law to a place where she would be at the bottom of society. Naomi completely ignores her along the way and when they arrive to Beis Lechem, Rus must go out and pick food in the fields of others just to keep her and her mother-in-law alive. It is here that we see the true character of Rus. Though we learn that it was forbidden for Jewish men to marry Moavite women and we learn that the nation of Moav was corrupt and terrible, Rus was truly an exception. She was selfless and caring and willing to take a crucial leap of faith, a feat not so easily achieved. Rus, as a convert, held the best qualities that most Jews of the time did not. She represents the beginning of a new age in Jewish history. While the time period she lived in was one of a corrupt society, only a few generations later a new leader would arise to bring the Jewish people out of their slump: Dovid HaMelech. Rus was the one person who brought kindness and morality that would change the course of Jewish history.

         To make a connection between Rus and our time, I want to talk about society today. We learned that society back then was corrupt because the Jewish people had no leader. Today, it isn't hard to see that society is pretty corrupt as well. Everyone is obsessed with impressing others and social media has taken over most people's lives. Though thankfully our corruption isn't really as bad as the corruption of Rus's time, it's still just as influential. We should be sure that we take on Rus's qualities ourselves in a way to bring some sense into the crazy world. As Gandhi once said, "You must be the change you want to see in the world." So that's it. A very quick overview of Rus, and I didn't even talk about Boaz and redeeming, but oh well. Sadly, this is our last blog, maybe for the rest of high school! Mrs. Perl, I hope all of the kids in your new school love to blog and will provide you with new insights. We'll miss you in Memphis!