On The Ethnic Consciousness And Theological Dimension In The Book Of Ruth

The Book of Ruth is a beautiful little old testament book about the daily life of an ordinary Israeli family.The owner of the scroll,highway,is a Moabite woman,a gentile relative to the Israelites,who is not only accepted into Israel,but her story is told in the Canon of the Bible.This is really what makes Ruth unique and fascinating.Historically,Israel has been a nation that opposes intermarriage and upholds the purity of conservative beliefs.And the relationship between Israel and Moab has always been one of war and hostility.Compared with this traditional concept of ethnic groups,the Book of Ruth deals with the issue of ethnic groups in a relatively mild way.It can be seen from the contents such as the relocation of the Elimelech's family to Moab and the welcome of Ruth in Israel that at that time,Israel and moab had free exchanges and harmonious coexistence,and the ethnic consciousness seemed to be relatively weak.The reason is closely related to the historical background of the story of Ruth.The story of Ruth takes place in the age of Judges,a time when Israel's political and social turmoil made it inevitable that Israelis would mix and marry.However,although the book of Ruth is about the migration of ordinary families and the transformation of ethnic groups,it has strong religious appeal and theological dimension.The Book of Ruth expresses the absolute sovereignty and unchanging nature of god's love.It shows that God works in people's daily life and shows his love to the poor and those who trust him.The reason for Ruth's successful integration into Israel lies not only in her special place in the Judean era,but also in her love,loyalty and other qualities.It also owes to God's favor and salvation for the Jews.The latter is the theological message of the Book of Ruth.Ruth is not a Jew by blood,but a Jew by faith,and this change of ethnic identity means that the religious identity of the Jews transcends the ethnic identity.Although the Israelis reject exognation from the perspective of political ethics to maintain their national uniqueness,from the perspective of religion,they put the relationship of faith above the relationship of ethnic groups,thus overcoming their tendency of closure and exclusion to some extent.