It’s often included among the “prophetic books” of the Bible, even though it has little to do with prophecy: the book of Jonah.
It’s not much of a book, only a few pages long; it’s a very short story, but one with lessons.
One of the latest of the Old Testament writings, probably a few centuries before the birth of Jesus, it was a well-known story in Jesus’ day—in fact, he quoted it in his preaching:
An evil and unfaithful generation seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it except the sign of Jonah the prophet. Just as Jonah was in the belly of the whale three days and three nights, so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights. At the judgment, the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and there is something greater than Jonah here. (Mt 12: 39b-41; also Lk 11:30-32)
What were the lessons that the book of Jonah was meant to teach?
Well, first of all, how astounding is the mercy of God! No matter how much anyone may ignore God’s will or go against it—no matter what—if they repent, they can be forgiven.
Even more important, God plays no favorites: God’s mercy is for all, without discrimination—as much for the repentant “unbelievers” as for the rebellious prophet!
God isn’t just the God of the Jews—or of the Christians, or of the Muslims. God is the god of every one of his creatures—e.g., everybody, no matter who!
A great lesson for today, when “we” (the right people) are so discriminating about “them” (the wrong people) —no matter who the “we” and the “them” may be!
When I was a child, I learned about people in terms of colors: Black meant of African descent (but south of the Sahara); Red, Indians (Native Americans); White, of European (or Mediterranean) descent; and Yellow, of Asian descent (usually Chinese).
We still haven’t let go of this odd—and inappropriate—way of typing people. Once upon a time, “Colored people” was rejected as “racist” terminology; now it’s “politically correct” for “White” people to refer to most others as “people of color”!
We’re all “people of color”. Everybody has melanin, the pigment in their skin that protects against too much sun, ranging from very little to a lot. (Historically, peoples living closer to the poles were paler and closer to the equator were darker.)
We misuse the word “races” to classify people, since there is only one human race.
Many other of our “classification” words also can be misused or are inappropriate: caste, class, status, education, maturity—also upper, lower, rich. poor, smart, dumb, lazy, and hard-working. They may be useful for comparisons but not for categories—e.g., because I’m fatter than you, that doesn’t necessarily make me a “fat person”.
Most people use these words carelessly with no intention to depreciate or to do harm; some use them carefully and deliberately, knowing what they are doing.
“. . . the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah”. We have something greater—the teaching of Jesus and the best of our religious traditions.
If we really believe, then our actions should speak even louder than our words!
23 August 2020