Year in the Bible Daily Reading:
Leviticus 4-7; Hebrews 3 Listen to Today's Reading
Leviticus 4
It’s unsettling to think about all of the animals and people that have been sacrificed throughout human history. Those kinds of sacrifices--for a good harvest, to predict the future, or to atone for sin--were a prominent feature of almost every ancient culture. The Greeks and Romans used animal sacrifice of many kinds to appease capricious gods. The Egyptians killed animals to send into the afterlife with their pharaohs. The Aztecs and the cultures of northern Europe regularly sacrificed human beings of all ages and social classes to promote fertility in the land and general abundance. So much killing for so many reasons.
Leviticus 4 illustrates the animal sacrifice that is part of our collective religious heritage. The text, with its detailed instructions for bloodletting and the cutting and burning of bodies, should come with the kinds of warnings we get with Hollywood films: a PG-13 rating or a statement like “an unbelievable number of animals were harmed in the making of this scripture.” One wonders what the compassionate and loving God we recognize has to do with a system in which the suffering of another creature covers OUR sin.
One explanation might have to do with the ancient Israelite understanding of sacrifice and the evolution of that idea in our time. For ancient people, animals were wealth, and burning all or part of them to create “a pleasing odor to the Lord” was a meaningful sacrifice. I find it hard to believe that God was in it for the smell, but in a culture where food must have often been scarce, it’s easy to imagine how a deity would appreciate such a sacrifice.
Our modern ideas of sacrifice continue to change. Think about sacrifices that you might make for Lent or contributions you make to the church or other organizations. Are they intended to do good or because they feel like requirements? Are they performed willingly or grudgingly? My wife jokes that when she was growing up she would try to give something up for Lent that would be of some benefit to herself. “I’m going to give up biting my nails for Lent,” she would announce in a merger of sacrifice and self-help.
As we grow in our collective understanding of sacrifice, maybe it’s helpful to think about those sacrifices that tug at our heartstrings. (There is usually a deep truth in that tug). I think about the sacrifices of my parents to create a safe and loving home or the sacrifices of my big brother who still looks out for me and builds me up. Then there are the people who show up every day for those who are suffering: the compassionate healthcare workers and brave first responders, the nonprofit volunteers and international aid workers. Those sacrifices in gestures grand and small, where love and humility are at the core, must be truly pleasing to God.
Questions for Reflection:
- How do you understand Christian sacrifice? What forms does it take and for what purposes?
- Think about a time when someone sacrificed something meaningful for you? Was it one gesture or many? How did the sacrifice make you feel, and what did it teach you about the nature of sacrifice?
Prayer:
Gracious God, your sacrifices for us are beyond our comprehension. Please teach us the lessons of sacrifice in scripture and in our lives so that we might grow toward your will and contribute to the making of your kingdom. Amen.
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