• The Inclusive Church: God's Definition of "All" Isaiah 56:1, 6-8, by Rev. Frank Schaefer             
   

• Who Let the Dogs In? Matthew 15:10-28
  by Rev. Randy Quinn  
   

• God will Find a Way, Genesis 45:1-15,
  by Rev. Randy L Quinn 
   

• At the Boundary, Matthew 15:10-28
  by Rev. Rick Thompson
   

• Tradition Versus Tradition, Mt. 15:1-20 by Rev. Thomas Hall
   

• Reaching Out To All, Regardless Mt. 15:21-28, by Rev. Frank Schaefer
   

• Radical lovers Genesis 45:3-11, 15,  by Rev. Thomas Hall

• Putting Her in Her Place, Matthew 15:21-28, by ST
   
• Arguing with God, Matthew 15:21-28, by DGBradley
   
• God is Their God Too!, Matthew 15:21-28, by Debbie in Bangor
   
• Sent to the Outcast, Matthew 15:21-28, by Crystal in NY

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The Inclusive Church: God's Definition of "All"
Isaiah 56:1, 6-8
by Rev. Frank Schaefer

Thus says the LORD: Maintain justice, and do what is right, for soon my salvation will come, and my deliverance be revealed. And the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD, to minister to him, to love the name of the LORD, and to be his servants, all who keep the sabbath, and do not profane it, and hold fast my covenant-- these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples. Thus says the Lord GOD, who gathers the outcasts of Israel, I will gather others to them besides those already gathered. Isaiah 56:1, 6-8

To me this is one of the most amazing passages from the Hebrew Scriptures where God sets the record straight that all of humanity is included and has a place in God's kingdom.

This of course is not the only passage that talks about including others, even "foreigners." But this passage stands in stark contrast to other passages such as from the book of Ezra at a time in Israel's history when ethnic and religious purity was emphasized and marriages between Jews and Gentiles had no place in Israel. In fact, Ezra sought to dissolve these "mixed" marriages (Then Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, "You have been unfaithful; you have married foreign women, adding to Israel's guilt. Now honor the Lord, the God of your ancestors, and do his will. Separate yourselves from the peoples around you and from your foreign wives." Ezra 10:10-11)

But, in some way, I think this passage from Isaiah sets the record straight in terms of God's intention that all are welcome in his house and that all really means All.

The historic context of our passage is the time during the 6th century BC when Jewish exiles were making their return to Jerusalem from Babylon. God is said to be gathering the "outcasts of Israel" as they return to their homeland. The exiles had been gone for many decades and now that they were returning, they viewed as outcasts by those who had remained in the homeland.

One of most powerful statements Isaiah makes is this: "‘ Thus says the Lord GOD, who gathers the outcasts of Israel, I will gather others to them besides those already gathered (v. 8).

Where others want to shun outcasts, God gathers them. How sad is it that we humans have always, since the dawn of time, defined some group of people as outcasts so that we can feel better about ourselves.

Israel's society at that time was marked by other outcasts, too, even within their own ranks, such as eunuchs, lepers, those considered unclean. A Jewish woman was excluded from ritual activities for a period of time after childbirth—forty days after the birth of a son and two weeks after the birth of a daughter (Leviticus 12). A leper was required to wear torn clothes and allow his/her hair to be disheveled and cover his/her upper lip and cry out "Unclean, unclean" to warn non-leprous people to keep their distance (Leviticus 13:45).

And, of course, people from outside Jewish society, Gentiles, foreigners, people who had different beliefs, were even considered bigger outcasts.
But God is very clear through the prophet Isaiah when he said: "my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples" (V.7) And to be absolutely sure, Isaiah's message specifically includes foreigners in the context of this prophetic word. The invitation goes out to all God's children, Jews and Gentiles alike. And what is specifically required of these foreigners?

"And the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD, to minister to him, to love the name of the LORD, and to be his servants, all who keep the sabbath, and do not profane it, and hold fast my covenant" From this description could basically narrow it down to three simple requirements:

- Love God
- Serve God (extend God's love and grace to others)
- Keep God's Law (be a responsible, decent person)    [continue]