NAME-IRONY - Notice the use of names in the story-a town called "Breadbasket" (Bethlehem) is the place where famine covers the area; and a family called "The Fruitfuls" (Ephrathites) are marked by three funerals and no fruit (children) . . . That is to say that the story begins in life-threatening barrenness.

QUESTIONS - Why do Orpah and Ruth follow after Naomi? Do they feel Naomi is morally responsible for the present state of affairs since it was her sons-their husbands-who died prematurely? Are they trying to comfort a bitter old lady? Is Naomi their ticket out of Moab-the place of barrenness? Do they feel obligated to Naomi? Maybe they cling to a faith in Naomi’s God?

RUTH IN DAVIDIC CONTEXT - While the dominant themes of redemption and insider/outsider are quite obvious in the story of Ruth, the NIB commentators suggest that story might have functioned "royally" in David’s case. "If we imagine an audience of people in David’s own time concerned with the purity of David’s bloodline, we can imagine how reading Ruth might have persuaded them that the Moabite "taint" in David’s ancestry was "redeemed" when the Moabite in question was shown to be an admirable convert to Judaism." [1]

What does verses 16-17 say about Ruth’s faith? Is this merely bravado, or the vote for a reckless lunge into a new adventure?

This verse is selected to be read at weddings; marriage sermons are sometimes based on this verse. How does this confession of Ruth speak to the couple standing at the altar ready to say their I do’s? How does the saying speak to Christian discipleship? Any examples?

When have you been at your nadir? When have you felt isolated, alienated, wounded or vulnerable? Name "famines" that cause people to be bitter.

Go over the first five verses well so that you can weave it into a story that will draw listeners in.

Freeze the story at strategic places to move back into our world-moments of barrenness, moments when life is anything but fruitful and flourishing. Use stories, quotes, scenes from movies or novels to build a bridge from Ruth’s story to ours.

Once we see ourselves in the story, move back to the social critique of the Ruth story: what was the ancient culture’s prejudice concerning Moabites? And then ask the same question of us: "What are the things that we despise until we are forced to turn to them in times of crises?" At a time when priests were trying to "purify" Israel of foreign women, Ruth becomes a subversive parable that encourages our identification with outsiders.

When conflicts arise in our own communities of faith concerning who is acceptable and who is not, we can encourage people to notice that more than one opinion is expressed by the faith communities reflected in the biblical text.

The Good News in Ruth: Welcome people who are outsiders-those demeaned, avoided, or ignored by others simply based on their speak, color, appearance, age, or gender.

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[1] The New Interpreter’s Bible II (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1998), page 894.