Then Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem…
So begins the story of the great covenant-making ceremony that bound together the people of Israel.
Read or hear the story of the gathering at Shechem.
See other pages about covenant-making ceremonies at Shechem:
Long ago your ancestors…
Joshua recites the story of the people of God--
It's a BIG story.
- Other recitals of the BIG story:
- The recital of the story functions for the people in oral culture like
the saying of creeds functions for people in literate culture.
Both are ways of:
 stating beliefs
explaining behavior
claiming identity
Visit a page that tells about Christian creeds. When you get there, click on "Explanations." (note*)
Speaking of… Storytelling
a way of sharing experience
forms community
The recital of the BIG story
bonded together the various factions into one people. |
map of Ancient Near East
(note*) |
| When we hear the BIG story, we are invited to identify with the original audience and with all those who have claimed the story as their own. Across time and space we are invited into the community of God's people. |
map of Egypt
(note*) |
- In his commentary on Joshua, Robert Boling writes:
- "The text thus invites any reader to make personal identification with those whose story is recounted." (p. 535)
|
|
- Learn from Roy May about negative and positive ways in which people have identified with the BIG story:
|
- Visit websites about people today who could well identify with the experience of Israel: (note*)
 In what ways do you identify with people in the stories of Joshua? Who are your ancestors and where did they come from? Can you tell any stories about them?
Click here to add your response and/or read others' responses.
- Visit the Network of Biblical Storytellers homepage.
- NOBS is an ecumenical organization which:
- encourages the learning and telling of biblical stories
- recognizes the power of identification that happens with stories
- believes biblical stories are good ones with which to identify
I gave you a land on which you had not labored…
In Joshua and the Promised Land, Roy May writes,
| "The problem for ancient Israel was remembering that the land was a gift and that it belonged to God. Once that gift was taken for granted and social obligations forgotten, the land was lost. It was taken away. The problem of land was the problem of justice." |
 What are the free gifts you have been given?
Now might be a good time to stop and give thanks.
Note* These links jump to outside sites for further information. Links do not constitute an endorsement by the Women's Division of the information on other web sites. These links expose United Methodist Women to diverse perspectives, afford us an opportunity to compare them to United Methodist positions, and encourage United Methodist Women to critically analyze the issues raised by the Joshua web pages.
| 
