“Go forth“ (Genesis 12:1)
Some 2000BC ago there were big cities in the land between the Euphrates and the Tigris. Uruk and Ur each had 50.000 people living together: rich and poor; slave and freeman; various professions. In these societies ‘survival in nature’ was gradually being replaced by surviving in the city with all its social relations, interests and conflicts. Less than in the past people saw themselves as a member of the tribe and of the family – everyone in their obvious, predestined position. Social life in urban centers was so complex and demanding that the relation between group and individual started to change dramatically. Along with public-, social- and family life, something like private life and even inner life emerged, with new questions about personal identity.
Probably this began among people with knowledge and connections. A new consciousness was growing. Faith in the gods changed as well. People started worshipping household gods (called ‘teraphim’ in Genesis). These were personal divinities who – people thought – were not so powerful, but they had only one exclusive task of protecting the individual or the family. The God-man relation becomes more personal and direct than the earlier fertility cult. Of course, this meant that man is becoming more aware of him/herself.
But that is not all. New dimensions enrich inner life. Some of that can be seen in the oldest story of the world. A certain king Gilgamesh is all powerful. He has everything his heart desires. He embarks on a long adventurous quest in search of immortality but in vain. He asks himself in despair for what purpose he has been living.
Abraham is the biblical example of a new spiritual life. God is telling the rich livestock farmer from Ur: “go from your country and your father’s house”. And Abraham obeys. He is heading towards a foreign country. But he does not just leave his city and forefathers behind. Even their gods. God speaks to him, takes care of him, makes a covenant with him. Abraham is becoming aware that his personal god is actually the Awesome, All-Powerful One. A totally new and daring thought, in those times and even now.
Literally God says: Lech, lecha. Lech means ‘go’. Lecha means ‘to you’ or ‘for you’. The words together are difficult to translate. We can say: ‘go in a hurry’ but also ‘go to yourself!’. Abraham is going on an inner, spiritual journey that brings him promises, conflict and surrender.
God prevents Abraham from offering the biggest sacrifice a man can make – his own son Isaac. This is a turning point in humanity’s primal religion. From Abraham onwards the ‘quid-pro-quo’ religion is starting to decline. God is not to be manipulated or to be exploited for human purposes. He encourages people looking into a mirror and confronts them with their shortcomings and ideals. These are the first signs of a new awareness that will emerge 1000 years later in Israel as well as in other parts of the world. Later we will see how people become more critical about themselves and the ultimate reality.
Abraham travelled to a foreign country, but his real journey was the road inside. Put in modern words: Abraham is learning to believe in the God who believes in him.