Nagging question: Am I my brother’s keeper?

In the Bible material, when a difficult question arises, a storyteller tells a story. Some stories become so important they are repeated over and over again. They march through history relentlessly.

I share a bit of background for those who might not be Bible literate. The special story of Jews begins when God spoke to a man named Abram, who lived in what today is Iraq. God told Abram that he was to be the founder of a special people. The Bible says that Abram left his home and went out not knowing where he was to go. He acquired a new name, Abraham. He and his clan became nomadic herders. Abraham's descendants, through an extended series of events, ended up in Egypt as slaves.

Eventually, led by Moses, the Abraham clan rebelled and escaped Egypt. Once again they became a nomadic clan of herders. In the process they became a warrior clan with a mission to take over Palestine, a fertile land northeast of Egypt. In the name of their God, they killed and conquered other clans that got in their way.

Eventually, this warrior tribe controlled all of Palestine. The nation of Israel was established and Israel had land to call its own. Jerusalem was established as the capital under King David, the first Jerusalem temple was built under King Solomon and Israel developed an extensive religious system.

The priests who controlled and operated the temple were the first group in Israelite history to become literate. They became the first writers of stories in Israelite history. Stories had been preserved in oral history for centuries. Priests collected stories and put them in written form. They told stories not to tell history, but to explain history.

Israel had acquired land by conquest, but now had a different problem - how were they to live together? A priest or a group of priests chose to put an old story into written form. It was the story of two brothers, Cain and Abel. In the story, Cain killed his younger brother. It was a homicide based on social class.

The tensions arose between the two brothers because of their occupations. Cain chose to be a farmer. Abel chose to be a herder.

Before this special clan took ownership of Palestine, no one farmed. They were herders who lived off the land. When the Israelites took ownership, some became farmers. Others continued to be herders. In ancient societies like the developing Israelites, farmers were in a higher social class than herders. Cain had become a social elite.

In the story, Abel brought his finest lamb as an offering to God. God was pleased. Cain brought an offering of grain from his farm. God rejected the grain offering. Cain was outraged. How could God show preference to his low-class brother? He killed his brother. Along came God and asked Cain the whereabouts of his brother. Cain responded, "I do not know. Am I my brother's keeper?"

In the mind of Cain, his question was legitimate. As a member of an elite class, could he not set the rules? God had a different perspective. God sentenced Cain to the lowest possible class. He was sent to the land of Nod where he would live out his days as a landless wanderer. Cain protested that "this is a punishment I cannot bear!" It was too late. The sentence was put in force.

The story of Cain and Abel is a critical part of the development of the conscience of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Out of this same seedbed grew the command to love your neighbor. In its earliest form the command was probably "love your neighbor as if he were a member of your own clan or your own class."

Being my brother's keeper and loving my neighbor are the essential backbone of the moral and ethical life for Jews Christians and Muslims. There is not much evidence that any of us is doing a good job.

The motivation for writing this column comes from the continued reports of the widening gap between the rich and the poor in America. The economic and social gap between employers and employees keeps accelerating. The same kind of chasm has developed between those whom we elect and the electorate. Extreme poverty and exorbitant wealth are stratifying our society. The violent death of Abel came out of class conflict. It is an inevitable outcome as long as society is stratified by wealth and power.

In the 21st century, the dynamic of the Cain and Abel story has become global. The United States and other powerful nations have become the Cain in the story and the "third world" has become the Abel.

Americans are obsessed with being No. 1 in most everything. We will never be a truly great nation through wealth and power. Greatness will be found in the embrace of a brother and the love of a neighbor.

The Rev. Howard Bess is a retired American Baptist minister who lives in Palmer. His email address is hdbss@mtaonline.net.

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