
The Israelites are in the Diaspora: Now what!?
Once upon a time, there was a people called the Israelites who lived in slavery in Egypt. They dreamed of a land called Canaan, where the milk flowed like rivers and the honey dripped from the trees.
One day, God sent a prophet named Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt and into Canaan. After a long and perilous journey, the Israelites finally reached the Promised Land.
But the Israelites were disappointed to find that Canaan was not the sudden paradise they had imagined. The milk was not flowing like rivers, and the honey was not dripping from the trees.
In fact, the Israelites realized that they would have to work hard to make Canaan their home. They would have to build houses, plant crops, and raise animals.
And they would have to learn how to milk cows and keep bees.
One day, a group of Israelites was walking through a field when they saw one of their cows. They had been with the cows in the desert but never bothered to think of their use besides draught power, and they were amazed at this particular one’s size and beauty.
“What a magnificent creature!” one of the Israelites exclaimed. “I wonder what else it can give us.”
“I don’t know,” another Israelite replied. “But I’m sure it’s something delicious.”
The Israelites decided to try to milk the cow. But they didn’t know how. They pulled on her tail, they yanked on her ears, and they even tried to climb onto her back.
But the cow refused to give up her milk.
“I’m starting to think that the milk isn’t in the cow at all,” one of the Israelites said. “Maybe it’s in the ground.”
The Israelites started digging around the cow, but they couldn’t find any milk.
“I’m starting to think that the milk is a myth,” another Israelite said.
Just then, a wise old man walked by. He saw the Israelites struggling to milk the cow, and he shook his head.
“You’re doing it all wrong,” he said. “You have to feed the cow first.”
The Israelites looked at the old man in surprise. “Feed the cow?” they asked. “Why?”
“Because the cow doesn’t give up her milk unless she’s well-fed,” the old man replied.
The Israelites realized that the old man was right. They gathered some grass and gave it to the cow. The cow ate the grass hungrily, and then she lay down in the shade of a tree.
A few minutes later, the cow stood up and started to milk herself. The Israelites were amazed.
“It worked!” one of them exclaimed. “The milk is flowing like rivers!”
The Israelites filled their buckets with milk and drank it greedily. It was the most delicious milk they had ever tasted.
But then, one of the Israelites noticed something strange. The cow was starting to get angry. She was kicking her legs and stomping her hooves.
“What’s wrong with the cow?” the Israelite asked.
“I think she’s mad at us,” another Israelite replied. “We’re taking all of her milk.”
The Israelites tried to give the cow some milk back, but she refused it. She just kept kicking and stomping.
“I think we need to get out of here,” one of the Israelites said.
The Israelites ran away from the cow, and she chased them all the way back to their village.
The Israelites learned a valuable lesson that day. They learned that the milk is not in the cow unless you feed her first. And they learned that it takes longer to milk a cow than it does to drink the milk.
They also learned that their own children are a bottomless pit that drains all the milk and all the honey and still demand more. And the king insists that the children get the milk and the honey, the parents didn’t matter much.
The Israelite immigrants and refugees, like many, leave their homeland of 400 years in search of a better life. The land of Canaan has always been the diaspora of a sort, the promise of a new beginning. But they all soon realize that the diaspora, just like Egypt, first must flow with sweat before the milk flows. Just that there’s no Pharaoh, and there’s no xenophobic Egyptians.
There’s work to be done. Before the grass greens up. Before the chickens come home. Actually, the green they saw afar off, was watered by others, they must water it too.
The Israelites have to learn how to milk the cow and keep the bees. They have to learn how to navigate a new culture and society. And they have to learn how to cope with the challenges of living in a foreign land.
The honey is with the bee, it stings. The milk is in the cow, it must eat, it must be milked. For more milk you may need more cows. But more cows will tax you more. Imagine, the milk drinks faster than it is milked.
It is not always easy to milk the cow, and the cow can be angry at times. But the Israelites eventually learn to milk the cow, and they are rewarded with delicious milk.