Rev. Michael Holmen's Sermons

 Audio recordingSermon manuscript:I’d like to begin tonight by orienting ourselves. Last week we heard the first two chapters of the book of Ruth. The two most important people in this book are Naomi and Ruth. Naomi used to live near Bethlehem with her husband and two sons, but they needed to leave when a famine came on the land. They had to move to Moab. As they were living in Moab, Naomi’s two sons married Moabite women named Orpah and Ruth. Not long after that all three husbands died. Naomi’s husband died. Orpah’s husband died. Ruth’s husband died. The women were left alone in their widowhood. This was an especially vulnerable situation to be in during ancient times. Men worked to provide for the family. They also protected the family. Naomi, Orpah and Ruth were poor and extremely vulnerable. What I focused on during last week’s sermon was how Naomi and Ruth, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, loved one another. Naomi urged her daughters-in-law to go back to their homes, to marry new husbands, and a