A time to
tear and a time to sew.
In
Qohelet’s culture, on the news of bereavement, one tore one’s clothes, as an
outward sign of the fabric of your world having suffered violence, a tearing in
reality. Then, after a prescribed period of mourning, one would mend the
garment. From a practical perspective, few could discard garments with every
loss; but more, symbolically again, the act of taking needle and thread and
repairing the rent fabric is an act of engaging in the very repairing of the
world.
In
wearing a torn-and-mended cloak, every season carries with it the season
before; every matter is woven together, to create a wondrous story...
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