Abraham

From Ur to Haran

About 4,000 years ago in Mesopotamia, there was a man who lived with his family in a city called Ur, one of the oldest cities in the world.  The man’s name was Abram.  After a time he left Ur and travelled north to another city called Haran, some 600 miles away.  There he grew rich and became the chief of a small tribe.  This was the tribe which God had decided to use.

However, there was a problem with Haran.  In it was a big temple where the people worshipped the moon as their god; in fact the city was a great centre for moon-worshippers.  For this reason God had to get Abram and his tribe away from the place.

A special land

A man was once given a little plant by a friend who told him that, if he looked after it properly, it would grow into a lovely flower.  When the man got home he put the plant in his garden, but some days later, when he came to see how it was getting on, he found that a lot of thistles were coming up round it.  He knew that thistles are difficult to get rid off and because they were spoiling the growth of the plant, he prepared a little bed for it in the corner of his garden free from weeds.  Then he replanted it in the new bed by itself and there it grew into a beautiful flower.

So God had prepared a little land called Canaan or Palestine for his Chosen People to live, away from the influence of pagan nations where the people worshipped objects like the moon and made these objects their gods.

From Haran to Canaan

One day God told Abram that he must leave Haran: “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.  I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you…and in you all the families of the earth will be blessed” (NRSV, Genesis 12:1-3).  So Abram left Haran as God had told him.  Abram and his people packed all their belongings and travelled south until they came to Canaan where they settled.  The years passed and Abram, who was now known as Abraham, died.  His grandson’s name was Israel and the tribe took its name from him.  They were called the children of Israel or the Israelites.  Later on they were called Jews.