Saturday Christian Fiction Carnival: Most Memorable Character

From the blog of My Friend Amy :

Ok, here's today's question: There are many outstanding characters in the books we read but often there's that one special character we remember for a long time. Sometimes it's because we relate to them, or maybe we were going through something similar to what they experienced. Or maybe they are just the sort of person we wish we were. Who is the most memorable character in Christian fiction for you and why?

My Answer: I've had the pleasure of reading a lot of Christian fiction that I really enjoyed, and there are a few characters that always remain in the back of my mind. I'm going to go with one of my bible favorites: Ruth.

I don't know where I obtained this book, but the book is called Ruth, A Love Story by Ellen Gunderson Traylor. It is always on my bookshelf, it is discolored, the spine is broken, it no longer lays flat, but kind of leans when it is placed on a table - I could really go on here.




I think I have liked this particular character for so long because she was a real person - and she was such a strong person who set a good example to others. Once the priestess of Chemosh in Moab, she dislikes the human sacrifice, and meets Mahlon, a Jewish metal worker (I hope I'm getting all the facts right - it has been a while since I've read it!). Against the odds, he marries her. He dies soon after, and his mother Naomi decides to return to the home she grew up in. Ruth, now part of her family, decides to leave everything she has known to journey with Naomi to Bethlehem.

Ruth has found hope in the new religion of her husband, and leaves her family where she would have led an easy life, instead choosing hard work and manual labor in order to stay with Naomi and continue learning this new forgiving religion.

This is a wonderful story, with a great ending! Ruth does gain a new faith, and a new love, while growing with her relationship with Naomi.

If you haven't read this book - I encourage you to see if you can locate a copy (Amazon has some for the cost of shipping!) - it is wonderful. Please note that I tend to really enjoy the books about women in the bible. :)

From the back cover:
"It is the dream of every Jewess to be Messiah's mother. And the dream of every Jewish lad that his betrothed will bear Messiah for his line!"

Ruth, a Moabitess, strained to understand the ways of her husband's people as she found herself slipping away from the harsh religion of Moab's Chemosh - the bloody god of terror. But when her mother-in-law, Naomi, spoke of the Anointed One who would spring from this peculiar race - the children of Abraham - Ruth was both intrigued and bewildered.

Could she ever learn to be a child of Jehovah, have faith in the Messiah to come, and somehow know his peace?

The pain of separation and poverty were to come upon her before her understanding would be made plain. But Ruth the foreigner was to become part of the very fulfillment of prophecy - and to find true love on her own doorstep as well . . . .

Funny fact: My husband's grandmother once told me it was one of her favorite books. I happened to see it out one day when we visited his dad, and she was visiting from out-of-state. When I saw the book, I happened to mention that it was a favorite of mine, and one that you don't see very often. Boy was I surprised to find that it was her favorite as well.

Care to answer the question yourself? I welcome you to post your thoughts here, add them to your own blog and head back to Amy's post and add a comment with a link to yours. :)