Reading 1, Daniel 1:1-6, 8-20

1 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched on Jerusalem and besieged it. 2 The Lord let Jehoiakim king of Judah fall into his power, as well as some of the vessels belonging to the Temple of God. These he took away to Shinar, putting the vessels into the treasury of his own gods.

3 From the Israelites, the king ordered Ashpenaz, his chief eunuch, to bring a certain number of boys of royal or noble descent; 4 they had to be without any physical defect, of good appearance, versed in every branch of wisdom, well-informed, discerning, suitable for service at the royal court. Ashpenaz was to teach them to speak and write the language of the Chaldaeans. 5 The king assigned them a daily allowance of food and wine from the royal table. They were to receive an education lasting for three years, after which they would enter the royal service. 6 Among them were the Judaeans Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah.

8 Daniel, who was determined not to incur pollution by food and wine from the royal table, begged the chief eunuch to spare him this defilement. 9 God allowed Daniel to receive faithful love and sympathy from the chief eunuch. 10 But the eunuch warned Daniel, ‘I am afraid of my lord the king: he has assigned you food and drink, and if he sees you looking thinner in the face than the other boys of your age, my head will be in danger with the king because of you.’

11 To the guard assigned to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah by the chief eunuch, Daniel then said, 12 ‘Please allow your servants a ten days’ trial, during which we are given only vegetables to eat and water to drink. 13 You can then compare our looks with those of the boys who eat the king’s food; go by what you see, and treat your servants accordingly.’

14 The man agreed to do what they asked and put them on ten days’ trial.

15 When the ten days were over, they looked better and fatter than any of the boys who had eaten their allowance from the royal table; 16 so the guard withdrew their allowance of food and the wine they were to drink, and gave them vegetables. 17 To these four boys God gave knowledge and skill in every aspect of literature and learning; Daniel also had the gift of interpreting every kind of vision and dream. 18 When the time stipulated by the king for the boys to be presented to him came round, the chief eunuch presented them to Nebuchadnezzar.

"Speaking truth to power"

19 The king conversed with them, and among all the boys found none to equal Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. So they became members of the king’s court, 20 and on whatever point of wisdom or understanding he might question them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and soothsayers in his entire kingdom. Daniel remained there until the first year of King Cyrus.

 The book of Daniel uses the framework of the Jewish defeat by the Babylonians, to weave a story which reflects on the much later conquest of Israel by the successors of Alexander the Great. It also uses ancient Jewish narrative motifs, which can be seen in the story of Joseph in Egypt. By insisting on their own religious identity in captivity, Daniel and his companions are blessed by God with intelligence, and rise in the esteem of the royal court of the conquerors.

 While retaining their own faith, they use their wisdom for the benefit of the people amongst whom they find themselves. Because they believe in the power of God they can speak the truth to the earthly power which rules them. Of course there’s a fairy tale aspect to this story, but it suggests the prophetic role of believers, in any state: we are not debarred from serving the state, but we must not forget our identity, nor fail to offer the truth of our tradition.

 Tariq Ramadan, the Islamic scholar was emphasising on the radio today, that his religious community should be ready to offer its wisdom to British society, and that other communities in Britain should be ready to receive it. None of us need to dominate, he said: we can all be witnesses to the value of our beliefs.