Not one of us?

“Whoever is not against us is for us” (Mark 9:40)

Mark 9:38-48 (Year B: Trinity+17)

Encountering differences among those with whom we interact...

This passage welds together two stories: one about another exorcist whom the disciples thought was competing with Jesus; the other about the need for discipline and sacrifice in following Jesus. In a way both stories form two sides of the one coin.

In our lives we encounter many people who are different by reason of temperament, religion, politics, ethnic background or other characteristics. The world and human life would be boring otherwise. However, when it comes to religion we can be especially fussy about who we associate with and who we admit to the club. Moreover, religion – contrary to its root meaning in Latin – religare – to bind together – can and does become a source of animosity and division. One of the big surprises of the 21st century is that religion is back contrary to the predictions of many thinkers and sages. It is back with a vengeance and not always in ways that many of us would want or ever expected. Witness the rise of particular fundamentalisms across the globe. Witness the rise of a certain type of self-righteous, compassionless and doctrinaire Christianity that imposes its views on others and condemns and excludes those within the Christian family for allegedly unbiblical or non-orthodox (I believe the term is heterodox!).

Confronted with an exorcist who was doing the same works, so it seemed, as Jesus the disciples wondered what to do about the outsider. There are those who ‘do not follow us’ but seem to share many of our values or some of our ideas and goals. What should be our response? Without hesitation or qualification we should work with others for the common good on those issues and concerns that connect to us regardless of their religion or outlook. Clearly, there are some people and causes we should never work with no matter how incidental areas of commonality may arise. This goes without explanation and it does not need to be spelt out further.

The role of witness...

In the course of my work (my day job!) I encounter a wide range of persons who have no time for organised religion or things associated with religion. Yet, I collaborate and associate with many of these on projects of practical application especially in the area of research and knowledge. I sense that the shared values on social progress are sufficient reason to work with others towards shared goals. Christians need to come out of the closet not by preaching God at people on the street corner or at the coffee break but by being active, engaged, concerned and cooperative in efforts to tackle injustice and make for a better world. In this way a spark of the light that is within us will shine out and, perhaps, others might be drawn to ask ‘Why?’.  Every journey in faith starts with a simple question, a conversation and listening ear. What a privilege!

Climate change and environmental concerns are a good example...

Take the area of climate change and environment. The recent encyclical, Laudato Si, of Pope Francis has identified a major moral challenge which should unite movements, governments and peoples at global level. Yet, we find many Christians denying climate change – in the face of overwhelming scientific evidence. For them, the fact that persons or movements they do not like are championing the cause of the environment is enough reason to be sceptical or negative. Moreover, there are powerful commercial and national interests at work to disrupt and oppose international agreement on carbon emissions. Here is an area where those ‘who are not against us are for us’.  Many are very concerned about the precious gift of life from the first stage of human life. If only the same concern were extended as passionately and as systemically to every stage of human life as we continue to thrash the planet and leave a world that will be scarcely habitable for future generations.

(‘Friends of all; enemies of none’ is associated with John Wesley who founded the Methodist movement.  As a current within the Christian family Methodism has discretely and effectively welcomed many and contributed much to social developments especially in the English-speaking world.)

In welcoming others of different persuasions and backgrounds we welcome Christ in our neighbour. Without realising it we can end up ‘entertaining angels’ (Hebrews 13:2). Every act of kindness no matter how small counts especially when the person next to us is passing through trials. The ‘cup of water’ we have to give is a genuine concern and a practical act of help.

But how can we do this if we are imprisoned by our doubts and our attachments to this or that idea, comfort or material possession? This is where radical discipleship comes in.  Someone edited Mark and added in, apparently, verses 44-46 which are thought not to be in the original text:

And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and to be thrown into hell.

Perhaps, someone did actually cut their foot off!  The point is that whatever part of our thinking or behaviour leads us down paths that are destructive and harmful then we should not hesitate to cut these off.  Some of us of a certain vintage will remember the saying ‘occasions of sin’ in the catechism. Or, indeed, we might remember hearing talks at school or church about the perils of ‘keeping company’. Trust some people to bring sex into it!  The irony in much of this is that inappropriate and evil behaviour on the part of a few among those called to priesthood and the religious life went largely under the carpet while a lot of fuss was made about everything else in this domain.

The role of witness...

Returning to the main story, there is much to lead us astray including in appropriate behaviour and thinking that spoils many a committed relationship. However, we need to open our God-given eyes (assuming we can see at all) and use our hands and feet (assuming we have such faculties) to do good; to avoid evil and to live life to the full the way God intended it to be lived. This brings us back to where the story started – there are many in the world that we need to work with and not against.  Losing some of our own preciousness and insecurity is part of the radical call of Jesus found in the gospels and here in Mark.

Born to servant leadership

“Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.” (Mark 9:35)

Mark 9:30-37 (Year B: Trinity+16)

pic:http://cronkitehhh.jmc.asu.edu/blog/2013/10/consider-servant-leader

Whoever leads must be servant of all..

At the heart of this story is a tension between leadership and service. The disciples hanker after a type of leadership that means sitting in a position of honour and authority.  Not infrequently, people like positions of authority and honour.

States, companies, associations, churches and other human organisations create titles of honour, places of special honour, conditions of privilege and roles of authority in decision-making.  Many churches – up until recent times – had pews or seats specially reserved for Lord so-and-so or for the mayor or state dignitary (in the case of a Cathedral). This was quite apart from one-off reservations in cases of special celebrations including for example funerals. And the whole lay-out of medieval churches spoke of social hierarchy with the Lord Bishop sitting on a throne far too big for him and a sanctuary and choir reserved for those next to the bishop followed by a nave where, presumably, the great and good sat towards the top while the great unwashed knelt or stood (usually the latter in medieval times) towards the back. Even up until recent times, it was not uncommon for the men folk in many rural parishes in Ireland to congregate somewhere around the porch at the entrance to a church where, technically, they ‘heard’ mass! (Indeed, they may have heard it far more profoundly and effectively than many inside the building. We should never judge).

Such is life and such is church and what Jesus found the disciples up to in arguing about positions and greatness is not at all surprising if we know anything about modern-day ecclesiastical politics.

Conflicts start over little things hiding in front of positions..

Many a war and many a feud has started over what, at first sight, might have seemed a secondary and less important matter.  However, deep beneath the ‘position’ adopted by people are values, beliefs, needs and wants that shape and drive human behaviour. A lot of the time we are not even conscious of these drivers.  In this context, reactions of the disciples to Jesus’ talk of cross, suffering and rejection doesn’t fit with their preconceived ideas of a powerful messianic saviour. Moreover, it doesn’t fit with their agenda which is about promotion and the pleasure of leading.

The idea of servant leadership is about leaders who are appointed or who emerge to serve – if necessary to the point of giving their lives in loving service. Now, authority is necessary and with it some differentiation of roles and responsibilities. Inevitably there is hierarchy of responsible power. However, the prevailing ethos and practice among the authorities of Jesus’ time – just as today – is characterised by values of dominance, control, an imbalanced power-over-others, self-assertion over others and the value of wanting the limelight that goes with such positions. Rare is the leader who doesn’t want to lead or be in authority but is compelled or drawn to respond to a call to service in a world crying out for servant leadership.

Competition for kudos in the game of honour drives many to behaviour that distorts the very idea of vocation to leadership. Instead, the focus is on titles, procedures, control and how many dollars or Euros is in the budget over which one has jurisdiction. Such competition may start early on facebook or later through linkedin or twitter! Success and fame go with the number of ‘followers’ or ‘friends’.  But, being ‘friends’ with Jesus and others through him and being ‘followers’ of the master who lived and died to serve all is about relationships and signals a whole different scene.

A practical lesson in greatness..

Mark’s passage moves quickly to an illustration of what wisdom and leadership really involve. He takes a child and declares that anyone who welcomes a child welcomes the gospel. Matthew (18:4) goes further and declares that:

Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

Putting children in the centre to illustrate a point about leadership would not have fit with prevailing culture. Notions of children’s right were unheard of. A contemporary illustration of these gospel narratives is in the practice adopted in the community of Taizé in France where the Prior (the first in the community) takes the last seat in the central section of the make-shift wooden church of the resurrection. Accompanying him is a child or children who process to the service of prayer at the beginning. These telling symbols and gestures are important because much of the way we have ‘done church’ over the centuries seems at odds with the values of the gospel as outlined here in Mark as well as in the other three gospels.

Losing to win

“For those who want to save their life will lose it”.(Mark8:35)

Mark 8:27-35 (Year B: Trinity+15)

A gospel for losers..

At the core of this passage is a question followed by a series of answers followed by a warning and an invitation. ‘Who do you say that I am’ can have two meanings:

1. The question that fascinates thinkers, seekers, philosophers, sociologists, anthropologists, theologians ….
2. The question about what the person of Jesus – the real flesh and blood person of 2,000 years ago and the Messiah declared, crucified, risen and present today through faith – means to me this morning as I board the train, walk into the building and grab a sandwich at midday.

Both questions are important but without the second question we are fooling ourselves ….

Mark doesn’t waste words. He might have been a journalist were he writing today….short, one liner, the Point….. He quotes Jesus: ‘for those who want to save their life will lose it’. The flip side is that ‘those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel,will save it.’. What does this losing mean? 

We can listen to the witness of those early disciples who were prepared to face opposition, expulsion and marginalisation if they were lucky (?) enough to avoid torture and death. And the witness of disciples over the  centuries was not different. In today’s world we are reminded regularly of the plight of followers of Jesus – and millions of others – in various parts of their world who literally have their heads cut off for being ‘Nazarenes’.  Choice about following Jesus and living by his values might seem like a private and cosy matter for those of living in fortress Europe and living in the wealthier and freer part of the globe when it comes to all things we take for granted. But, for many millions choosing to stand by their beliefs and stay where they are serving in the communities and families where they have been planted can carry an awful price.

To lose everything can apply not just to material possessions but also to your very own dignity, standing and respect.  Ultimately, the stigma of being a prisoner, a refugee or an ‘alien’ is the ultimate degradation and loss.

The way of thinking revealed by Jesus in this passage of Mark is challenging. It was challenging for Peter who would not hear of the cross and the way of much suffering. Yet, it is Peter – again – who speaks up and takes the lead where others drew back and waited. The impetuous, reckless, sometimes faithless Peter who sticks his neck out only to have it pushed back – in this case by attracting the undiplomatic expression ‘get behind me Satan’ (verse 33). I have sympathy for Peter. At least he tried and tried again and got up each time …. even when he betrayed Jesus for a time.

And what of us?..

This road – that Jesus must follow – will be the same road that his disciples will follow. And what of us?

Losing something we didn’t want in the first place is one thing. Losing something precious, good and prized is another matter. Sometimes, we are called to ‘lose our lives’ for the sake of the gospel and its values. In the chapters that follow in Mark the announcement of the coming passion is repeated – much to the consternation and lack of understanding on those hearing.

Often it is not that we reject the cross but, rather, this particular cross which is not ideal or savoury!  It may be that we want to choose our own cross our way not in ways that take us by surprise and come like the wind ‘from the North-West’ (‘an ghaoth aniar aduaidh’ as the saying goes in Irish Gaelic). If only we could get to choose our own cross life would be easier to anticipate, plan and regulate! One thing is certain – in the life of discipleship as well as every other life – suffering is unavoidable. We can see it as part of the journey towards the full light of resurrection or we can stay in the dark cursing it and wishing it were otherwise. But, none of this takes from the point that suffering is suffering anytime and anywhere. It does not help those suffering to hear others make light of it or over-spiritualise it. Our task as disciples of Jesus who walked this road before us is to bear with the sufferings that come our way and work to alleviate the suffering in others around us.

Not quite what we expected..

We await some good in our lives. When it comes it is not what we had expected. It is like that in this story. People expected a Messiah who would be a mighty king, a popular or not so popular prophet and so on. Nobody expected a suffering servant who would die a disgraceful death on a dumping ground outside the capital city.

This road before me..

The mood of Mark 8 is captured, for me, in that haunting poem written by the well known Irish poet, mystic and political rebel, Pádraic Pearse. While not a supporter of his politically I am always deeply touched by his depth of insight, feeling and courage. (There is more than a hint of the suffering servant Isaiah in this poem).

Ideal (by Pádraic Pearse and translated by Thomas McDonagh)

Naked I saw thee,

O beauty of beauty!

And I blinded my eyes

For fear I should flinch.

I heard thy music,

O sweetness of sweetness!

And I shut my ears

For fear I should fail.

I kissed thy lips

O sweetness of sweetness!

And I hardened my heart

For fear of my ruin.

And I blinded my eyes

And my heart I shut

I hardened my heart

And my love I quenched

I turned my back

On the dream I had shaped

And to this road before me

My face I turned

I set my face

To the road here before me

To the work that I see

To the death that I shall meet

Or, in the original it is as follows:

Fornocht do chonacthú,
a áillenaháille,
is do dhallasmoshúil
areagla go stánfainn.

Do chualas do cheol,
a bhinnenabinne,
is do dhúnasmochluas
areagla go gclisfinn.

Do bhlaiseas do bhéal
a mhilsenamilse,
is do chruasmochroí
areaglamomhillte.

Do dhallasmoshúil,
is mochluas do dhúnas;
do chruasmochroí,
is momhian do mhúchas.

Do thugasmochúl
ar an aisling do chumas,
‘s ar an ród so romham
m’aghaidh do thugas.

Do thugasmoghnúis
ar an ród so romham,
ar an ngníomh do-chim,
‘s ar an mbás do gheobhad.

Open to new possibilities

“Be opened”. (Mark 7:34)

Mark 7:31-37 (Year B: Trinity+14)

A raw request..

Actions speak louder than words. Yet, words are powerful agents. In this gospel passage we hear the word Ephphatha meaning Be opened in the Aramaic language spoken by Jesus.  Very occasionally the gospel writers report the actual word – in Aramaic – spoken by Jesus to give extra effect and depth to what is being recounted. It is like a story in which we imitate the accent or mannerism of the person about whom we are talking. In this case Jesus said Ephphatha ‘with a deep sigh’. With a deep sigh from the cross Jesus would say Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani – ‘my God, my God why have you forsaken me?’ (Matthew 27:46).  In this way a simple and powerful question or request to the Father by Jesus is given extra flavour by repeating it in the original techni-colour.

In anguish a person who was ‘deaf’ and ‘could hardly talk’ was brought to Jesus by strangers in a strange land known as the ten cities (Decapolis). It follows another miracle in alien territory involving a gentile Syrophoenician woman who prevailed on Jesus to cure her daughter (mothers can be persuasive). As happens again and again in the gospels Jesus walks straight into a situation of acute human distress and need. By now he has acquired some reputation as a healer and dispenser of wisdom. So, when desperate, as the strangers were, they plead with Jesus for help (they ‘begged’ him). The pattern is familiar to us as we read and think about the gospels. It is composed of five steps:

• A situation of human distress and need.
• Pleading sometimes accompanied by a primitive trust or faith.
• A vigorous and swift response by Jesus often accompanied by a discrete but effective physical outward sign.
• Healing or rescue often signalled by a miraculous event.
•  A response by these looking on but especially by those healed, rescued or nourished – puzzlement, fear, joy, praise, scandal as the case may be.

Transposed to today..

Applied today in our little world where do we find such stories at work?

1. In this story, we find ourselves in the company of Jesus who is travelling through ‘foreign territory’. It would be like someone from (Catholic/nationalist) Falls Road walking through the (Protestant/loyalist) Shankill Road in Belfast, Ireland, or vice versa. Let’s say someone doing such a thing would not delay and would probably keep their mouth shut!
2.  Enter someone who is deaf and mainly dumb – the ultimate loneliness of someone who cannot hear or communicate. What to do? The story of Helen Keller captured in a film many years ago tells the story of a young girl who was deaf and dumb but, against all the odds and with the heroic help of an Anne Sullivan learned to communicate. Helen Keller became a famous writer and speaker having learned how to communicate somehow with others. She learned to read people’s lips by use of her hands. Using braille she learned to read extensively (she wrote and published 12 books in her lifetime). Acts of faith, perseverance, kindness and determination meant that Helen Keller blossomed and flourished and provided inspiration to millions as well as practical help in developing services for people with disabilities. How many other Helen Kellers might there be today in our world even given a chance?
3.  Jesus is captivated by compassion. He is compassion walking on two feet who brings life and healing so that ‘the blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor (Matthew 11:5). Jesus acts swiftly to take the man aside ‘away from the crowd’ and he uses spittle, touch and prayer from the depth of his heart to perform a healing (while this might not have passed 21^st century Health Authority protocols we should be aware that, apparently, spittle was believed to have medicinal value in primitive societies).
4.  In this story the miracle is deeply personal to the one healed. Sight and hearing and speech are restored in one go. Life would never be the same again for the one healed. Who was this man? What was his name? Was he even Jewish?  Where was he when Jesus was crucified? Did he become a disciple afterwards?
5.  Many are the reactions of those who have witnessed the power of a loving God in their lives and that of others. But, some will always remain hostile, sceptical or indifferent.  The important lesson, here, is that Jesus kept moving onwards (Jerusalem was to be his ultimate destination). Many were ‘overwhelmed’ by what Jesus had done. They commented that ‘he has done everything well’ (verse 37).

In many respects this was a low-key miracle. Sure enough it was an extraordinary and miraculous healing of someone who had been blind and deaf for most (all?) of his life. However, the man was only one person. For everyone healed there were at least another hundred or two in the Decapolis who were not.  And, Jesus insisted on keeping the whole matter private and undisclosed possibly to avoid premature reactions and misunderstanding about who he was and why had come. Jesus preached, healed and loved one person at a time and one moment at a time. What he did he did well (verse 37) but he did not usher in a perfect world or outcome. Rather, in keeping with his humanity and divinity he did what was required of love –  person by person and moment by moment.  In other words, we could say that he loved perfectly in an imperfect world that remains imperfect. Such is God-in-humanity.

And inspiring out actions and thoughts..

In a poem attributed to Waldo Emerson there is an application of this to those in search of healing such as the strangers in the Decapolis:

To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and to endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty and to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child or a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived, this is to have succeeded.

However, the attribution is said to be properly to a Bessie A. Stanley:

He has achieved success who has lived well, laughed often, and loved much;

Who has enjoyed the trust of pure women, the respect of intelligent men and the love of little children;

Who has filled his niche and accomplished his task;

Who has never lacked appreciation of Earth's beauty or failed to express it;

Who has left the world better than he found it,

Whether an improved poppy, a perfect poem, or a rescued soul;

Who has always looked for the best in others and given them the best he had;

Whose life was an inspiration;

Whose memory a benediction.

And so it was for Helen Keller and her helper and associate Anne Sullivan.

Some questions today..

Are we in need of healing spiritually because we think we hear and see but we don’t?

How do we respond to situations of acute human distress in the immediate world around us?

Where do we see the discrete healing power of God at work? 

What is our response to healing when we see and experience it at first hand?

Do the stories of the gospel come alive for us now?