Word to the Wise
Tuesday, September 22, 2015 - Tuesday in the 25th Week in Ordinary Time
[Ezra 6:7-8, 12b, 14-20 and Luke 8:19-21]"My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and act on it." [Luke]
Family tensions are part of human life! Jesus' family was no exception. In the Gospel of Mark, the mother of Jesus and his brothers were coming to "seize him, for they thought he was out of his mind." Even if Luke "softens" the story, the statement of Jesus in regard to his true family is startling in terms of Middle Eastern culture where one's fundamental loyalty is not to oneself as in our culture, but first of all to family, then clan, then tribe. Our notions of individuality and nationalism/patriotism would have been unknown and, in many ways, are still strange to the culture where Jesus preached. Nevertheless, Jesus points to the priority of God's word, and not just hearing that word but putting it into practice.
This kind of priority can cause family tensions. Having ministered on college campuses a good part of my ministerial career, I can testify to what has happened to students who "got religion" (what their family thought) and found themselves at odds with parents and siblings and other family members. The struggles can be hard, and seems strange when it is a matter of accepting another Christian tradition, when the gospel should be the guide rather than denominational boundaries. One wonders if Jesus' words have been truly heard and put into action, given the hostility that arises. One wonders what Jesus' own family thought when he put them in a secondary place! The gospel transcends even the most powerful natural bonds, but it need not be incompatible with those bonds, which after all are part of God's own creation. Family members are called to follow gospel values in their relationships with each other. As the old saying goes, "Charity begins at home." AMEN
config
view
logs
4096.0 KB
100 ms
4
