Word to the Wise
Saturday, July 25, 2009 - St. James, apostle
[2 Corinthians 4:7015 and Matthew 20:20-28]Command that thse two sons of mine sit, one at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom
As long as humans live together in community there will be "politics." If nothing else, politics is about POWER. For some folks, POWER is more important than money or sex because even though power enters into financial and sexual matters, it transcends those and encompasses a far greater range of human endeavor. It gets into everything! The mother of the sons of Zebedee and those sons of hers were very aware of this. Of course, their notion of power was shaped by the way in which it was exercised by the wealthy and politically influential people of their time. This would have included the Emperor in Rome, the "prefect" who represented him, and such folks as Herod and the priestly aristocracy in Jerusalem and any wealthy landowners. Mrs. Zebedee and her boys wanted a piece of that action! Jesus has to inform them that the "kingdom" he was preaching was not about power "over" but power "with" or in submission and suffering! If nothing else, the feast of St. James is a warning that power can be dangerous to your health. He would have to "drink the cup" that Jesus drank. Eventually he would be martyred. The attraction of power requires a sober estimate of its downside as well as its benefits. All of us should bear that sober estimate in mind. AMEN