14th Sunday in Ordinary Time - 5th July 2009

Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary time

Who are we following when we say we are 'Christians'? The question seems so obvious that most of us think it a silly question even to ask: it's obviously Jesus, isn't it? But the ques­tion is not silly, nor is the answer obvious, because who Jesus is and what he means to us is far from obvious. indeed, it is be­cause it is anything but obvious that there have been so many disputes down the centuries among Christians, and there is a whole branch of Christian theology called 'christology'.

Let us begin by noting that most people like 'to keep it simple' - and that means they imagine there should be a simple answer to the question 'who is Jesus?' - but the reality is that life is com­plex, and the more any issue involves human beings, the more complex life becomes. Everyone knows that her/his human re­lationships are complex - how many of us can say 'I know my­self!' - so why think that understanding Jesus is easy?

The situation recorded in today's gospel shows a reaction that must have been widespread: the local people have Jesus in one box in their imaginations: he is the guy from down the road, ­they know him, his brothers and sisters, and his background. For anyone who comes from their town they have a box for what they expect for and from that person: fine to get him to do a job for you, fine to go to the well with his sisters, fine to engage with them socially. That's all there is to them: another family, just like us, and they should not think of themselves as anything special. So if Jesus stands up and presents himself as a leader, that is just not on!

On the other hand, they have heard him in the synagogue: he comes across as one filled with wisdom, he is a teacher like they have heard, he speaks in a way they have always imagined a prophet would speak. They have another box marked 'prophet' and he seems to fit there too! But that box comes with a label: prophets are very distant from everyday life, they are exceptional in every way, they are 'not like us'.

So when these people find that Jesus ticking both the box marked 'ordinary bloke'/'regular guy'/'prophet/one of our own,' they cannot cope with this com­plexity. So, since they are more sure that he is the guy down the road, they reject him as a prophet.

Faith is the ability to imagine that God's goodness is greater and closer than the bits-and-pieces around us and the ups-and-­downs of life. In this case, faith was the ability to imagine that God was so close that Jesus was both the guy from down the road and the great prophet and the wise teacher and more be­sides. But the group could not make that leap of imagination ­and Jesus was amazed at their lack of faith.

Would we have been among that group that could not imag­ine that God's goodness was that close? Surely not! After all, we are Christians, who publicly declare our faith in Jesus each week in the creed. But we have problems of our own in imagining the goodness of God coming close to us in Jesus.

For many people, it is fine to think of Jesus as a wise teacher - ­a proclaimer of great religious or moral truths - and as such one who should inspire us to high ideals. This is all true, but is there a label on that box which says: 'Not needed on a day-to-day basis in life'?

Jesus is a wise teacher, but he also calls us to become united with him for it is through him we come into the presence of the Father. We do not just listen to Jesus, we relate to him in prayer and living, and with him we are brought to the fullness of life which is larger/ greater/beyond the whole universe we see around us.

For many people is it fine to think of Jesus as a central part of religion, he is the named focus of devotion, his image is every­where, and when we see crosses and the like they remind us of the religious dimension to life and the 'great certainty' of death and the importance of religion .. But the box marked 'religion' often comes with labels like: 'Religion is useful to make me feel better' or 'Religion is useful for society.' In other words, Jesus is just part of the status quo! This is all true: religion.does make peo­pie happier and it is a stabilising factor insodety, but Jesus is also the prophet who comes proclaiming· the closeness of the kingdom of God and this is disruptive.
Jesus is disruptive be­cause his is the kingdom of truth (as opposed to illusion which is so often used to control people), justice (as opposed to a culture of greed), and peace (as opposed to rule of fear and might) Jesus the prophet does not fit any cosy box for those who want a quiet life for themselves or others.

The people who heard Jesus in his home town found it hard to cope with all he is - and for many it was too hard. It is not easy for us either: to follow Jesus is to be always trying to delve deeper into the mystery of who he is.