Of Titles and Fineries

Gospel:  Matthew 23: 1-12

What Jesus has to say about titles, honors, and fineries of religious leaders is addressed to his disciples, not to those in religious authority.  The latter group would not listen to such criticism.  There is hope that Jesus' followers themselves might heed these words, but as anyone with functioning sensory systems knows that sadly these words of Jesus will go unheeded throughout history to our own times and places here and now.  

Everyday we see clergy seeking political power and influence in seats of privilege.  We hear clerics state how humbled they are to be invited to be guest preacher at a church whilst broadcasting such humility far and wide on social media.  The endless shopping for religious garb and fineries that keep up with the titles of privilege and power sought by priest and pastor carries on as if these words of Jesus were never spoken at all.  

Meanwhile, Jesus went about wearing simple garb healing people of their infirmities, freeing them from the demons that plague them, and feeding them at table.  No media train, no self-promotion, and in fact a running from crowds and attention highlight Jesus' work in the world.  That the words and example of Jesus have little actual impact on the Christian Church is all too obvious and scandalous.  But his life and words are still there for those who seek the authentic way of religion.     

Disingenuous Questions

Gospel:  Matthew 22: 34-40

Today's Gospel portion seems ordinary on the surface.  The Pharisees ask Jesus a question about the law, and Jesus answers it.  No controversy ensues, and it moves on to the next scene.  But there is more to this passage than meets the eye.  The Pharisees approach Jesus because they saw that he had rebuked the Sadducees, their bitter enemies.  They see in Jesus a potential ally, and so they approach him with a question about the law to see if he might in fact be one of them.  

Their question about the law is not a sincere one.  There is not a desire to know the truth about the matter.  The question serves only to see whether Jesus agrees with them or not.  As it happens, a great many Pharisees would in fact agree with Jesus' answer to the question.  To love God above all else and to love one's neighbor is an answer many rabbis and scholars of the law would agree as the foundations of the entire Jewish law.  But the answer is incidental in this case.

This passage serves as a caution for us.  Do we approach Jesus with questions because we sincerely want to know the answer, or do we approach Jesus with a desire for him to agree with us?  How much of religion is about creating images of God and theologies to support our preconceived positions!  Yet, authentic religion is about the quest for wisdom and truth that informs and shapes our lives to deeper commitments of mercy and love for others.   

Rethinking the Story

Gospel: Matthew 22: 1-14

We have been given a certain way of thinking about this parable where the Jewish people are maligned for their response to the king and they are replaced with other people who are brought to the wedding banquet.  But then we have this poor man without a wedding garment who finds himself unexpectedly in a wedding and perhaps unable financially to even have a wedding garment, but is now cast out of the hall for this lack of proper attire.  What are we to make of it all?

First, the story is odd in that it is highly unusual for a king's wedding to go unattended or ignored.  Those seeking favor from the king and those looking for social influence attended such functions for those reasons alone.  And no king would go about the byways seeking for any old slob to attend his wedding banquet.  And how could we fault this poor man without a wedding garment when he was forced to attend on such short notice?

This parable is addressed to the religious leaders of Jesus' day.  Perhaps what Jesus is saying here is that we may have been thinking wrongly about God for a very long time.  Maybe that's why people are not coming to the religious rites - i.e. the wedding banquet.  Instead of seeing God as a temperamental king, we might imagine God differently and arrive at different conclusions and outcomes than we have had in the world of religion.  Maybe that lesson is for religious leaders of all times and places...