Chosen People

Gospel: Luke 4: 24-30

Human beings have an ego problem, individual and collective.  In the category of the latter, we imagine ourselves a privileged species in the whole of the universe, singularly made by God, singularly sentient - the only one in the cosmos.  Not content with that, we then imagine that a particular race or religion is the chosen people of God, the one true community of God's elect where salvation alone exists, whom God loves exclusively.  These ideas have done untold harm to humanity and the earth.

However, in today's Gospel Jesus goes to the synagogue in his home town to refute this idea.  He reminds them that God's gifts of mercy have extended to people outside the privileged race and religion of Israel.  He calls to mind the fact that all people are made in God's image and likeness, and thus all are loved by God.  God's mercy and love are not just for one people but for all.  That we find this message offensive reflects how far we are from the teaching and example of Jesus.

We all want to feel special and privileged, and in so doing we often demean and harm others in the process.  Not content with being loved by God as all people are, we create tiers of heaven and castes on earth that only seek to exclude others and giving us justification to harm other people.  In reminding people that everyone is loved of God and that all have received mercy, we face the same violence against ourselves as Jesus did.  That is the Lenten journey.