Ez 17, 22-24 / 2Cor 5, 6-10 / Mk 4,26-34
In
the reading from Mark Jesus speaks to us of images of the kingdom of God. The “Kingdom of God” was Jesus’ central teaching. It’s what happens when we allow ourselves to
do God’s will – what things begin to look like when we allow ourselves to do
God’s love. The images Jesus uses to
describe the arrival of the kingdom have to do with growth – growth happening
of itself. We just look on and see the
growth happening – just as we see a stalk of grain growing. First, the blade appears, then the ear, and
then the full grain in the ear – all is ready for the harvest.
These
are all images of hope. The kingdom of
God is a life lived in hope – where God truly is at work bringing about change
and growth – and we are witnesses to what God is accomplishing. But we must be honest here with
ourselves. Do our own images of hope
faithfully reflect Jesus’ images of hope?
In his images God is bringing about what God wants, and we are the
onlookers. Let’s honestly reflect here.
I
wonder what images come to mind when we hear the words of Psalm 50: “To the upright I will show the saving power
of God.” What do we imagine God saving
us from? Much more importantly, what do
we want God to save us from? What do
those images look like?
I
am sure each one of us here has had those moments when in a bad, bad situation
we pray to God to save us from it – to get us out of it. That’s only normal for us. We’re in a bad – a threatening place and we
want out – to overcome the threat. We
want to be on top of the threat – to have it somehow behind us. We want God to make us safe, secure.
Let’s
go deeper. What really threatens
us? What makes us feel unsafe,
insecure? I want to answer for myself –
and you can see for yourself. I want to
say what makes me feel unsafe and threatened is anything that might undermine
my sense of my own well-being – my health, my social and economic position in
the community, and my self-regard before others, including God and church. I want God to protect me – my body, my goods,
my reputation.
But
when I am honest with myself and my own life, I must say I have never experienced
God working that way. That’s what I want
God to do, but honest reflection leads me to say I don’t think God does work
that way. I have had a false image of
hope. This false image has much too much
of me at work – my images of success and well-being – of what is good and bad
for me and others. In this false hope I
have ceased to be the onlooker at what God is doing and have become the
orchestrator of what I think God should be doing.
Further
reflection and prayer tells me God did not protect Jesus’ body, nor his goods,
nor his reputation. Jesus did not run
from the cross nor come down from it. I
do not see God working that way in the lives of those who tried to follow Jesus
closely – Peter and Paul, all the other apostles and disciples. Nor does God seem to protect in that way the
lives of those seeking to follow Jesus today.
Think of the many martyrs who have died just in our lifetime, close by –
the nuns and missionary workers in El Salvador, the archbishop of San Salvador,
the Jesuit martyrs at the University of Central America, Sister Dorothy Stang
in Brazil – and many, many more all over the world.
Jesus’
life and his ongoing life in his followers – these provide true images of
hope. And what signs of growth do we see
actually happening in their lives? How
do their lives yield up blade and ear and full grain – signs of God being at
work? Following Jesus’ parable, let us
become simple, honest onlookers. And
what do we see? We see people being
freed or saved from the fears they have for themselves – for their bodies,
their goods, their reputation and self-esteem.
We do see people being saved from self-preoccupation and even from the
fear of death. We do see people being
freed up for a full life and a fully caring life with and for others.
God
does not work the magic we want. God
does work the wonders, the miracles we see in the life of Jesus and his
followers. They are works of
transformation – of conversion, that radical change which God alone works in
our lives. And God is working now to
grow the mustard seed of our lives into large branches where others may delight
to thrive and flourish. But we must look
– look for God’s action in our lives!
Let
us hope in God!
Fr. Pat Earl, SJ
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