A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house

 Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these parables, that He departed from there.  When He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, "Where did this Man get this wisdom and these mighty works?  Is this not the carpenter's son?  Is not His mother called Mary?  And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas?  And His sisters, are they not all with us?  Where then did this Man get all these things?"  So they were offended at Him.  But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house."  Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.

- Matthew 13:53-58

We are in chapter 13 of Matthew's Gospel,  in which parables are introduced into Jesus' preaching (beginning with this reading from a week ago).  In yesterday's reading, He taught His disciples,  "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.  Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.  Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind, which, when it was full, they drew to shore; and they sat down and gathered the good into vessels, but threw the bad away.  So it will be at the end of the age.  The angels will come forth, separate the wicked from among the just, and cast them into the furnace of fire.  There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth."  Jesus said to them, "Have you understood all these things?"  They said to Him, "Yes, Lord."  Then He said to them, "Therefore every scribe instructed concerning the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure things new and old." 

 Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these parables, that He departed from there.  When He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, "Where did this Man get this wisdom and these mighty works?  Is this not the carpenter's son?  Is not His mother called Mary?  And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas?  And His sisters, are they not all with us?  Where then did this Man get all these things?"  So they were offended at Him.  But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house."  Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.  In our recent readings, Jesus has been preaching in Capernaum, both to crowds gathered on the shore, and in the house belonging to Peter's family, which has become a type of headquarters for His ministry.  In today's reading, He goes to His hometown of Nazareth in Galilee, where He was raised.  My study bible remarks on the double response of both astonishment and rejection, which occurs frequently in those who encounter Christ (see for instance Luke 11:14-16, John 9:16).  It notes that His being rejected in His own country fulfills the rejection of the Old Testament prophets such as Elijah and Elisha, foreshadowing Jesus' rejection by the whole Jewish nation at His trial before Pilate (John 19:14-15).  That a prophet is not without honor except in his own country is mentioned in all four Gospels (see also Mark 6:4, Luke 4:24, John 4:44).

In the recent chapters of Matthew, rejection has been a theme in Jesus' ministry.  That is, Jesus has begun to encounter the open hostility of the leadership, and their desire to find ways to destroy Him as an enemy (see, for example, this reading from chapter 12).   In chapter 11, He's railed against particular cities in which His "mighty works" have been done, but which have not accepted His ministry (11:20-24).  Here, the rejection in His hometown of Nazareth gives an iconic flavor to the rejection He will experience of the nation (in the body of the leadership) leading to His Crucifixion.  That the saying about the rejection of prophets in their own country is mentioned in all the Gospels gives us a sense of the importance this fact plays in our understanding of the gospel message and how the Kingdom "breaks through" in the world.  It shakes things up.  It doesn't create automatic order, in some sense.  Rather, there is division.  In chapter 10, when Jesus sends the Twelve out on their first apostolic mission, He begins by warning them of persecutions to come, telling them that He is sending them out "as sheep in the midst of wolves" (10:16-26).   Nevertheless, He encourages them to fearless witness.  He adds, however, "Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword."  He speaks of division, even among the most intimate of relationships.  He tells them, "He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it" (10:34-39).  The acceptance of the reality and presence of this Kingdom involves a struggle, even within ourselves.  The worldly is transformed by the experience and choice for the Kingdom, but that's not a simple nor an easy process.  In the experience in His hometown of Nazareth, "the worldly" rejects the presence of the Kingdom.   That is, the expectations and understanding of His neighbors of who Jesus is, the setting in which and by which they know Him and His family, is something which prompts them to take offense at this new revelation in Him.  It doesn't matter what mighty works He does or has done.  It doesn't matter that He displays an extraordinary and astonishing wisdom they don't expect.  He does not conform to their expectations of Him based on what they think they know, and His place in their town.  The astonishing work of this Kingdom will break boundaries set by expectation and previous understanding.  The work of prophecy is always about recalling people back to God.  Throughout the Old Testament, the prophets come to tell the people they've forgotten the One to whom they owe loyalty, their Creator, the One who gives them every good thing, "every good and perfect gift" (James 1:17).  Jesus comes to call His people back to "the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning," as St. James writes.  To do this is to both find our lives and lose them.  We exchange a worldly perspective for the one we're given in this place Christ calls us back to.  A "worldly" perspective in this case is like the one the people in Nazareth claim as true:  the one without the understanding of what else is present, what more there is to life.  It denies the presence of the Kingdom which is also among us and within us.  The struggle for choice is always with us, as Jesus so eloquently and vociferously tells us.  A prophet's words aren't welcomed in His own country -- they shake up the order, and call people out of their understanding to something greater and bigger and requiring change to invite in and accommodate.  Change isn't easy and it's not simple.  Repentance, changing one's mind, is a lifelong learning curve.  But God's love will always lead us to expansion, like the new wine that needs new wineskins.  Faith is a journey, a way, a path.  We are always called back toward the Father of lights.