Then they spat in His face and beat Him; and others struck Him with the palms of their hands, saying, "Prophesy to us, Christ! Who is the one who struck You?"

 

 And those who had laid hold of Jesus led Him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled.  But Peter followed Him at a distance to the high priest's courtyard.  And he went in and sat with the servants to see the end.  Now the chief priests, the elders, and all the councils sought false testimony against Jesus to put Him to death, but found none.  Even though many false witnesses came forward, they found none.  But at last two false witnesses came forward and said, "This fellow said, 'I am able to destroy the temple of God and to build it in three days.'"  And the high priest arose and said to Him, "Do You answer nothing?  What is it these men testify against You?"  But Jesus kept silent.  And the high priest answered and said to Him, "I put You under oath by the living God:  Tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God!"  Jesus said to him, "It is as you said.  Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven."  Then the high priest tore his clothes, saying, "He has spoken blasphemy!  What further need do we have of witnesses?  Look, now you have heard His blasphemy!  What do you think?"  They answered and said, "He is deserving of death."  Then they spat in His face and beat Him; and others struck Him with the palms of their hands, saying, "Prophesy to us, Christ!  Who is the one who struck You?"

 

- Matthew 26:57-68 

 

Yesterday we read that while Jesus was still speaking to His disciples in the garden of Gethsemane, behold, Judas, one of the twelve, with a great multitude with swords and clubs, came from the chief priests and elders of the people.  Now His betrayer had given them a sign, saying, "Whomever I kiss, He is the One; seize Him."  Immediately he went up to Jesus and said, "Greetings, Rabbi!" and kissed Him.  But Jesus said to him, "Friend, why have you come?"  Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and took Him.  And suddenly, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword, struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear.  But Jesus said to him, "Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.  Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels?  How then could the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must happen thus?"  In that hour Jesus said to the multitudes, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs to take Me?  I sat daily with you, teaching in the temple, and you did not seize Me.  But all this was done that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled."  Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled.

 

  And those who had laid hold of Jesus led Him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled.  But Peter followed Him at a distance to the high priest's courtyard.  And he went in and sat with the servants to see the end.  Now the chief priests, the elders, and all the councils sought false testimony against Jesus to put Him to death, but found none.  Even though many false witnesses came forward, they found none.  But at last two false witnesses came forward and said, "This fellow said, 'I am able to destroy the temple of God and to build it in three days.'"  My study Bible explains that the people misunderstand the Lord's words which are reported in John 2:19-21.  It notes that some Jews believed that the temple would be destroyed and a new one built by the Messiah.  

 And those who had laid hold of Jesus led Him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled.  But Peter followed Him at a distance to the high priest's courtyard.  And he went in and sat with the servants to see the end.  Now the chief priests, the elders, and all the councils sought false testimony against Jesus to put Him to death, but found none.  Even though many false witnesses came forward, they found none.  But at last two false witnesses came forward and said, "This fellow said, 'I am able to destroy the temple of God and to build it in three days.'"  And the high priest arose and said to Him, "Do You answer nothing?  What is it these men testify against You?"  But Jesus kept silent.  And the high priest answered and said to Him, "I put You under oath by the living God:  Tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God!"  Jesus said to him, "It is as you said.  Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven."  Then the high priest tore his clothes, saying, "He has spoken blasphemy!  What further need do we have of witnesses?  Look, now you have heard His blasphemy!  What do you think?"  They answered and said, "He is deserving of death."  Then they spat in His face and beat Him; and others struck Him with the palms of their hands, saying, "Prophesy to us, Christ!  Who is the one who struck You?"   Here Jesus quotes from Psalm 110 and Daniel 7:13.  In so doing, He confesses that He is the Messiah; that is fully Man and fully God.  My study Bible explains that this is so, because only a divine One could sit at the right hand of the Power, sharing authority with the Father.  This statement, it notes, was clearly understood by the high priest to be a claim of equality with God the Father.  For a mere human being to claim this was punishable by death (Leviticus 24:16).  But Christ is not a mere human being only, and therefore His declaration of equality is not blasphemy.  

It's interesting that, as my study Bible notes, the high priest understands clearly what Christ is saying, that He has claimed equality with God the Father.  These educated men, steeped in the Scriptures, understand this implication from Christ.  But their conclusion is the opposite of the truth, the foundational reality of Christ's assertion is dismissed out of hand.  He must be a blasphemer.  It asks the question of us, what is it that can mislead highly intelligent and educated people to a conclusion antithetical to truth?  Of course, for those who are faithful to Christ and embrace His teachings, this truth about Him is a given.  We who have struggled with our faith, and come to know Christ -- and to continue to grow in our communion with Him -- have found this truth to be so.  It is, indeed, at least as experiential (if not more so) as it is an intellectual or other type of process.  So what is missing from the mind and heart of the high priest that He can draw this conclusion, that Christ is simply a blasphemer?  Has He missed Christ's own devotion to the Scriptures and to God?  Has Christ behaved like a person who has no contact with reality?  Is He out of His mind?  Does Christ have an army He's prepared to use to fight the powers that be, or does He even use some kind of worldly authority to do so?  No, Christ doesn't come with any of that, nor does He claim such authority.  But He is armed with His gospel, He is armed with His truth, and He doesn't make apologies for it.  Sometimes that is enough to render a person an object of abject hatred and outrage.  Of course, in the next chapter, St. Matthew tells us that Pilate, another man of worldly power, understands the leaders of the Sanhedrin well.  Pilate will know that these leaders hand Jesus over to him because of envy (Matthew 27:19).  It's worth asking ourselves why intelligent and educated men -- those responsible for the spiritual welfare of Israel -- can still make such a colossal error in terms of discerning the truth about Jesus, because as the Gospels always do, it's an opportunity to learn for ourselves.  It's an opportunity to think about how and why we -- as perhaps intelligent, educated, and capable people -- might make the same kind of error, indulge in the same kind of blindness, and incur the same condemnation.  Because these men know better, because they are violating their own rules of procedure by having a night trial, because the witnesses fail to confirm any wrongdoing, we can only conclude that this is a deliberate blindness.  The protection of their own positions is no doubt dearest in their hearts above all else.  What we find is a repeated failure to put the love of God first.  There isn't a concern for fairness or justice or righteousness; only a concern to rid themselves of a threat to their places, and One who has the favor of the people.  But all of this included in the Gospels gives us things to ponder as we are to check our own tendencies to confirm our own biases, or take refuge in a blind self-righteousness.  They are a cautionary tale, as our own assurance of righteousness based on position or appearance, rather than substance, can mislead us badly.  If we aren't to be like these men, we must always be awake and alert to our own tendencies to find justification for selfish and unjust behavior.  John's Gospel tells us that "even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God" (John 12:42-43).  Humility and love of God go hand in hand, and to check the state of our own hearts means emphasizing these two things; it's what our faith is all about, and what is missing from these men.  For Who stands before them and what they are doing they cannot truly see, because they choose not to.  It's our self-chosen blindness that may lead to our greatest blunders.  From that point of condemnation, they debase themselves even more with their behavior:  Then they spat in His face and beat Him; and others struck Him with the palms of their hands, saying, "Prophesy to us, Christ!  Who is the one who struck You?"  

 

 

The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath

 

 Now it happened that He went through the grainfields on the Sabbath; and as they went His disciples began to pluck the heads of grain.  And the Pharisees said to Him, "Look, why do they do what is not lawful on the Sabbath?"  But He said to them, "Have you never read what David did when he was in need and hungry, he and those with him:  how he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the showbread, which is not lawful to eat except for the priests, and also gave some to those who were with him?"  And He said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.  Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath."

And He entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a withered hand.  So they watched Him closely, whether He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him.  And He said to the man who had the withered hand, "Step forward."  Then He said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?"  But they kept silent.  And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."  And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.  Then the Pharisees went out and immediately plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him.

 

- Mark 2:23—3:6 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus went out again by the sea; and all the multitude came to Him, and He taught them.  As He passed by, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax office.  And He said to him, "Follow Me."  So he arose and followed Him.  Now it happened, as He was dining in Levi's house, that many tax collectors and sinners also sat together with Jesus and His disciples; for there were many, and they followed Him.  And when the scribes and Pharisees saw Him eating with the tax collectors and sinners, they said to His disciples, "How is it that He eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners?"  When Jesus heard it, He said to them, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.  I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance."  The disciples of John and of the Pharisees were fasting.  Then they came and said to Him, "Why do the disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?"  And Jesus said to them, "Can the friends of the bridegroom fast while the bridegroom is with them?  As long as they have the bridegroom with them they cannot fast.  But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days.  No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; or else the new piece pulls away from the old, and the tear is made worse.  And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine bursts the wineskins, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined.  But new wine must be put into new wineskins."

 

 Now it happened that He went through the grainfields on the Sabbath; and as they went His disciples began to pluck the heads of grain.  And the Pharisees said to Him, "Look, why do they do what is not lawful on the Sabbath?"  But He said to them, "Have you never read what David did when he was in need and hungry, he and those with him:  how he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the showbread, which is not lawful to eat except for the priests, and also gave some to those who were with him?"  And He said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.  Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath."  It is the Sabbath, which means that work is prohibited.  But Christ's disciples pluck the heads of grain because they are hungry.  So, the Pharisees, concerned as they are with the traditions built up around the Law, question Jesus about what His disciples are doing.  Jesus points out a blameless violation of the Sabbath which was done by David and his men.  Taking refuge with the priest Ahimelech, they are in need and hungry, but there is nothing to eat but the showbread (consecrated or holy bread) which was meant only for the priests.  Effectively they find means whereby David and his men may eat this bread (see 1 Samuel 21:1-6).  Christ stresses they were in need and hungry, emphasizing that the true aim of the Law was meant to be care for human beings.  This He declares when He says, "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.  Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath."

 

 And He entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a withered hand.  So they watched Him closely, whether He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him.  And He said to the man who had the withered hand, "Step forward."  Then He said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?"  But they kept silent.  My study Bible explains that once again, we are encountering certain traditions the Pharisees had built up around the Law.  According to these traditions, healing was considered work, and therefore not permissible on the Sabbath.   They believed that they served God by zealously keeping these peripheral traditions, my study Bible says, but this legalism made them insensitive to God's mercy.

 

And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."  And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.  Then the Pharisees went out and immediately plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him. My study Bible comments that righteous anger is a natural human emotion experienced in the face of sin.  It notes that while there is anger that is certainly sinful (Matthew 5:22), there is also anger that is God-given and proper to humanity (Psalm 4:4).  Christ's anger here is in response to people who profess God, but have such hardness in their hearts that they cannot rejoice in the healing of one of their brothers.  

Let us note once again (in keeping with yesterday's reading and commentary) how the themes of healing are especially strong in our recent passages.  In yesterday's reading (see above), Jesus called Himself a Physician, and in addition to His many healing miracles which He's already become known for at this early stage in Mark's Gospel, He declares sin to be a kind of sickness which is treatable by healing.  He declared to the scribes and Pharisees, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance."  In today's reading, we again get the emphasis on healing, but this notion of healing is again expanded into other forms of care for humanity, for human need.  This also extends to His identity as divine Son who has become a human being.  Taking each of these factors together, we are given the compassionate identity of Jesus Christ as a whole, because as Lord, He's telling us (and the Pharisees) about the entire purpose of the Law and the Torah, the teachings for the people of God as given by God.  The purpose of this faith is for healing, for the wholeness of human beings, to give us guidance on what is ultimately good for us.  Its essence (and the character of Christ, as Jesus exemplifies in His Incarnation as human being) is compassion, mercy, grace, love.  This is not to say that there are no "rules," there is no good and bad, no discernment necessary, or no sin.  But it is to teach us what the primary understanding of God and God's work in the world, and interaction with human beings and the rest of creation, is all about.  Jesus makes this clear when He tells the Pharisees quite bluntly, "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.  Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath."  He is at once declaring that the aims of the Law are for the good of people, for healing; essentially to serve humankind.  And He is moreover declaring that He, as Son of Man, through His Incarnation, is Lord of the Sabbath.  As a human being, He has known our suffering, and becomes fully Lord as Son of Man.  When He heals the man with the withered hand, Jesus not only expresses this in the flesh before them, but is in fact  declaring that it is God who creates hands for working, and He as God declares His healing work to be appropriate for the Sabbath.  This incenses the Pharisees, who proceed to plot with those in close connection to Rome (to the court of Herod the "king" of Galilee), to destroy Him.  Too many people who misunderstand faith are quick to label Christianity oppressive, to consider that its values are difficult and condemnatory.  But all of Christ's actions express the opposite, and declare it to be otherwise.  Everything He expresses, even a calling to repentance, must be seen in the light of this healing and His declaration that the Sabbath was made for man, and the Son of man the Lord of the Sabbath.  For, in God, all things work for our benefit.  St. Paul writes, "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose" (Romans 8:28).  This is today's Gospel message, for such a message only becomes possible through the God who loves us do much that God became one of us to suffer even as we do.  He fully reveals that He is the Lord who made the Sabbath for human beings.

 

 

 

The Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath

 

 Now it happened on the second Sabbath after the first that He went through the grainfields.  And His disciples plucked the heads of grain and ate them, rubbing them in their hands.  And some of the Pharisees said to them, "Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?"  But Jesus answering them said, "Have you not even read this, what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him:  how he went into the house of God, took and ate the showbread, and also gave some to those with him, which is not lawful for any but the priests to eat?"  And He said to them, "The Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath."  

Now it happened on another Sabbath, also, that He entered the synagogue and taught.  And a man was there whose right hand was withered.  So the scribes and Pharisees watched Him closely, whether He would heal on the Sabbath, that they might find an accusation against Him.  But He knew their thoughts, and said to the man who had the withered hand, "Arise and stand here."  And he arose and stood.  Then Jesus said to them, "I will ask you one thing:  Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy?"  And when He had looked around at them all, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."  And he did so, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.  But they were filled with rage, and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.

 

- Luke 6:1-11 

 

 On Saturday, we read that after the healing of a paralytic, He went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax office.  And He said to him, "Follow Me."  So he left all, rose up, and followed Him.  Then Levi gave Him a great feast in his own house.  And there were a great number of tax collectors and others who sat down with them.  And their scribes and the Pharisees complained against His disciples, saying, "Why do You eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.  I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance."  Then they said to Him, "Why do the disciples of John fast often and make prayers, and likewise those of the Pharisees, but Yours eat and drink?"  And He said to them, "Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast while the bridegroom is with them?  But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them; then they will fast in those days."  Then He spoke a parable to them:  "No one puts a piece from a new garment on an old one; otherwise the new makes a tear, and also the piece that was taken out of the new does not match the old.  And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine will burst the wineskins and be spilled, and the wineskins will be ruined.  But new wine must be put into new wineskins, and both are preserved.  And no one, having drunk old wine, immediately desires new; for he says, 'The old is better.'"

 

  Now it happened on the second Sabbath after the first that He went through the grainfields.  And His disciples plucked the heads of grain and ate them, rubbing them in their hands.  And some of the Pharisees said to them, "Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?"  But Jesus answering them said, "Have you not even read this, what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him:  how he went into the house of God, took and ate the showbread, and also gave some to those with him, which is not lawful for any but the priests to eat?"  And He said to them, "The Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath."    My study Bible explains that the second Sabbath after the first is a term that was used when a Jewish feast immediately followed the normal Sabbath, for a feast was also called a Sabbath. It says that according to St. Ambrose, the term "second Sabbath" gives an image of the new covenant (see yesterday's reading, above, and Christ's teaching about new wineskins to hold new wine), and the eternal resurrection.  The first Sabbath indicates the Law, while the second Sabbath indicates the gospel that follows it.  Under the new covenant, the food which was at one time not lawful for anyone but the priests to eat is now freely given to all by the Lord of the Sabbath.  David prefigured this when he gave the showbread . . . to those with him.

Now it happened on another Sabbath, also, that He entered the synagogue and taught.  And a man was there whose right hand was withered.  So the scribes and Pharisees watched Him closely, whether He would heal on the Sabbath, that they might find an accusation against Him.  But He knew their thoughts, and said to the man who had the withered hand, "Arise and stand here."  And he arose and stood.  Then Jesus said to them, "I will ask you one thing:  Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy?"  And when He had looked around at them all, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."  And he did so, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.  But they were filled with rage, and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.  My study Bible comments that, according to certain traditions that the scribes and Pharisees had built up around the Law, healing was considered to be work, and therefore it was not permissible on the Sabbath. They believed that they served God by zealously keeping these peripheral traditions, but this legalism made them insensitive to God's mercy.

 

 In the tradition of the Orthodox, there is what is called in Greek economia (οἰκονομία).  This is a theological term, and, as one can see, it is related to the evolution of the word "economy."  In Greek (especially ancient Greek) "ecos" (οικος) means house.  Economia was the running of the household, with whatever its holdings and assets were, and their proper use and balance.  The word for "steward" in the New Testament texts (such as Christ's parable of the Unjust Steward; Luke 16:1-13) is economos/οικονομος.  From these beginnings, we can see where the modern use of the word "economy" comes from.  But in theological terms, economy (or economia/οικονομια) is a term that means using the proper measure of things, especially as any form of law or principle must be used as tempered by mercy, and this is particularly understood in light of experience.  That is, how things actually work in practice and affect human beings.  So, if we are to examine the role of the zealous scribes and Pharisees in both stories today, what we find is an excess of legalism, where the theory or letter of the law trumps the care of human beings.  Jesus asks the question, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy?"  What He is doing is asking these men to consider what the spirit of the Law -- and indeed, the Spirit of God -- is all about.  Where is God's mercy?  More than that, where is God's aim for doing good, and for the proper care and health of human beings?  Which serves God more, refusing to heal, or to heal on the Sabbath?  Their zealotry for the Law, which they considered the highest service to God, is actually in this case working against God's purposes, against the spirit and purpose with which the Law is given.  This is where we consider the term economia or economy.  In practice, where does God's mercy call us?  In other words, is this really working out the way we would understand that God intended, for the good of human beings, for all involved, and for community?  Often, economia comes into play where there are things we just don't know, but we must do the best we can, and especially in light of practice and empirical observation.  It may very well be to make rules and theories that seem to serve the good, but when we see people actually harmed or hurt by them, then we have to reconsider and allow for mercy.   In modern times, this is often the problem presented by abstraction, or theoretical thinking that becomes some sort of  a rule one is bound to follow.  One example of this would be the concept of "tough love," wherein out of true concern or care for someone who has a problem, one might cut them off from what they want; for example, refusing more money and support for a person caught in addiction as a means of getting them to go to treatment.  While love and care must be always a principle to uphold, what that looks like may not always be determined to be one particular image; sometimes what one conceives of as help is simply infantilizing, deepening a problem.  At other times, one can go too far with "tough love," refusing help and support from someone who is on a good path but needs some assistance and encouragement in the struggle to move forward.  Once again, this is also a concern in terms of thinking about what creates community.  In a world that is saturated with theories and "rules," economy in this sense is a word we should all learn, and a pattern or habit we should all learn to follow.  How's that working out? might be a question we all need to consider when we follow the latest vogue in how we think social justice will work, or how we define what truly helps a person/people or not.  For without economia, we don't truly have compassion at all, and that is where Jesus Christ comes in.  For as He says, "The Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath."   That is, the One who has shared our griefs and sorrows and injustice and difficulties is the One who is Lord of the Sabbath, who can truly teach us what it means to serve God and the care of our fellow human beings and our communities.  We need to care for others by truly looking to see the effects we've caused, no matter how good we think the rules are that we follow, nor how well-intentioned we are.  This is especially true in a media-saturated world awash with theory and abstraction, and where it is easy to overlook the effects of progress on the poor and the powerless!  Economia should be the arbiter of our counsel, the temper of our zeal.  For even when we think we are doing good, we must not overlook the fruits we produce.

 

 

The baptism of John -- was it from heaven or from men?

 

 Then they came again to Jerusalem.  And as He was walking in the temple, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders came to Him.  And they said to Him, "By what authority are You doing these things?  And who gave You this authority to do these things?"  But Jesus answered and said to them, "I also will ask you one question; then answer Me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things:  The baptism of John -- was it from heaven or from men?  Answer Me."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "If we say, 'From heaven,' He will say, 'Why then did you not believe him?'  But if we say, 'From men'" -- they feared the people, for all counted John to have been a prophet indeed.  So they answered and said to Jesus, "We do not know."  And Jesus answered and said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things."

 

- Mark 11:27-33 

 

Yesterday we read that the next day after Christ's Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem, when they had come out from Bethany, He was hungry.  And seeing from afar a fig tree having leaves, He went to see if perhaps He would find something on it.  When He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.  In response Jesus said to it, "Let no one eat fruit from you ever again."  And His disciples heard it.  So they came to Jerusalem.  Then Jesus went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.  And He would not allow anyone to carry wares through the temple.  Then He taught, saying to them, "Is it not written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations'?  But you have made it a 'den of thieves.'  And the scribes and chief priests heard it and sought how they might destroy Him; for they feared Him, because all the people were astonished at His teaching.  When evening had come, He went out of the city.  Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots.  And Peter, remembering, said to Him, "Rabbi, look!  The fig tree which You cursed has withered away."  So Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God.  For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.  Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.  And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.  But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses." 

 Then they came again to Jerusalem.  And as He was walking in the temple, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders came to Him.  And they said to Him, "By what authority are You doing these things?  And who gave You this authority to do these things?"  But Jesus answered and said to them, "I also will ask you one question; then answer Me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things:  The baptism of John -- was it from heaven or from men?  Answer Me."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "If we say, 'From heaven,' He will say, 'Why then did you not believe him?'  But if we say, 'From men'" -- they feared the people, for all counted John to have been a prophet indeed.  So they answered and said to Jesus, "We do not know."  And Jesus answered and said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things."   My study Bible explains that, as Christ is not a Levitical priest, the chief priests, scribes, and elders challenge His authority to cleanse the temple.  As Christ is careful not to reveal Himself to scoffers, it says, He confounds them with a different question about John.  Both the elders' question and Christ's question require the same answer, and therefore it would lead a person to confess that Jesus has come from heaven.  By not answering them directly, Christ teaches us not to answer people who come asking about holy things with a malicious intent. 

Today's reading raises the central question of authority.  The chief priests, scribes, and elders demand to know what authority Jesus has to cleanse the temple (see yesterday's reading, above).  He has no "inherited" authority such as the lineage of the Levitical priests.  But Jesus makes a comparison through His own question:  through whom did John the Baptist have authority to preach and to baptize?  John also had no "earthly" authority for what He did.  But Jesus brings in the central question:  Was it from heaven or from men?  In other words, was John the Baptist granted authority in some worldly or earthly way, from a human institution, to do what He did?  Nevertheless, could they say that this authority by which John baptized did not come from heaven?  The religious leaders will not answer His question.  Their fear is more of the people who are present for the Passover feast, for all counted John to have been a prophet indeed.  So, we must ask ourselves, how did the people count John to be a prophet?  In the stories of the Old Testament prophets, they also were so often individuals who spoke up against the establishment of the powers-that-be, in opposition to the religious authorities in place, and to the "favored" prophets of kings.  How is a prophet recognized?  In a modern world, and throughout Christian history, saints have played similar roles, most often gathering recognition through the laity long before sainthood is officially a declaration of a religious authority.  The role of the prophets was like the one John played, they came to call the people back to God -- recalling God's word and authority when human institutions had strayed from that.  As in the parable of the Wicked Vinedressers which Christ will tell during this Passover feast in Jerusalem in Mark 12:1-12, the prophets are sent by God to call us to the proper fruits of the spirit, to remind us of our proper relationship to God, and especially the religious leadership.  They are sent by the vineyard owner, who is God the Father, who has now sent His Son, Christ.  In this sense is John the Baptist's ministry also "from heaven."  It opens up the question we must all ask ourselves, "What is 'of men,' and what is 'of heaven'?"  How do we know which is which?  How do we know what is saintly and what is not?  How may we discern the ways in which God calls us?  The great question posed here to Christ is one of authority, and yet there have been so many signs of heavenly authority working through Christ already.  Those who ask this question clearly choose not to see that which interferes with their own authority, that which they do not want to see -- as did many leaders before them to the prophets who were sent earlier.  Jesus teaches us also, as my study Bible notes, that we should not respond to people who ask with a vicious intent.  If there is a request by someone who does not in any way want to know the truth, especially a religious or spiritual truth, then one is not under obligation to respond.  Jesus' question regarding John the Baptist exposes the religious authorities' own bad faith; they are unwilling to answer truly because of the multiple mixed motivations here, and the ulterior motives involved.  They are afraid of the people, who count John the Baptist to have been a prophet, but their loyalty is not to God.  Let us turn to Christ in prayer so that we, also, may stand in the truth and find the discernment He asks of us.  For how will we know what is from heaven and what is "from men?"  This is why we place all things in the hands of God, including our own motivations and desires, to find where God would lead us.

The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone

 Then He began to tell the people this parable:  "A certain man planted a vineyard, leased it to vinedressers, and went into a far country for a long time.  Now at vintage-time he sent a servant to the vinedressers, that they might give him some of the fruit of the vineyard.  But the vinedressers beat him and sent him away empty-handed.  Again he sent another servant; and they beat him also, treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed.  And again he sent a third; and they wounded him also and cast him out.  Then the owner of the vineyard said, 'What shall I do?  I will send my beloved son.  Probably they will respect him when they see him.'  But when the vinedressers saw him, they reasoned among themselves, saying, 'This is the heir.  Come, let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours.'  So they cast him out of the vineyard and killed him.  Therefore what will the owner of the vineyard do to them?  He will come and destroy those vinedressers and give the vineyard to others."  And when they heard it they said, "Certainly not!"  Then He looked at them and said, "What then is this that is written:

'The stone which the builders rejected
Has become the chief cornerstone'?

Whoever falls on that stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder."

And the chief priests and the scribes that very hour sought to lay hands on Him, but they feared the people -- for they knew He had spoken this parable against them.

- Luke 20:9-19

On Saturday we read that, as Jesus taught the people in the temple in the days after His cleansing of it, and preached the gospel, that the chief priests and the scribes, together with the elders, confronted Him and spoke to Him, saying, "Tell us, by what authority are You doing these things?  Or who is he who gave You this authority?"  But He answered and said to them, "I also will ask you one thing, and answer Me:  The baptism of John -- was it from heaven or from men?"  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "If we say, 'From heaven,' He will say, 'Why then did you not believe him?'  But if we say, 'From men,' all the people will stone us, for they are persuaded that John was a prophet."  So they answered that they did not know where it was from.  And Jesus said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things."

 Then He began to tell the people this parable:  "A certain man planted a vineyard, leased it to vinedressers, and went into a far country for a long time.  Now at vintage-time he sent a servant to the vinedressers, that they might give him some of the fruit of the vineyard.  But the vinedressers beat him and sent him away empty-handed.  Again he sent another servant; and they beat him also, treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed.  And again he sent a third; and they wounded him also and cast him out.  Then the owner of the vineyard said, 'What shall I do?  I will send my beloved son.  Probably they will respect him when they see him.'  But when the vinedressers saw him, they reasoned among themselves, saying, 'This is the heir.  Come, let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours.'  So they cast him out of the vineyard and killed him.  Therefore what will the owner of the vineyard do to them?  He will come and destroy those vinedressers and give the vineyard to others."  We recall that the chief priests, scribes, and elders have come to confront Jesus about His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem and His cleansing of the temple, asking Him, "By what authority do You do these things?"  They refused to answer His question acknowledging by what authority John baptized.   This parable, then, is a direct response  to them in return.   In the parable, the man represents God the Father, and the vineyard to God's people.  The vinedressers are these leaders of the Jews who are entrusted to care for the people.  We have to recall Jesus' own admonitions about leadership to His disciples; that in His Church, those who wish to be greatest must be servant to all.  They are to be good stewards.  Here in the parable, each servant that has been sent by the owner stands for an Old Testament prophet who comes to call people back to God.  The beloved son is Christ Himself.   My study bible says that the fact that the Son is cast out of the vineyard to be killed should be understood on two levels.  First, that Jesus was killed outside Jerusalem (Golgotha was outside the city walls, which in later centuries were moved to include the place of His Crucifixion inside the city).  Second, that Jesus was crucified by foreign soldiers, and not by those of His own vineyard.  The others who later receive the vineyard are the Gentiles who are brought into the Church.

And when they heard it they said, "Certainly not!"  Then He looked at them and said, "What then is this that is written:  'The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone'?  Whoever falls on that stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder."  And the chief priests and the scribes that very hour sought to lay hands on Him, but they feared the people -- for they knew He had spoken this parable against them.   Jesus quotes to them from Psalm 118:22.  That stone is Christ Himself.  My study bible cites St. John Chrysostom, who comments here that this saying illustrates the two ways of destruction.  Those who fall on the stone are people who suffer the effects of their own sins while they are yet in this life.  Those on whom the stone falls are unrepentant people who become powder (completely lost) in the final judgment.

As Jesus is in Jerusalem, the tone of our readings comes to include the eschatological; that is, Jesus speaks of end times, and of Judgment.  Tied up with Jerusalem and its destruction (which Jesus has prophesied) is also the time of the end.  That is, the time in which we now live.  We often tend to think of end times prophesy as that which only applies to some unknown, uncertain, mysterious date.  But this isn't really true.  We are living in the time of the end at this time.  The time of the end was initiated with Jesus' Incarnation in the world, and particularly the central events of Holy Week which are yet to come in our current readings.  Between that time and His Return, we live in these "end times."  The Church lives in this period, in which we await and watch for His Return, and we remember what we, as good servants, are to be about.  It's His word that creates and builds Judgment in the world, the standard set down and heard.  His word gives us the understanding also that those of "other flocks" -- even those who've never heard of Christ -- will be seen according to what they do know and understand, the conscience.  Everybody is included in this truth.  The ancient people who first heard Christ's word and accepted it for themselves frequently built churches atop of ancient temples.  The modern mind often ascribes this simply to a desire to stamp out the old and replace it, but this isn't really true.  The ancient people, such as the Greeks who accepted Christianity, did not see their own culture as "bad" or "evil."  On the contrary, the significance of building a church where a temple once stood, or converting an existing temple (such as the Parthenon, which was a church for 1,000 years during the Byzantine Empire, dedicated to the Virgin Mary), was that Christ brought light and illumination to a world that was already grasping toward that light.  Rather than seeing the Church as mere replacement, the ancient world saw Christ as the Truth that more fully illumined the good that the ancient cultures were seeking without knowing Christ.  The fullness, for example, of the image of Athena the goddess of wisdom was manifest in the Virgin Mary, as one who is the queen of saints, the "All Holy" in the Greek Orthodox tradition, the one who submitted herself fully to God, and was chosen to be the human mother of God.  Her holiness becomes the strength that defends and comforts (and above all, loves), and prays for all in the fullness of the grace given to her.  As saint, the illumination given to her through grace is seen as manifest in myriad facets of her human personality (as evidenced in the varied icons of Mary), and millions of faithful have found strength through her as one of the faithful with whom we pray and of whom we ask intercession -- just as one would ask a friend to pray in times of difficulty and need.  Such is the evolution of the word in the world, the teachings of the Gospel, that we have to know ourselves as those who seek ultimately after the good that Christ brings into the world as fully human and fully God.  Those who have never heard the word are not misjudged or judged harshly, but rather by the good they know.  But having heard the word, what do we do with it?  Having had Christ as incarnate human being, how do we come to know Him, see Him, accept Him?  The truth that He brings is "living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart" (Hebrews 4:12).  The word of Christ is that which penetrates everything we are to a  depth that we don't even know.  And in this is the Judgment borne out in the world.  This is the stone that is the head of the corner, upon which we may stumble -- and which may fall upon those of us who choose to deny its word and truth within ourselves.  It is, ultimately, grace at work in the world that creates this Judgment, that makes the time in which we live the "end time," that offers us its gifts too great to be "earned," and by which we will be measured in accordance with what we're offered and what we know.  Let us remember that His teaching wasn't about a far off day, but about where we live, here and now.  These men to whom He speaks are the leaders of Israel, the ones who know fully the God who has spoken through all the Scriptures and Israel's spiritual history.  They know better.  But, we, too, know what we have been given.   Everything is a question of how we receive and allow God to be at work in us through grace, through His word which is living and powerful.

Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?

 Now it happened as He went to Jerusalem that He passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee.  Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off.  And they lifted up their voices and said, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!"  So when He saw them, He said to them, 'Go, show yourselves to the priests."  And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed.  And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks.  And he was a Samaritan.  So Jesus answered and said, "Were there not ten cleansed?  But where are the nine?  Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?"  And He said to him, "Arise, go your way.  Your faith has made you well."

- Luke 17:11-19

In yesterday's reading, Jesus taught His disciples about discipline in the Church and among themselves.  He said, "It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come!  It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones.  Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him.  And if he sins against you seven times a day, and seven times a day returns to you, saying, 'I repent,' you shall forgive him."  And the apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith."  So the Lord said, "If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,' and it would obey you.  And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, 'Come at once and sit down to eat'?  But will he not rather say to him, 'Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink'?  Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him?  I think not.  So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, 'We are unprofitable servants.  We have done what was our duty to do.' "


Now it happened as He went to Jerusalem that He passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee.   Samaria and Galilee are regions which are first, primarily foreign, and in Galilee there were mixed populations.  We note that throughout the readings of the past few chapters, Jesus has been on this journey toward Jerusalem.

Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off.  My study bible notes that "the lepers stood afar off because they were not permitted to approach people or enter into the villages."

And they lifted up their voices and said, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!"  So when He saw them, He said to them, "Go, show yourselves to the priests."  And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed.   "Have mercy on us!" has remained the cry in the prayer of the Church, so important is this phrase.  For love and mercy Christ is in the world; for God's steadfast love and mercy we all pray and ask.  Mercy, in this reading and in others in Luke's Gospel, is correlated with healing (see The Parable of the Good Samaritan).  Lepers could not participate in community, and so it was necessary to receive a certificate from a priest in order once again to be a part of the community, hence Jesus' instruction to show themselves to the priests.  The healing is automatic, not even mentioned:  Jesus' mercy is immediate: "as they went, they were cleansed."  Setting off on the journey of following Jesus' command, they are cleansed.

And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks.  And he was a Samaritan.  So Jesus answered and said, "Were there not ten cleansed?  But where are the nine?  Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?"  And He said to him, "Arise, go your way.  Your faith has made you well."  My study bible says, "Only a Samaritan, despised by Jews, sets the example of gratitude for his healing.  God's blessings are all too easily taken for granted or forgotten."

Luke's Gospel teaches us about the inclusion of those who love God and share in faith in God.  St. Paul will preach to the Galatians that "there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus."  This story of the ten lepers goes far to teach us something about the love for God we hold in our hearts; we can't really judge by the surface of one who belongs to our particular group or understanding or way of doing things.  These nominal ways of saying who's in our party, in our group, in our enclave just don't work when it comes to Christ.  There, what matters is what is in the heart, and what is in the heart that is important and essential is love.  The love for God here isn't an impersonal understanding of this love; rather in the example of the Samaritan in the story it's an example of participation in God's love, of gratitude, and by extension right relatedness, clear seeing and understanding, and we assume a kind of respect that goes out to all whom this man encounters as a part of his relationship to God.  There's a fundamental power in that love that implies right-relatedness in the choices we make and in the ways in which we see things.  So this man alone glorifies God for his healing.  He see's what's what.  This isn't some gift or token one simply takes away selfishly as if to say the giver is not important.  And there we get into the spirit of the matter here, and for those of us who live in the United States, a very timely reminder of what it truly means to live with gratitude (for tomorrow is the national holiday called Thanksgiving).  Because in this story, to live with gratitude is to live with love in our hearts.  Love, first of all, for our Creator, and from there setting us in truly right relatedness to others.  To live a life of gratitude is to understand that all of life is in fact a gift, and more -- to have respect for the giver.  I think this extends to all facets of life, to the people we forget to thank, to those with whom we struggle for gain, for recognition, in competition, right down to the ways we relate to others in the world when we carry around the idea that we are simply entitled to what they have, what we think everyone else has that we may want.  It comes right down to the idea of the way we live our lives in relation to God and others and how we miss our own blessedness.  To love God with all one's heart and mind and soul and strength is really up to each of us, and it's in fact a gift that is available to each of us.  God doesn't discriminate on the basis of class or group or entitlement.  Wherever we are on a social scale, whether or not we are excluded or included in the worldly picture of things, God's love is something that is a gift to each of us and may be reciprocated in relationship in which we participate.  All it takes is our own awareness.  And yet this one thing necessary seems to be so remiss and so hard to see.  Yet it sets us in right relationship to everything.   In this case, the Samaritan is the one man who can truly see what is right in front of him.  His faith has made him well in many more ways than are apparent.