Get behind me, Satan

From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, ‘God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you.’ But he turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling-block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.’

Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life?

‘For the Son of Man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay everyone for what has been done. Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.’

- Matthew 16:21-28

In yesterday's reading, we read of Peter's confession of faith, and Jesus' pronouncement that this would be the rock upon which his church will be built. In today's reading, Jesus begins to inform his followers about the meaning of his messiahship and how it will be lived. Jesus is a suffering messiah, as in Isaiah's prophecy of the Suffering Servant.

Peter, in many recent readings, has begun to play a very vocal part in the interaction of the disciples and Jesus. We can clearly begin to see his leadership role in the ways in which he is signified as speaking for the others. It seems to me that Peter is in some way representative in many ways of the growing understanding of the apostles and at the same time the conflicts and misunderstanding they are going through. In today's reading, after Jesus has described what he will endure at the hands of the religious leadership, Peter takes Him aside. Peter's idea of the Messiah is traditional: that the Messiah will reign forever, that he will be established at Jerusalem as ruler in a political kingdom. The idea of a suffering Messiah is scandalous to traditional Jewish thought. I think it's important to recall, once again, that Matthew's gospel was written for an audience oriented to Jewish tradition. "Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, ‘God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you.’"

But Jesus has his own uncompromising reply to Peter's rebuke: "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling-block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things." Jesus clearly understands the importance of the Passion that he will endure and its centrality to the will of the Father. He must be a suffering Messiah. He will take on the sins of the world, in so doing he offers redemption and reconciliation; and at the same time an indictment of evil, an instrument of Judgment.

Jesus continues: "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life?" In some sense, this may be one of the most important passages of scripture we can read and remember. The essence of Christ's ministry is summed up in these words. We exchange one life for another. We live a life to the glory of the kingdom, and in so doing, all of our lives become sacramental in this sense. My study bible has an interesting note regarding verse 25 ("For those who want to save their life..."): "Here Jesus states the central paradox of the Christian faith. In grasping the temporal, we lose the eternal; in sacrificing everything we can know, we gain unimaginable riches. In dying, we live."

Jesus goes further: "For the Son of Man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay everyone for what has been done. Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom." This is a statement of exchange, of justice and judgment, and of the reality of this kingdom. My study bible has a note that says that "seeing the kingdom" may refer to the Transfiguration which will occur immediately after this.

I think it is important, however, to pay attention to all the elements included in this passage. Passion, crucifixion, resurrection, Judgment, kingdom. Jesus is not just the Suffering Servant, but his death and his passion will play itself out for the will of the Father - a great, transformative, powerful reality is setting itself into motion. We are at once healed and reconciled via this exchange, we are set an example, and justice is served. The forces of evil that draw us to hate the ideas of the kingdom, to fight against the reality of that kingdom within ourselves are thereby indicted in the death and execution of one who lives to do the Father's will. And yet, this death, bringing Judgment is an act of the greatest mercy, and the greatest sacrifice and service. It is an act of reconciliation that will open to all of us the way to go forward, the way out of sin and condemnation, the way to this kingdom - regardless of who we are, where we have been. It calls us all in its call of love and mercy and inclusion. A tremendous paradox indeed. When we open our hearts to the presence of God, to this reality of so much paradox, we must be prepared to expand our understanding and perception of all of these concepts: of judgement and justice, of mercy and love, and of what we may be asked to give up in order to serve something much greater than our own understanding can necessarily grasp. St. Peter works as a great example to us, our suffering and struggling humanity in discipleship. We are asked to go, sometimes, where we do not want to go. But it is that great Love that draws us forward, nevertheless.

On this rock I will build my church

Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say that the Son of Man is?’ And they said, ‘Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.’ And Jesus answered him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.’ Then he sternly ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.

- Matthew 16:13-20

My study bible has, as it does so often, quite an interesting note on this passage. It makes me think. "Who do you say that I am?" says my study bible, is the greatest question we can ever face. It goes on to state that "Peter's ringing confession, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God, is an insight given to Peter by the Father. Jesus' messianic identity and divinity, the mystery hidden from eternity cannot be truly known by human reason, but only by God's revelation." It then cites 1 Corinthians 12:3 as reference: "Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says 'Jesus is accursed!' and no one can say 'Jesus is Lord' except in the Holy Spirit."

In the original Greek of Matthew's gospel, Peter says, "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God." I think therefore, it's a good idea to consider the meaning of "Christ." My study bible continues: "Christ means 'the Anointed One.' Christ is the Son of the living God, whom the Father has anointed with the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:38). David says, 'Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You with the oil of gladness more than Your companions' (Ps. 45:7). Isaiah, speaking in the name of the Lord, says, 'The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord has anointed Me' (Is. 61:1).'"

In light of this understanding of Christ, we can continue with Jesus' words to Peter. ‘Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.’ Jesus uses a play on the word for "rock" in Aramaic and Greek (petros/petra). It's interesting to me that it is once again Peter who is speaking out, as we have seen in the past several readings. But Peter/rock is the confession of faith, the union and bond formed through this faith and this recognition - this ability to perceive what is revealed by the Father. What we have here, then, is a tremendous bond in union and in recognition and thereby the creation of relationship between the Father and the body of Christ, the Church. This is what is conveyed, made real, by Peter's confession. This is the rock of faith.

My study bible notes that in the Old Testament, "gates" suggest a fortified city. Hades, or hell, is suggestive of death and the powers of death. Therefore we are to understand that this great rock, this confession by virtue of union on some level with the Father, this revelation that is recognized within the believer, will shatter the gates, the stronghold of hell. That is, all the powers of evil, of death, of limitation, of slavery.

In all the gospels (again, according to my study bible's notes), church is mentioned twice by Jesus, here and in Matthew 18:17, describing the true Israel whose citizenship is heavenly. This is the body of Christ - what my study bible calls "the divine-human organism." The note continues to say that to this church "comes the call of Jesus for the whole of mankind to abide with Him and in Him (Eph. 1:23)."

As we deepen our understanding of Jesus and his ministry through these gospels, we are drawn ever-deeply into an awareness of relationship. In this case, we come to understand the power of the bonds of that relationship in faith. Jesus continues, 'I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.' So, we come to understand the great depth of this relationship, and equally its invincibility, its tremendous strength through this process of bonding. What has been revealed and accepted in the creature via the Father, expressed through a confession of faith, holds the keys to the kingdom. It is such a powerful bond that it breaks the gates of hell. Moreover, what is bound on earth via such relationship has such depth, enters such dimension of spiritual reality, that whatever is bound or loosed (also words of relationship) on earth is also bound or loosed in heaven.

We are given tremendous access to all spiritual reality through this relationship, through true faith. Does this not teach us even more than all that has come before of the tremendous, precious need for discernment? Shall we not take it seriously that what we put our faith into can create such tremendous opportunity, spiritual freedom and privilege? What does it mean to be bound via relationship that is this strong, this potent and this far-reaching? Our covenant is not merely a personal confession, it is a revelation of relationship even to the Father. It is over this that Jesus rejoices. I am reminded, as deliberate metaphor, of the ways in which prayer ropes (used for praying the Jesus Prayer) are made. Knots, rather than beads, are used for a prayer rope. Each knot (forming a station on the rope) is made up of nine knots in its interior - 3x3, a triple Trinity, standing in for our relationship, our bond to Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The monks who fashion these ropes do so with this union, this bond, in mind: what is made in such confession is unbreakable, and strong enough to smash the gates of hell and their figurative allusion to all that opposes this kingdom and what it can do for mankind. I will remember this passage when I use my prayer rope in future.

Watch out, and beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees

The Pharisees and Sadducees came, and to test Jesus they asked him to show them a sign from heaven. He answered them, ‘When it is evening, you say, “It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.” And in the morning, “It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.” You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. An evil and adulterous generation asks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.’ Then he left them and went away.

When the disciples reached the other side, they had forgotten to bring any bread. Jesus said to them, ‘Watch out, and beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.’ They said to one another, ‘It is because we have brought no bread.’ And becoming aware of it, Jesus said, ‘You of little faith, why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not perceive? Do you not remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? How could you fail to perceive that I was not speaking about bread? Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees!’ Then they understood that he had not told them to beware of the yeast of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

- Matthew 16:1-12

The Pharisees and Sadducees wish for a sign from heaven, to prove that Jesus is Messiah. My study bible notes that the time of the Messiah is indeed a time of signs. But the signs that have already been performed by Jesus are lost on the Pharisees and Sadducees, despite the fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy as noted in yesterday's commentary. They demand something yet more spectacular, some proof of which they can approve that will convince them, without faith, that Jesus is indeed a messianic figure. For this reason, this failure to recognize the signs already coming, Jesus chastises them for their inability to "see," to perceive what is happening in their presence. "When it is evening, you say, 'It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.' And in the morning, 'It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.' You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times."

Jesus continues: "An evil and adulterous generation asks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah." This is his final word to the Pharisees and Sadducees in this particular encounter. This is not the first time (nor even the second) that we have encountered these scathing words in Matthew's gospel, "an evil and adulterous generation." Indeed, the words and scathing commentary are the same and given for the same reason in the reading noted (see link). Those who cannot follow nor accept what is given by Jesus, such as the people who followed him up the mountain in yesterday's reading, are asking for signs out of their disbelief. They have failed to discern the presence of the kingdom that has come near to them. As in the previous reading noted above, they have failed to discern that which is "greater than Solomon" which is before them. And, also, as in the previous reading (see link), the sign noted is the sign of Jonah. Jonah was three days in the belly of the whale. This is an allusion to the three days between Jesus' death and resurrection.

Finally, we move on to the next "scene" in our story. Jesus has joined the disciples and they reach the "other side." Once more, a pattern repeats itself. They've rowed across the water. There are concerns for food, for not having enough bread. The disciples have forgotten! Jesus, still brooding on his encounter with the religious leadership, says to them, "Watch out, and beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees." And here occurs one of the comic moments in scripture that I personally have great fondness for. The disciples really don't understand him at all. Not only have they forgotten bread, they have no idea what Jesus is talking about. "They said to one another, ‘It is because we have brought no bread.’" So, it's not just the Pharisees and Sadducees that cannot discern nor understand. Jesus' own disciples are having trouble with their understanding as well! The difference is, however, that they are willing to listen and to learn. They continue to follow. They have faith and are not demanding signs as proof. Their faith is engaged in their hearts already.

"Jesus said, ‘You of little faith, why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not perceive? Do you not remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? How could you fail to perceive that I was not speaking about bread? Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees!’ Then they understood that he had not told them to beware of the yeast of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees." I think that we have to beware of this teaching ourselves. Faith engages us in the heart. It's something that happens internally in us. When we pray, we pray for engagement with a spiritual life, with a "personal" relationship to the kingdom, to the Three in One Persons which we recognize as part of Christian faith. In the figure of Christ, we have the great figure that has come into the world to engage us, as one of us. He has brought all of Himself here, into our world, in order to engage, to present, to bring the kingdom near. How we perceive from there is up to us.

How does one open up one's heart to receive? One's spiritual ears to hear and eyes to see? Clearly, Jesus is indicating here that there are ways in which we can block that perception. There are ways of thinking, ideas and self-limitation which we can receive from others, which can in some sense poison our own capacities for receiving. This is what Jesus is calling "the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees." We recall the demand for a sign, the demand to meet the conditions imposed on God for how God is to present Himself to the world. Do we place demands on the holy that come from rather arrogant, self-centered and self-serving human perspective? Or are we here instead to be expanded by revelation from God? How does this relationship work? To what end has God created us? If it is not for our own growth and expansion, then what, instead? We can go one way or the other. How do we choose to grow? How do we serve God?

Bread in the desert: the four thousand

After Jesus had left that place, he passed along the Sea of Galilee, and he went up the mountain, where he sat down. Great crowds came to him, bringing with them the lame, the maimed, the blind, the mute, and many others. They put them at his feet, and he cured them, so that the crowd was amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.

Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, ‘I have compassion for the crowd, because they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, for they might faint on the way.’ The disciples said to him, ‘Where are we to get enough bread in the desert to feed so great a crowd?’ Jesus asked them, ‘How many loaves have you?’ They said, ‘Seven, and a few small fish.’ Then ordering the crowd to sit down on the ground, he took the seven loaves and the fish; and after giving thanks he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And all of them ate and were filled; and they took up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full. Those who had eaten were four thousand men, besides women and children. After sending away the crowds, he got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan.

- Matthew 15:29-39

As in Mark's gospel, Matthew includes a second feeding of the multitude - this time four thousand people. It's important to understand that Jesus remains in Gentile territory, after yesterday's story of the Canaanite woman. In Matthew's gospel, the Canaanite woman is the beginning of an awareness that the future Church will spread to all people. Jesus is not only the Messiah to the Jews, the Son of David, but this Messiah is Lord for all people. Following that story, we immediately have the story of this feeding of four thousand in Gentile territory. There is the allusion, again, to the Eucharist, to the compassion that Christ extends to all who are there in faith, who want and value that which he has to offer. When one hears the phrase in Church, "The Holy Gifts to the Holy People," we can understand how this relationship is determined not by birth but by faith. These gifts are there for those who want them in faith, who value what it is that is offered in this relationship.

Once again, it is a sign of Jesus' divinity that he creates a multiplicity of food for feeding the people, new matter where there previously was not enough. So the signs and wonders that have gone out among the Jewish people are now also shared with many Gentiles.

It says something to me that this story begins with Jesus leading the way, so to speak, up the mountain. He does not go to the crowds. The crowds follow Him. Therefore, all of these people who have come for one thing or another - many healings: the lame, the maimed, the blind, the mute - have come as followers, out of volition. We have a clear allusion to the words of Isaiah:

Then will the eyes of the blind be opened
and the ears of the deaf unstopped.

Then will the lame leap like a deer,
and the mute tongue shout for joy.
Water will gush forth in the wilderness
and streams in the desert.

Isaiah's prophecy then, is not only for the children of Israel, but Israel will be expanded to include Gentiles. All Jesus has to do is simply go up the mountain, and sit down. All who need him will come to him, they will follow him. And his work leads to a universal praise, in this passage, for the God of Israel.

So, Israel, in its spiritual sense, is expanded by faith. Those who have followed, who value the gifts that are offered, who want all that Jesus has to give, are those who become a part of this kingdom, who enter into its citizenship. One could immediately ask the question: "Well, who wouldn't want these gifts on offer? Great healing, miraculous feeding, and all that is included in our reading?" But I think there is much more to this story. Jesus' gifts to those who follow are not merely "free" bargains in a marketplace where he's seeking followers. They are the result of the faith within the hearts of these believers, those who will truly wish to follow. There is a great circuit created by faith, that links us up into this relationship that determines citizenship in this kingdom. Jesus leads, and those who are drawn to him are those who are led to greater understanding and faith. It is an ongoing process, not just an exchange as in a marketplace. A deepening relationship that grows, and rewards that are startling and surprising are conveyed by this relationship and this deepening understanding of faith. There is the revelation of understanding of the God of Israel. I don't think that this can be underestimated. Varying degrees of spiritual comprehension and understanding existed at all times and all places in the world, if you ask me. But what we ask from faith is not just to think the "right" things, to worship the "right" God, but to discern a deepening and expanding spiritual reality that reveals itself to us through time and through faith. We ask not so much for a kind of equal exchange, but for a deepening revelation, a deeper understanding, for that "God of Israel" that is after all the foundation of spiritual reality in our faith to become more to us. We want to understand more of divinity, more of beauty and more of truth. We want to understand more of what love is and how it works. And we wish to become more like God as we grow in relationship. This is why this adventure of spiritual understanding is not simply for one people or another, and it does not exclude anyone either, because it is a discovery of a greater and greater field of spiritual power and its reality. It is a deeper revelation of the reality of what constitutes this "Other" addition to life that we call spiritual, that is God. We recall St. Paul's sermon on the "unknown god" which he preached in the vicinity of the Acropolis to the Greeks who already had so many gods, they had even included a shrine to the god which they were aware they did not yet know. Spirituality, worship, a reaching for the divine and for the things that are worthy of worship, has always been with us and I trust always will be. But we ask, in our faith, for more. Ultimately, it is this for which we will always continue to hunger and thirst, and this is the food that Christ has given to us and continues to give.

He leads, and we who wish for more will follow. We wish to know this God of love, this God of Israel, this God exemplified in Jesus. What do you wish for in this relationship of faith? What more would you like - with what spiritual food do you wish to be fed? Ultimately, the search for a spiritual life is one of asking to empty in order to be filled, that we may know this glory, this beauty, this truth, and this love. And that we may be so blessed as to live more deeply in expansion of these qualities in ourselves through our faith and our relationship to its Source. Jesus has led the way. How do we follow? For what more do you seek?

Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David

Jesus left that place and went away to the district of Tyre and Sidon. Just then a Canaanite woman from that region came out and started shouting, ‘Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is tormented by a demon.’ But he did not answer her at all. And his disciples came and urged him, saying, ‘Send her away, for she keeps shouting after us.’ He answered, ‘I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.’ But she came and knelt before him, saying, ‘Lord, help me.’ He answered, ‘It is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.’ She said, ‘Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.’ Then Jesus answered her, ‘Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.’ And her daughter was healed instantly.

- Matthew 15:21-28

I must say that I have a particular fondness for this story, because of the feisty quality of the exchange between this woman and Jesus. I consider it a particularly characteristic story of Middle or Near Eastern dialogue; people are bargaining and arguing in a way that may seem a little harsh to some ears. But, in effect, we see the great humanness of Jesus, how much he is a man of the people. While he never loses his identity as Christ or Messiah, and as Teacher and great Healer, he also speaks directly with this woman. We must understand the notion of testing or even goading the woman can be done with affection - it is this that is going to prompt her to reveal her faith, and how much she wishes for this gift from Christ.

This story also appears in Mark's gospel, but my study bible points out two major differences between the story as it appears in Mark 7:24-30 and here in Matthew's gospel. Matthew says "the lost sheep of the house of Israel" while Mark says only, "Let the children be filled first." In Matthew the woman is recorded as shouting, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David." For these differences we must take into account the Jewish orientation of Matthew's gospel and therefore his concern to show Jesus as the Son of David, who is, as my study bible puts it, "endowed with divine majesty even in his humanity."

The woman begins with great concern for her daughter, who has a demon. She is not merely pestering Jesus, she is actually shouting at him. Impudent, indeed, one might say! We are told that Jesus does not answer her at all. I would guess, just based on my own impression, that this implies he somehow is studiously seeming to avoid her by not answering and keeping his silence. But, one notes, he does not command her to silence either. The disciples, however, are obviously annoyed. They come to complain to Jesus, to tell him that he must send her away, because she is bothering them by continually shouting at them. Quite obviously, this woman is shouting to be noticed! So Jesus responds to his disciples' request to send the woman away, by informing her, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."

So, the woman proceeds to try a different tack. But she came and knelt before him, saying, ‘Lord, help me.’ This is a humble appeal. She is no longer shouting, but kneeling humbly before him and asking for help, calling him Lord. She does not give up and go away. She really wants what she is asking from him. Jesus responds to her with what seems, to many ears, like a great insult. He answered, ‘It is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.’ But my study bible has a note about this response. "Jesus' answer should not be understood as an insult, but as a way to reveal the treasure of the woman's faith. In her can be envisioned the future Gentile Church, the true Israel, coming to Christ." I agree with the great value placed on this woman in this gospel as the vision of the future Gentile Church. But I also would like to point out the traditional value placed on argument in a Middle or Near Eastern context. As Jacob wrestled with the angel for his blessing, so we can see here the similar figure of this woman, who will not leave without what she is after from this Lord, this divine figure of Christ. In this context, argument is seen as a good and positive thing. Christ is spurring her on to respond to him. It is already a strange and unusual thing that he would be talking with the woman to begin with, and he is engaging her rather than sending her away. And the woman responds with the perfect answer in this context: "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table." She is not going away, she is engaging with him again, responding within the opening she has been given by Jesus. "Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table." She will get her blessing, just as did Jacob. "Then Jesus answered her, ‘Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.’ And her daughter was healed instantly."

I think it is important to remember this rather feisty encounter, for a number of reasons. It teaches us the willingness with which Jesus engages us. I don't believe that we can predict how Spirit will engage us in the process of the development of faith. We cannot limit how God will be at work in our lives, with what small opening into our psyches we can begin the journey of faith. Jesus' goading of this woman, even his seeming insult, was a way to bring out her faith. She showed who she was, she kept trying to reach Christ and to make a connection with him until she got her blessing that she desired. We must see the final connection that has been made between Lord and believer, and the great transformative breakthrough in our understanding of what constitutes Church, and where and when it appears that happens because of the story of this world, now told through so many centuries.

I think God engages us often through negative experiences. I know that in my own life the times when I have fallen on my face due to my own fallibility and imperfection have been times when I had the most to learn from my prayer life - by going through the resulting disaster (large or small) with prayer and learning. There was no other way that I would change or engage with God on that level of depth that was within myself, except through the process of opening up and revealing who I was. In this way, the depths of my own psyche were revealed and healed, I became more aware of how I needed to change and at the same time develop a deeper relationship with God. This woman has in fact brought out all that she is in quite a creative way to put her supplication before Christ. Jesus equates her persistence with a great faith. And these are the words that we in turn must live by.

Where is your persistence? How does it manifest itself? Do we expect life to be handed to us on a platter, without work or change or digging deeply into ourselves for a response and a dialogue with God? I don't think the importance of dialogue can be underestimated. A back and forth tussle between ourselves and the divine can be engaged on every level. Our worldly expectations, after all, tend to be so different from the ones we may be given via our faith. The One with whom we dialogue is after all the great Other. God is much too far beyond our scope of reality to be limited by our expectations. It is we, instead, who are constantly challenged to unlimit our own perceptions and expectations. It is we who so often will find ourselves in places we least expect - or are even prepared for - because of faith. It is faith that challenges us to use our creativity and vigor and imagination and persistence to continually expand our understanding and awareness of where God may wish us to go or open up our own awareness of who we can be, on ever-deepening levels of identity.

Where will you go today, and how will you engage Christ to teach you and to bless you? The journey will not always follow a strict path or conform to our expectations. God is much too powerful and too great for that.

This people honours me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me

Then Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and said, ‘Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands before they eat.’ He answered them, ‘And why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? For God said, “Honour your father and your mother,” and, “Whoever speaks evil of father or mother must surely die.” But you say that whoever tells father or mother, “Whatever support you might have had from me is given to God”, then that person need not honour the father. So, for the sake of your tradition, you make void the word of God. You hypocrites! Isaiah prophesied rightly about you when he said:

“This people honours me with their lips,

but their hearts are far from me;

in vain do they worship me,

teaching human precepts as doctrines.” ’

Then he called the crowd to him and said to them, ‘Listen and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles.’ Then the disciples approached and said to him, ‘Do you know that the Pharisees took offence when they heard what you said?’ He answered, ‘Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if one blind person guides another, both will fall into a pit.’ But Peter said to him, ‘Explain this parable to us.’ Then he said, ‘Are you also still without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth enters the stomach, and goes out into the sewer? But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles. For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile.’

- Matthew 15:1-20

The "tradition of the elders" is the interpretation of Mosaic Law by Jewish teachers. In this case, the issue is ritual purity. Once criticized, Jesus - contrary to our often-held image of the meek and mild Christ - turns the tables immediately upon the Pharisees and scribes with an accusation of his own. 'And why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition?' My study bible points out that the commandment to honor one's father and mother is the first of the Ten Commandments which deals with human relations. To quote from my study bible: "A work of service or devotion to God is of no value if in carrying it out one ignores personal responsibility to others. Right human relationships are a necessary element of Christian devotion."

To put this into context, Jesus is referring to a practice which, as I understand it, was something like a trust. By claiming one's property was consecrated to the temple, one was therefore excused from using one's goods to support elderly parents without means. In so doing, property owners reserved their goods for their own exclusive use. So, Jesus is condemning a practice that refutes the design or aim of the Commandment for a supportive society, one in which the helpless or needy have some sort of safety net of protection and care. As he so often does, Jesus is pointing to the aim of the law - and criticizes those who find ways to practice in some sense what is deemed to be the "letter of the law" and avoid the entire purpose for which it was given, and thus the character of the God it honors and by whom it was presumably given. There is no love or mercy in this interpretation, but rather it is self-serving while claiming to honor God.

Jesus quotes from Isaiah to illustrate the difference in practice and interpretation from the true aim of the given law:

“This people honours me with their lips,

but their hearts are far from me;

in vain do they worship me,

teaching human precepts as doctrines.”

One of the most important teachings of Christ we have is his discourse on what defiles a person. It is not what we eat or drink but rather defilement is a concern of the heart. Ritual purity doesn't depend on the stomach. Nor does it depend on what a person does or doesn't do. Rather the heart, the center of all that a person is, becomes the place on which we should focus in order to guard ourselves from evil and keep ourselves pure in a spiritual sense. We are told elsewhere that "where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" and that "out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks." We must be aware that to produce good fruit, we're not dependent upon rituals but upon what is truly within us. The real, deep practice of our spirituality is about what we are in our hearts, what we choose to guard there, to keep there, to jettison or to treasure. Who we are as people is the deepest place we go - and yet, all of Jesus' teaching points to this place of what is real and what is true and meaningful. And it is there he asks us to go. I don't think we can avoid what this is and how deeply we can continue to go in coming to terms with what is meant by this deepest place of the self, and of identity, in spiritual terms.

'Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if one blind person guides another, both will fall into a pit.' Here, Jesus goes further, and pronounces that that which is not truly rooted in the good soil of the heart will be uprooted. He warns his disciples and in effect the Pharisees and scribes that the teaching of false doctrines will render the teacher obsolete. What is not of the lasting value of true spiritual reality will be uprooted. The blind can only lead the blind for so long before their blindness catches up to them.

As with Saturday's reading, where Jesus walks on the water and bids Peter to "come," Peter pushes for more here and asks for an explanation. Jesus once again complies with Peter's request and answers: 'Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth enters the stomach, and goes out into the sewer? But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles. For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile.'

We can make all the rules we want for ourselves, live a clean life, wear the best clothes, a spic and span home, support the right causes, voice the right opinions, model ourselves on our appearance of virtue. But the life of the Spirit will always call us toward what is in the heart and to examine what is there. This is the field of Spirit, the ground of our orientation to the divine. We make choices. We clearly have the capacity, as far as Jesus is concerned, to make such choices and to be aware of what we guard in our hearts and what we choose not to value. We always make choices. We can make a choice for awareness, to begin with. We can place our emphasis on what is in the heart. What do you value? Where is your treasure?

Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid

Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, but by this time the boat, battered by the waves, was far from the land, for the wind was against them. And early in the morning he came walking towards them on the lake. But when the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified, saying, ‘It is a ghost!’ And they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them and said, ‘Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.’

Peter answered him, ‘Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.’ He said, ‘Come.’ So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came towards Jesus. But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’ When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, ‘Truly you are the Son of God.’

When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret. After the people of that place recognized him, they sent word throughout the region and brought all who were sick to him, and begged him that they might touch even the fringe of his cloak; and all who touched it were healed.

- Matthew 14:22-36

Yesterday we read of the great miracle of the loaves and the fishes. Today we come to another astounding miracle here in the middle of Matthew's gospel: Jesus walks on the water. There is the revelation here of dominion over nature, a sign of his divine nature as Messiah.

I think that the details of this story are very interesting. In the first place, after giving so much of himself, and so much sustenance to others in the feeding of the five thousand, Jesus withdraws. He goes up the mountain by himself to pray. He even sends away the disciples. Jesus has told the disciples to get into the boat and go ahead of him to the other side. In all of these stories of his ministry so far in this gospel, Jesus has made various attempts to be somewhat less public - to go into a home, to send out his apostles in his place on their first mission - but never alone. This story very specifically says that he withdrew to be alone to pray, and sent away both the crowds and his disciples.

So, the disciples are on their own. But by the time it is night and dark, they are still on the water and having a hard time. The wind and waves drive against them, the boat is far from the land. Finally, early in the morning, Jesus comes walking toward them. The translation in my study bible (New King James Version) says that it is in the fourth watch when Jesus comes to them in the boat. The fourth watch is between 3 AM and sunrise. So the disciples have been in this boat pushed by the wind and waves all night.

Seeing Jesus approach, they're terrified and assume they're seeing a ghost! Jesus tells them, 'Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.' One cannot help but feel how comforting these words are. Isn't this the answer to all prayers that we hope for? Just to know that He is there? 'Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid' is one of the greatest messages that we can receive. We are told to take heart and be of good courage, we are told of His presence with us, and we are told not to fear. This great message in one small sentence is a gift for handling the difficulties of life if we could but remember to take these three things with us through all troubles.

Peter, however, being the person he is, and always full of his own exuberance of expression - no matter what he is feeling - takes it a step further. ‘Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.’ Jesus' reply is the simplest there is: 'Come.' My study bible notes: "Come is the call of Christ in the midst of turmoil." He encourages us to take steps toward him in faith, no matter what the situation. In some sense, we can see this as a fledgling beginning of Peter's great future as the apostle he will become in faith.

Peter becomes frightened, and begins to sink. He cries out, ‘Lord, save me!’ There is a lesson here about what fright can do to us, despite our best intentions, in any difficult situation. Nobody has to walk on water to prove their faith! But in the context of the story, we can see what fear does - how it harms our faith, breaks our resolve. We may quite literally sink under our emotions by giving in to fear or by letting it rule our lives. "Lord, save me" is the shortest prayer in the bible, but a very effective one. The Jesus prayer, or "Lord have mercy" and its various forms are basically the same prayer.

Jesus reaches out and catches Peter, just as Peter starts to sink. ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’ I have many occasions where the same thing could be said to me. My prayer life so often is like a conscience I don't follow, thinking that my faith is somehow not prudent or rational. And yet, the truth to be found there in my experience - such a potent truth that so often bluntly unveils what we love to soften for ourselves - is always just that in the end. It is what is real, what is seen with eyes opened to the light of love. That means, often, I find, that I also see what is not love.

"When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, ‘Truly you are the Son of God.’ " Once the great drama and tribulation are over, the test of faith is over and they are back in the boat, the wind ceased. It is faith itself on display here, somehow. The waters and wind we can all take for the storms of life and the stormy nature of our emotions that are stirred up in difficulties - when everything seems to be against us. To conquer nature is a miracle. To conquer our own stormy nature, the call of spiritual life. Faith is the great help we have to get us through the difficulties of life, to help us make good decisions, and not to be overruled by fear. While our emotions will always be a part of our natures, it is a process of having faith that helps us not to be ruled by them - or worse, driven into shipwreck and worse difficulties. May you always be blessed with faith to follow the voice of Christ that says, "Come." And the knowledge that he is there and gives you courage - or better, heart - to get through it.