The Lectionary and Scripture Interpretation for Ordinary Time
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Last week explored the question “What is discipleship?” This week looks at a different, but perhaps related, question: “What is wisdom?”
- The reading from the book of Wisdom ironically explores what wisdom is not
- James says that wisdom is characterized by traits such as peace
- Mark says wisdom is knowing the way of discipleship
We are still in Ordinary time but, like the changing of seasons from summer to fall, the tenor of readings is beginning to change. Throughout the liturgical year, we are always on a relentless path moving us towards the mystery of Easter. But as we approach the Advent season, we will be reminded of that in more urgent ways.
Wisdom 2: 12, 17-20
The theme of Chapters 1-6 is “Immortality as the reward of wisdom.” 1:16 – 2:24 is an inclusio about how the wicked invite death. The chapters overall paint a picture of a reward for being wise, and today’s section is the negative image of that.
This is a picture of practical atheism. They live a life that does not need to include God. They live a hedonistic existence that pursues pleasure as the goal and aim of life. And they persecute any whose lives hold to a higher standard because they feel the guilt in contrast to their own lives.
The imagery here is closely related to the suffering servant song in Isa 52:13 – 53:12. The author has meditated deeply on Isaiah 52-66 as a whole and he writes this under the influence of those chapters.
Wisdom literature is often a study in contrasts and we see that very clearly in this passage.
V12 pictures the wicked saying, in particular, that the life of the wise charges them with “violations of our training.” This implies that both the righteous and the evil ones making these accusations are members of the same community with the same training. We’ll see this same thing in the book of James. We are often tempted to classify “us and them,” as though the “wicked” are so far apart from us we can’t even begin to imagine their situation. These verses remind us that quite the reverse is true: the wise and wicked reside side by side. Jesus said the same in his parable of the wheat and weeds: that they both grow up together and must be allowed to do so.
Part of the irony of these verses is that the conditions for distinguishing between wise and wicked require time to discern. It’s not always immediately obvious that the words are true and the life is well-lived. On the other hand, the verses not in the lectionary, vv 13-16, paint a picture of someone whose life does obviously contrast with those around them.
The righteous one in v12 is described as being “annoying” to those who do not wish to live up to God’s standards. Think of someone who annoys you and why. Might God be using this person to rub a rough edge off of you? The writer of the book of Wisdom understood human nature well in that, quite often, something annoys us because deep down we know we are guilty of it ourselves.
James 3:16 – 4:3
The lectionary spends five weeks with this short letter. I encourage you to read it in its entirety at least once, if not every week.
Last week’s reading said that a faith which does not transform is no faith at all. This week’s reading is, perhaps, an illustration of a faith that has not transformed. Like the Wisdom reading, this passage speaks of internal conflicts within the community. The section begins in 3:13 talking about true wisdom and its qualities. We could sum this up by saying that the opposite of wisdom is anything that opposes Christ.
V16 is a wonderful illustration of the gospel reading. Jealousy and selfish ambition seem to characterize the disciple’s desire to get a top spot in the hierarchy. James equates this with disorder and all things “foul.” He contrasts this in v15 with wisdom and its qualities.
3:13 – 4:10 form a single unit which is a call to conversion, a change in behavior. He repeats last week’s message in a different way with different metaphors. We could sum up the section as follows:
- Theme v13: demonstrate your way of life by actions that reflect wisdom
- Why? v14 because jealousy and selfish ambition are not of God
- Proof vv15-18: God-given wisdom is reflected in certain qualities which do not include jealousy and selfish ambition
- Proof 4:1-6: jealousy and selfish ambition cause disorder and disorder is never from God
- Conclusion 4:7-10 a renewed call to conversion in submission to God’s way
Recall times of disorder and disharmony in your life. Can you see traces of jealousy and selfish ambition in those times, either your own or from someone else?
In what ways do wisdom’s qualities manifest in your life?
Mark 9:30-37
Last week moved us into a new section of Mark. Through the end of chp 8, the primary question of the gospel has been “Who is this man?!” Last week Peter answered that question by naming Jesus the Messiah. Jesus doesn’t deny that, but he’s still got a lot of teaching to do for them and us to realize what that really means.
The gradual healing of the blind man in 8:22 is key to interpreting chps 9-10. The man can see the first time around, but he doesn’t see clearly. Neither do the disciples. They name Jesus as the Messiah but they don’t see clearly what that entails.
Chps 8-10 there will be a pattern of three actions and it will repeat three times:
- Prediction of Jesus’ passion
- An inappropriate response
- Teaching on discipleship
Last week’s reading was the first of this pattern. The passage today is the second pattern repeat. This passage begins the teaching on discipleship, and we’ll have three more Sundays in this section of teaching.
Last week we left the action in the area of the Decapolis – a Gentile area. Today Jesus is going to begin a geographical movement towards Jerusalem. He has affirmed that he is the Messiah but he knows that’s going to bring him into even more direct opposition with the ruling authorities. He wants to keep it under wraps because he’s still got teaching to do. He’s not finished with the work to which the Father has called him.
In v31 he makes the second prediction of his passion. He is teaching and telling them, verbs that indicate a continuous process rather than just a one-time action. He’s teaching them not just with these words but others, which is why we have the repeated pattern. This prediction is the least detailed of the three, and scholars say this is probably the most primitive one, closest to Jesus’ actual words.
Jesus says he will be handed over and be killed, passive verbs. But he will rise, an active verb. In the gospel of John, there is the sense that the divine Jesus is completely in control of everything. But in Mark’s gospel, we see more of the human side of Jesus – the one that was sort of swept away by events. But he will rise – he’s still ultimately in control.
He also says he will be “handed over,” translated in some versions as delivered or betrayed. This word has been used several times in the gospel, but this is the first time Jesus uses it in connection with himself. Its use will become increasingly frequent as we build up to the passion. The last use of it in Mark’s gospel is 15:15 where Pilate released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.
Always keep in mind that the Jewish understanding of the Messiah was someone who would come as a conquering force to throw off foreign rule and usher in God’s kingdom. This prediction just does not fit with their understanding of what a Messiah would be. We see that in v32 – they didn’t understand and now they’re afraid to question him.
Jesus’ prediction is pretty stark and simple – you would think they could get it. Mark is painting an increasingly negative portrait of the disciples. This is the second part of the pattern, an inappropriate response – silence and fear. Their silence really should not surprise us. For one thing, the culture placed a great value on retaining honor, and admitting ignorance brought shame. Also, remember that Jesus’ stinging rebuke of Peter is fresh on their minds!
Another reason for their fear: they might be beginning to understand things, and if they follow events to their natural conclusions, they, as the inner group of Jesus’ followers, may well be implicated. Perhaps they are beginning to grasp the implications of what it means to follow a suffering Messiah.
In v33 they came to Capernaum, which chp 1 established as the hometown of Peter. That chapter mentions Jesus going to Peter’s house in that city. Presumably in v33, they have come back to where it all started – to Peter’s house. We might read the rest of this passage in the context of the early church which met in people’s houses – that’s where the teaching took place.
Jesus then asks them what they were arguing about along the way, which is a particular way of the early Christian community talking about the Christian journey. The use of it here evokes the idea that the topic of their argument is one that is going to come up in any context where Christianity is lived out, in any Christian community.
V34 is a continuation of their inappropriate response. First, it’s silence and fear, then it’s the question “Who gets the prime spot in the hierarchy?” They’re still thinking that Jesus as Messiah means a kingdom, and a kingdom has a whole hierarchy. So they’re arguing about who gets to be top dog.
In v35 he sits down. Any time you see this in any of the gospels, pay particular attention to what follows. Sitting down in that culture was a symbolic action of a respected teacher about to impart an important teaching.
Jesus begins his teaching by talking about being a servant, the Greek word diakonos. Very early in the Christian community, this word took on a meaning as the people who served, but it also implied some sort of leadership in the community. Now, no one in their right mind in that culture would aspire to be a servant. But Jesus says, “What is the place of a leader in the kingdom? At the back of the line! Giving priority to everyone else.”
Some commentaries will call v36 “an acted-out parable.” He uses a common image and turns it on its head. Usually, parables are stories, but here, it’s an actual visual. In that culture, children were not symbols of innocence or humility. Rather, they were those without legal status. They were helpless. If you did something for a child, you did something for someone who could never pay you back. And in a culture where everything is transactional, you just don’t do that. This is the symbol Jesus is using to explain v35: if you wish to be first in the coming kingdom, then you must serve all people, even those who can never repay you.
In v37 he uses the word receive, meaning to accept or to welcome. This word always appears in the New Testament in the middle voice, which implies that the subject is part of the action. This means there’s a high level of self-involvement. This is not just standing at the door saying hello; this is actively doing something to welcome someone.
To receive or welcome a child would be to do something for someone who can never pay you back, to do something without any expectation whatsoever of being repaid.
The idea that someone might go out of their way to do something for a mere child is counter-cultural even today in many places in the world. Aquinas taught that in a raging fire, a man was obliged to save his father first, then his mother, next his wife, and last of all his young child. Even in modern times in many areas of the world, children are fed last, after the adults. Their survival is never certain and they can be replaced.
This idea alone would have been shocking enough to his listeners. But now Jesus turns up the heat in v37. He calls himself an emissary. In that culture, an emissary was expected to be accorded the same rights as the one who sent him. Jesus says that to accept the child, the nobodys, is to accept God.
This is the exact reverse of what a sane king in his kingdom would do.
The disciples were arguing about their position in the kingdom. Jesus says instead of worrying about our status, we should be concerned about the weakest, humblest, most powerless people within the community. And we should be serving them. This is not the way we would probably order a kingdom. This is why Jesus is still teaching them – it’s radical and it’s going to take time for them to get it. 2000 years later, the institution is still struggling in many ways to live this out.
Consider the disciples’ reaction of fear and silence. Do you ever meet Jesus this way? What if you stepped through your fear to ask him the questions your heart longs to voice?
Imagine as Jesus predicts his violent death. Talk with him about how that makes you feel.
Imagine you are among the disciples as they argue over who is the greatest. What part do you take in the conversation?
Picture someone you know who is vulnerable (a baby, an elderly person, etc). Imagine Jesus holding them up as an example. How is he asking you to receive him through this vulnerable person?
by Fritz von Uhde 1884
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© 2024 Kelly Sollinger