During the recent Euro 2020 football matches, it was reported that some fans in the stadium were booing the English team when they were taking a knee in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter campaign in support of anti-racism. They say ‘booing is a way of fans showing their dissatisfaction.’ However, the manager of the England team, Gareth Southgate has said that those booing are not able to understand the message, and has kept his determination for the cause of fighting racism in the game of football and in the society. Fans generally come to the stadiums to cheer their teams and encourage them when they play the game against the opponents. How can one’s own fans boo their own team when they do things that are different to what they expect their team to do? English football team is committed to give ‘red card’ to racism and wanted to spread the message of equality of all people irrespective of their colour, creed, ethnicity and sexuality, for no amount of booing will stop their determination and commitment for this cause, and all football lovers are called to strive towards racial justice and equality.
Back in the day, when Jesus came to his home town and was preaching in his local synagogue on a Sabbath day, his own people were booing Jesus as they were astounded by his wisdom, power and deeds asking “Is not this the carpenter, son of Mary, brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters with us? And they took offence at him.” (6:3) Why did his local mates take offence at Jesus? Firstly, they took offence because they could not accept the fact that a simple carpenter could speak wisdom, perform healings and do great things. In other words, they would have been ok, if Jesus the carpenter was coming out with his wooden gifts and crafts, anything that Jesus does which is beyond their own expectations, they can’t take it and take offence on Jesus, in a way they were booing him. A person from his ancestral trade has to do only that kind of trade, and any disruption, deviance and defiance to that particular trade would be considered offensive and is subject to booing. Such a thinking is the bedrock of colonialism, for it thrives under the principle of rigidity and upholding status quo, however oppressive that structure is. In the context of casteism, people are divided in the name of caste, based on their occupations, and such a division of labour continues on one’s descent. People like Gandhi upheld such casteist division of labour and promulgated that if people in their own castes/occupations perform their own duties then the society will be harmonious. Any mobility or change or defiance from their given caste and occupation is considered deviance to the whole system and structure of caste. Jesus, though was a carpenter as the locals knew him, he defied that role to partake in the greater cause of transforming the world through his Kingdom of God manifestations. In other words, God chooses people from simple trade to change the world, for God surprises the world and challenges the powers of the world by using a carpenter. So, when a carpenter Jesus was doing something beyond the expectations of the society, he was booed and the society took offence of him. So, the learning from this point is any discrimination of any person based on one’s own prejudices and assumptions is unchristian and inhuman.
Secondly, people took offence at Jesus because, how can an ‘illegitimate’ child of Mary come and teach wisdom and do deeds of power in their midst? In this verse it is interesting to note that there is no mention of Joseph, and all that the identity of Jesus carries was ‘son of Mary,’ for their town knew that Mary conceived Jesus as a ‘virgin,’ which according to the then society was something very unethical and a polluting act. So, they took offence at Jesus for as a child born ‘illegitimately’, the divine cannot find favour in such people and so his wisdom and deeds of power are either unreliable or all null and void. That is the reason Jesus was astounded at their unbelief in him (6v.)
Thirdly, the people took offence at Jesus because on the day of Sabbath, he does things that are very different, including doing deeds of power, curing the sick etc., where he defies their religious laws of Sabbath. Jesus always swims across the currents of the waters for the cause of life, Jesus always does things ‘against the grain’ which are not well received by the popular majority, and so they take offence at him.
In such a context when the local mates took offence at him, Jesus did not give up his prophetic call nor give in to their offences, rather Jesus bounced back and said that prophets aren’t well received in their home ground, yet such an unwelcome do not stop their vocation that is given by God. Jesus was rejected and unwelcomed in his hometown, yet he showed resilience and has responded very creatively to that occasion, by sending his disciples two by two on a mission trip to the local towns and villages. His rejection in his home town did not depress Jesus, rather provided him with an opportunity to work creatively, this time sending his disciples in six pairs to continue his mission among those that rejected him. Jesus could have cursed his hometown for the kind of rejection and offence that people took in him, yet Jesus the embodiment of love reacted in love by graciously sending his disciples to mission with love to that community.
It was a love mission, where Jesus sends his disciples to teach love, to be love, to perform acts of love and create a loving community. At a place where he was rejected, Jesus builds a loving community with his disciples. The instructions that Jesus gives to his disciples are all of love, for mission is all about love. Firstly, he sends his disciples two by two, for Jesus as a team player knows the importance of partnerships, and sends them as companions, to love God, love one another and then demonstrate that love to all those whom they meet on their journey. Secondly, Jesus sends them with ‘bare minimum’, which is to take only a staff as a protection, wear sandals to walk, and then no bread, no bag, no money, not to put on two tunics. ‘Love is selflessness and self is lovelessness,’ is what Jesus was emphasising to his disciples. Jesus’ mission trips are not luxurious comfort trips, but are paths of cross, where the disciples are invited to join with the community in understanding common people’s hunger, their poverty and their needs. Such an identification is a demonstration of love with the community, where power is dismantled and solidarity serves as a mark of love mission. Thirdly, Jesus’ mission involves in situations of refusal and rejection, to move on, rather than judge and curse them. Again, love is the mantra of mission. Jesus said, just shake the dust of your feet and move on in times of rejection. So, the disciples went and performed a love mission, by casting the demons, by healing the sick and by anointing with oil.
The gospel writer did not mention what had happened to the people who had rejected Jesus on seeing the response of love that Jesus and his disciples did on their mission trip. But, I for one, would imagine that on recognising that Jesus has responded to his rejection with love, those people who took offence on Jesus would have been transformed by love and would have been part of God’s table, the Kingdom of God.
What is the relevance of this text for our times today? The first lesson we learn from this text is that love is the only response to rejection and refusal. Jesus upholds ‘contradictory convictions’ of people in creative tension, and tries to win people with love and love alone. This week when the Methodist Conference has voted to allow same sex marriages at Methodist churches, I could see the amount of hatred some people were spilling with lots of online abuse on Methodist Church, judging them, booing them and taking offence at them for this their bold and prophetic vote. Time and again at the Conference it was emphasised that there are no losers and no winners, for it is only love that thrives, for this vote is about people, real people who have been booed, discriminated because of their sexuality and gender, and all this vote means is to embrace them with love. This given text gives us hope that in situations of rejections by certain groups of people, we as followers of Jesus Christ are called to be gracious and generous in our love for them and respond with a love mission, demonstrating love in action towards them. It is important that we uphold each other’s perspectives together, respect each other’s positions and celebrate God’s presence in our midst, for love is the DNA of Christian faith. In situations of rejection, love is the only response.
Secondly, any discrimination of any person based on one’s own prejudices and assumptions is unchristian and inhuman. Who said carpenters cannot speak wisdom and perform deeds of power? For there is no longer male or female, master or slave, Greek nor Jew, carpenter or local preacher, vicar or doctor, teacher or nurse, child or adult, straight or gay, for we are all one in Christ. It is God who calls, and it is God’s grace which invites people to share God’s words, and so the emphasis should be on God and God’s grace and not on any individual merit or profession or identity. God is a God of love, and so in love God calls anyone to be God’s co-workers in the Kingdom of God. So, any discrimination, any distinction and any division should not be tolerated and should be resisted.
Thirdly, God in Jesus is sending us out into the world two by two, in partnerships, in companionships to be part of God’s love mission, to spread love and to demonstrate love in action. ‘Church on the market place’ has been an initiative where we go two by two in the town centre to talk to people, to listen to people, to identify with people and to spread the love of God in the community. When Jesus sent his disciples two by two to mission, they did not come back to say we have brought thirty people to Jesus, nor did they say we have planted some ten churches, all they did was cast the demons, curing the sick and anointing people with oil. Our call is to spread the love of Christ, be a witness for Christ’s love and to celebrate God’s presence in our localities.
May we as friends of Jesus join with him in taking a knee with teams who amplify the message of ‘no to racism’, ‘red card to racism’ and strive towards a just and equal society. Amen.
Raj Bharat Patta,
02.07.2021
Pic credit: https://www.technicalripon.com/sports/england-vs-croatia-fa-urges-fans-to-respect-players-taking-a-knee-at-wembley-football-news/
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