Discipleship as “Tell-show-do-apply” kind of following Jesus Christ: Reflecting on Matthew 16: 21-28

As part of the driving test, besides theory exam, the examiner asks ‘show me’ and ‘tell me’ questions during the practical test, to test the new drivers’ knowledge about the safety of the vehicle. “Tell-show-do-apply” forms a strategy for creating an in-depth learning experience for both the instructor and the student. This week from our lectionary reading, I understand Jesus explaining about his identity and about the discipleship using this strategy, so that both his first century audience and the readers of this text today can decipher that the route map in following Jesus is “tell-show-do-apply.”

 

Ever since Peter affirmed Jesus to be the Messiah and the Son of the living God (16v), ‘from that time on,’ Jesus began to show his disciples about his death and resurrection. It is important to note that in verse 21, it is said, “From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples…” On reading this verse again, I was intrigued to recognise that Jesus was not merely ‘telling,’ ‘foretelling’ or just ‘preaching’ about his death and resurrection, rather ‘began to show’ about it to his disciples. Jesus began to demonstrate his sufferings, death and resurrection at the hands of the empire, so that the disciples understand the real essence of Jesus being the Messiah and the Son of the living God. Jesus is now adding flesh to Peter’s counter-cultural declaration (21v), showing that to be a Messiah and the Son of God is to live and testify for the values of God’s Kingdom for it contrasts the empire, and the cost of such a call and living is suffering and death in their hands. However, death is not the end of it, for God offers hope and new life to the creation by raising him on the third day.  Jesus has shown about the kingdom of God to his disciples, in his acts of protest against the Roman empire, in his acts of compassion towards people and in his acts of liberating the oppressed. Jesus has always shown it by being a living testimony in every situation of his life.

 

When Jesus began showing his disciples about the suffering, death and resurrection that is to come to him, Peter took Jesus aside and rebuked him saying, “God forbit it, Lord! This must never happen to you” (22v). Peter said those words for he did not want to lose Jesus. But Jesus knew that his suffering, death and resurrection will not happen if he compromises about the Kingdom of God and not demonstrate the love of God to all the oppressed communities. Jesus wouldn’t prefer doing that, and did not leave any stone unturned in liberating the oppressed communities, for which he knew public execution in the form of a cross is the cost that he has to pay for such an act.

 

Jesus rebuked Peter to be a stumbling block in his mission of God, challenging him to set his mind on divine things, which was his mission with the margins, and not on human things. Liberating the oppressed on the margins has always been at the heart of the divine, and Jesus has come to tell-show-do-apply on this earth, so that his disciples and followers will do it.  Jesus made a conscious choice of brining good news to the poor and liberating the oppressed living on the margins.

 

Then Jesus told his disciples, “if any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me” (24v). Jesus having told and shown his mission, now is inviting his disciples to do and to apply. Three things to do and apply as followers of Jesus, self-denial, taking up their cross and following Jesus. Denying one’s own self is costly, for it is said, “love is self-lessness and self is love-lessness”, so denying one’s own self is to put ‘others’ first, put love first and put love for others first. Taking up one’s own cross is an important thing to understand. Cross is the reward for standing and striving for God’s kingdom, which is to achieve peace, justice, love and equality. So, carrying one’s own cross is carrying the reward for suffering for peace, justice, love and equality. Many have misread this verse by assuming Jesus is inviting us to carry his cross, and forget that each of us has a cross and Jesus is inviting us to carry it in our discipleship for Jesus. Wearing a cross is easy, but bearing it is costly. To put it in other words, if we are followers of Jesus, there is for sure a cross for every follower, because working with Jesus for justice and peace is costly today. And then to follow Jesus, which is not as a volunteer for the gospel but a follower of Jesus by ‘telling-doing-showing-applying.’ Jesus, then goes on to say, “for those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it” (25v). Jesus was assuring his disciples about the strength in resurrection, for God offers hope to all those who suffer for the kingdom of God by granting new life experience.

 

Drawing a relevance of this text for us today, we are called as churches to be ‘tell-show-do-apply’ followers of Jesus. This ‘tell-show-do-apply’ is a complete package and over the times, we have compartmentalised it and have used each part of it in isolation. Or most times we have only remained as ‘telling’ churches, telling people and haven’t put our efforts towards showing, doing and applying the gospel of Jesus Christ. As churches our call is to demonstrate the love of God in our community, for which we might have to deny ourselves of our identity and offer love to all in our community unconditionally. As churches our call is to do like what Jesus is doing, to act, to dirty our feet in our working with the margins. This week at Glasgow, as you would have read that Mercy Baguma, an asylum seeker from Uganda was found dead in ‘extreme poverty’ next to her crying baby due to hunger. How can such a thing like this happen during our times today in a 21^st century advanced society, and I am angered at reading this news. Where has mercy and compassion gone?  As part of dirtying our feet, we as churches are called to hear the cries of Mercy’s who are in our localities crying, and are called to share our food to feed people in their hunger.

 

In terms of ‘applying’ Christian discipleship, it was a delight to know that the German Protestant church is sending a ship called ‘Sea-watch 4’ into the Mediterranean Sea to rescue migrants, for they do not want to stand by and watch thousands of people die in the sea. You can read more about it here on this link.[1] This is an example to see how churches today as followers of Jesus Christ are willing to carry their cross, for they are joining with Jesus in saving lives and in promoting life. Application of Jesus gospel today is the key in our moving forward. How do we translate the work of Jesus in our context today? In this application, the methodology might be different from how God in Jesus worked in his historical contexts, for God in God’s dynamism is willing to work with us to see that we are open in applying the gospel relevant to us. Discipleship today demands application of the gospel in actions, relevant for our times.

 

In the context of re-opening the church building for worship, with booking or informing well ahead who would join a service happening these days, I was pleased to hear that some people in my churches have put their names as ‘reserved,’ by which they were willing to drop off and stay at home if there are more people than the allocated number turn up for a service. In following Jesus, we are called to deny ourselves and our own priorities, and take up the cross of love for the sake of God’s kingdom here on earth.

 

May our communities around us know us as ‘tell-show-do-apply’ Christians and churches. May we keep working with passion for the cause of God’s Kingdom by carrying our own local and global crosses and follow Jesus Christ faithfully. Our discipleship in Christ is authentic when it is rooted in ‘tell-show-do-apply’ kind of Christianity. May God grant us God’s strength so that we can follow Jesus sincerely by meeting the needs of the people around us.

 

Rev. Dr. Raj Bharat Patta

27^th August 2020


Pic credit: https://sojo.net/articles/im-following-jesus-real-time

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[1] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/aug/06/german-protestant-church-to-send-migrant-rescue-boat-to-mediterranean#:~:text=The%20German%20Protestant%20church%20will,preparations%2C%20the%20crew%20has%20said.

Who do you say Jesus is today? Towards a courageous and counter-cultural church - Reflecting on Matthew 16: 13-20

Last week during my annual leave, I started watching ‘Vicar of Dibley’ on the recommendation of my colleagues. When the villagers were waiting for a new vicar at Dibley, to their utter surprise it was a woman Geraldine, who introduces herself as the new vicar of Dibley. Who did they think the vicar would be? Since it has always been men who were vicars, the villagers at Dibley expected a gentleman to be their vicar, based on their theological and historical evidences. Against their expectations, when it was a woman vicar, it took time for them to accept her, and eventually Rev. Geraldine makes a huge difference in the community through her ministry. It was fun watching these episodes, specially Dawn French’s performance of Rev. Geraldine, as a female priest in the tiny village of Dibley is exceptional to watch.

 

In the reading from Matthew 16: 13-20, Jesus asks his disciples about his identity, asking them, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” Like the villagers in Dibley, the people in the district of Caesarea Philippi had their own known theological and historical expectations of Jesus, the Son of Man. For the disciples reported, “Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets” (14v). Jesus was neither content with their reply nor consented to their reply. Now that John the Baptist was dead, Jesus did not claim that he was the risen John the Baptist. Since Elijah was the greatest prophet of Jewish religion who did not see death, Jesus did not claim that he was Elijah reborn. Jeremiah was a known prophet of yester years, for he was lamenting against exilic powers then, and there was every reason for Jesus to claim that he was Jeremiah born again to lament against the colonial powers of his time. Even though Jesus’ mission coincides with the mission engagements of John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah and other prophets, Jesus was not content on taking the identity of others for himself. Jesus has his own unique identity, which he wanted his disciples to explore and recognise based on his work and mission engagements. If we read the question that Jesus posed to his disciples, Jesus was enquiring, ‘who do people say that the Son of Man is?’ and not as ‘who do people say that the Son of Man was?’ Jesus was looking for an answer in present tense.  Jesus was not content with an answer based on some historical knowledge about himself, he was looking for an answer in present tense.

 

When his identity was not fully expressed in the answers of the people, Jesus further probed his disciples and asked them, “who do you say I am?” (15v) Jesus would have said to his disciples, let’s leave what the people say about me, for they have not seen or known me as much as you have seen and known me, and therefore asked his disciples to say who he was as they have known him. It was a question to all the disciples to answer who Jesus was to them. Simon Peter picked Jesus question and replied, “you are the Messiah, the Son of the living God” (16v). On a closer encounter with Jesus, Peter recognised the Messiah in Jesus, who the Jews have been eagerly awaiting to come and restore their land, and also recognised that Jesus is the Son of the living God. For the Jewish audience of the first century to whom Matthew was writing his gospel, they wouldn’t mind calling Jesus as John the Baptist, or Elijah or Jeremiah or another prophet, they would have thought Jesus was continuing their mission. But for Jews then, Peter’s declaration of Jesus as a Messiah and the Son of the living God was heretical and profane. For according to their belief, Messiah was a political figure who will come to restore their land, and how can Jesus, a son of a carpenter from Nazareth do that? According to their Jewish faith, how can living God have a son, for God is beyond any human comprehension for God cannot be compared in human terms of a son. Peter’s declaration of Jesus’ identity was not only counter-cultural, but was also blasphemous.

 

Jesus on the contrary, not only appreciates Simon Peter for his bold declaration about Jesus, but also reveals that such a declaration did not come to him from flesh and blood, but has come from his Father in heaven (17v). In a way Jesus accepted that yes, he was the Messiah, who has come to restore people to God and also is the Son of the living God, the Father in heaven. Peter’s declaration about Jesus was a recognition of who Jesus is, in its present tense. Peter’s declaration about Jesus was contextual, contemporary, creative, and counter-cultural, for they were based on his experiences and encounters with Jesus. Jesus then said to Simon Peter, that on such a rock called Peter he would build his church, and the gates of the hades will not prevail against it (18v). 

 

As we read this text today, two sets of questions come to the fore for our faith journey today. Firstly, who do we say Jesus is for us today? Secondly, what do we say about our church today? We have recognised earlier that Jesus was not content with some historical answers about him, but was seeking a creative, contextual and counter-cultural recognition about Jesus.

 

Allow me to answer it from my own perspective who do I say Jesus is for me? Jesus for me is God becoming human, who identifies with us, laughs with us, walks with us, weeps with us, like a friend, for he transcends all the barriers among people and builds a just and inclusive communion with God and with one another in this his creation. Jesus for me is the lens to know who God is, and a lens to know how human beings should be. Jesus for me is collaborating with each of us in the creation of God in striving towards a new-creation. Jesus for me is the one who stands for justice and sides with those that are oppressed, offering hope and liberation to them. By making such a declaration about Jesus, the call for us is to live like Jesus and work with Jesus in transforming our world to a just world.

 

What do we say about church today? Like Peter, the church is built on people who make counter-cultural affirmations about Jesus, offering hope, love, and peace to all in the community with Jesus, for the gates of hades will not prevail against it. Church for me should not be known by its membership, but should be known by its missional engagements for justice. Church for me should not be known by its minister, but should be known by its ministry in the community. Church for me should not be a private place for the saints, but a public place of comfort and care to the wounded and the broken people. Church for me should not be about prosperity and wealth, but should be about sharing good news to the poor, feeding the hungry, healing the wounded, visiting the sick, realising the captives and engaging in transforming this world to become a new creation. For no gates of hades will prevail against such a church, for Jesus is the lead to it, working with people for a new heaven and new earth.

 

As we return back to our church buildings for worship, let us keep reflecting on the need and relevance of our churches today. I have written previously, what has the community missed with the closing down of church buildings? And now what will the community around our church gain by the opening of our church building for worship? We need to prayerfully wait on God and ask God to help us envision a counter-cultural church, where we can make a difference in our community. Let us not to be content with the rich historical legacy we have had, let us not always keep singing about the past glory of our churches, rather we are called in humility to recognise that we as a church are called to share and offer hope in Jesus Christ to our communities around us. It calls courage to be counter-cultural as a church, but allowing the Spirit of God to lead us will help us in our movement forward, in fact outward as a church. The gates of the hades will not prevail against the church built on a rock, who are willing to be courageous, counter-cultural and creative in their declarations of faith and engagements of mission today. As a church if we aren’t counter-cultural, the gates of contemporary hades will prevail on us.

 

Let’s keep asking this question in our quest for re-imagining the church today, who is Jesus for us today? And what is church for us today? May God lead us and guide us so that we can be bold to be counter-cultural in our declarations of our faith and also in our missional engagements. By the way the Rev. Geraldine, the vicar of Dibley was counter-cultural in many ways and continued her mission engagements.

 

Rev. Dr. Raj Bharat Patta,

21^st August 2020

Pic credit: https://sermons.com/powerpoint/who-do-you-say-i-am/1456748

Are we as a church willing to walk with Jesus on waters today? Reflecting on Matthew 14:22-33

Amidst a re-lockdown measures in place due to the spike in the transmission of virus in our borough here, and as I read through the risk assessment forms of the churches in their preparations for the reopening of the church buildings for worship, I have been thinking are there any theological risk assessments that need to be addressed by us as churches. I reckon how important are the risk assessments for us to follow to keep everyone safe as they return to the church buildings. However, in our planning, all what we have been trying to do is working on how to come back to the church buildings. But personally, I think, a rather more important serious question for us to introspect is how are we preparing ourselves to come back to ‘church?’ What has the learning for us to be a church over the last 20 weeks in lockdown? Have we captured a new vision for us as a church or are we just eager to get back to what we have always been and done as a church? Where is God leading us as a church at a time like this?

 

For me, church is where Jesus is; in other words, church as a plural word for disciples is a place where Jesus is. This week’s reading from Matt 14:22-33, we have Jesus walking on the waters, and this text offers an invitation for us as church to be very different from the usual routine, to walk along with Jesus on the waters of modernity today.

 

After feeding more than five thousand people in the wilderness, Jesus stayed back dismissing everyone including his disciples to retreat and spend time in prayer. “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.” (Matt 14:23-24) Since the boat wasn’t there for him to travel Jesus had to do something unusual and odd to reach out to his disciples, which was walking on the waters. To put it other way, in order to reach out to his disciples, his friends, Jesus (ad)ventures to leave no stone unturned and can go to any extent, even to the point of walking on the water. For Jesus taking risks was nothing new, and at this point having spent time in prayer with God in solitude, Jesus knew that there is nothing that can separate him to love his disciples, even a lake and so he walks on it to show his love for them by reaching out to them. In other words, for Jesus there is nothing that can separate him from the love of God and his love for people, neither death nor life, neither peril nor pandemic, nor height, nor depth, nor length, nor lake, nor day, nor night, nor things present, nor things to come, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate him from love. At this instance, Jesus demonstrated that love for his disciples by reaching them on foot on waters. For Jesus all that mattered was reaching his disciples, for which he employs unusual and odd ways, of walking on water.

 

When Jesus does something unusual and odd, the first reaction that comes from the people was to mistake him to be a ‘ghost.’ It was well past midnight, early morning ish, when the fishermen turned disciples, were travelling in the boat to the other side of the shore, ahead of Jesus, the waves started roaring on the sea that they saw a ‘ghost’ walking on the sea. Terrified by seeing ‘the ghost’ the disciples cried out in fear. This case of fear in the life of disciples happened because, firstly, it was unusual and impossible to see someone walking on the sea, when they saw such a thing at that odd hour, they were in fear. Secondly, they mistook Jesus for a ghost or a phantom. They did not anticipate that the divine in Jesus can appear at the oddest periods of time and in the most unusual ways such as walking on water. They neither had a slightest clue to know that Jesus did this to express his love for them. The disciples were scared, fear overtook them, and they were terrified. Learning that his colleagues were petrified, Jesus comforted them by saying that “Take heart, it is I, do not be afraid.” Our context is no different today. Fear has taken over us for we are not able to recognise Jesus who has been coming to us at odd hours, and in odd and unusual ways.

 

On recognising Jesus words of hope, Peter takes courage in making a plea to Jesus to command him to walk like Jesus on the rough sea. Peter has personally seen and witnessed the strength in the command of Jesus on other occasions, be it in catching two boats of fish, or in stilling the storm or in casting away the demons, and therefore he makes a plea to Jesus to command him to walk on the rough sea. Jesus does not ignore the pleas made by his disciples, and since Peter has acknowledged the power of his command, he invites him to get out of the boat, to come and walk like him on the rough sea. Jesus appreciates when courage transforms people to adventure, and Peter started to walk on water towards Jesus. A rare sight for a human to walk on rough sea, Peter did it and walked for a while, for his plea was answered and became a reality.

 

This rare experience of walking on water for Peter did not long last, for as long as he kept his gaze on Jesus, he walked on rough seas as easy as he walked on the streets. When he let go his gaze on Jesus and noticed the strong winds of that rough sea, fear overcame him once again, and he began to sink in the waters. Letting go his focus on Jesus cost him dear. A diversion and deviation from the gaze on Jesus caused him to lose his balance on the waters, and was overtaken by fear and anxiety.

 

In those sinking moments, Peter cried out “Lord save me!” This shout of Peter on the one hand was an act of his confession for losing his focus on Jesus, and on the other hand it was an act of intercession, crying for help to save him from sinking. At that shout for salvation, the Grace of God came near to Peter, and Jesus reached out his hand, caught him and brought him out from sinking by granting him a new life experience. Imagine if Jesus did not come in rescue of Peter, he would have drowned. But he was found by the Grace of God, that he was saved to life and was caught by Jesus to live for him and for God’s Kingdom. In saving Peter, Jesus exposed his little faith, his doubt and healed them with greater faith and trust. The rest of the disciples on witnessing this whole episode recognised the ‘Son of God’ in Jesus and became a worshipping community.

 

On seeking relevance of this text for us as churches today, the call is in what ways are we trying to reach out to our people around us? We as churches have been very comfortable in doing what we have always done, and any slight change can cause a huge ruckus in our churches. In order to reach out to his disciples Jesus not only went an extra mile, but also went to walk on the waters with an extra smile. When Jesus did something unusual and odd in reaching out, the disciples did not recognise it was Jesus and called him a ‘ghost.’ There is no one size fit for all churches today in terms of translating what does that mean for us as churches to walk on the waters with Jesus. If we have a love for our community, we will like Jesus walk on waters to reach them, however impossible it might be, with Jesus we are called to do that. In that process there is every reason for the church to be misunderstood, like the disciples calling Jesus ‘ghost’, but it is worth taking a risk with Jesus and be prepared to be branded as a church in doing things differently.

 

This text is an invitation to capture a new vision for us as churches, which might look like walking on the waters. But we can like Peter start walking on waters when we get out of our comfy boats. Only on getting out of our boat and boxes can we as churches can walk with Jesus on the waters. Peter’s walk on the rough sea is an invitation to us, the disciples of Christ in this 21^st century, to recognise the strength in the command of Jesus, to be courageous in faith and to transform it to an adventurous faith of walking along with Jesus on rough seas of our times. My vision for a church today is that we will always remain in service of our community, addressing the needs and fears of people around us. Church is not about what happens at 11 O’clock on a Sunday but it is more about walking with Jesus on unusual grounds in love of our creation around us, and in helping people to overcome their fears and anxieties.

 

This text assures us that God’s grace helps us from sinking in the waters, for it is Jesus who is calling us to walk with him on the waters, and if we begin to sink, Jesus extends his hand to us. As church, let us be adventurous to walk with Jesus, driving all fears of sinking, for God’s grace has not given up on the church today. Church as offering Christian presence in our communities is still relevant and this current situation is an opportunity to sit together and envision a new vision for us as churches. In the waters of uncertainty, in the waters of insecurity, in the waters of anxiety, Jesus is inviting us to step out of our boats and walk with him, for he creates a worshipping community at the end. Let me remind you, it is not the worshipping community that is walking on the waters, but it is when a community recognises Jesus walking on the waters, and one of them joining with Jesus in that walk, they turn out to be a worshipping community. God is leading us a church to transform from being a frightened community to be a worshipping community, willing to do the unusual and odd things for God and with God.

 

May God grant us God’s grace so that we as a church can walk along with Jesus on the unusual and unexpected sites like on waters so that we become relevant, meaningful and worshipping community.

 

Rev. Dr. Raj Bharat Patta

6^th August 2020

Pic courtesy: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/Aeu8An4U04uYYhPrgeJQjaHMAK3s3B1gsM4EOcOEF7ooXEnj6d07ASM/

 

 

 

 

 

 

Witnessing in the sites of withdrawal: A call for communities of wilderness - Reflecting on Matthew 14:13-21

Most people had to withdraw from their holiday plans of travelling abroad this summer, due to the current circumstances, as there are many travel restrictions with quarantine and self-isolations from many countries and destinations being mandatory. Such withdrawals from vacations of holiday destinations, have resulted on people exploring staycations, which is where families stay at home and participate in leisure activities within driving distances from their homes. These are new ideas that people are willing to explore, which they did not in previous times, and this current pandemic is demanding people to try different things which they have not done before. Withdrawing from conventions and trying out something new and different has become a challenge with which people are coping with these days.

 

The gospel reading from Matthew 14:13-21, is a passage where Jesus withdraws from the public sphere to a deserted place in a boat all by himself, and later when the crowds gathered around him, he cured the sick and feeds five thousand hungry people by sharing five loaves of bread and two fish. This story of ‘feeding the five thousand’ has been recorded by all the four gospel writers and has been one of the most popular stories that people know from their Sunday school days. However, as I read this text again in the context of lockdown, I am more drawn towards the ‘withdrawal’ of Jesus, which has some relevance for our times today. Why did Jesus withdraw, from where did he withdraw and how has ‘withdrawal’ served as a site of witness for him are some of the questions that need our attention here.

 

Withdrawal as a Protest against the Powers:

In the two passages prior to this given text, we notice the rejection of Jesus at his home town Nazareth (Matt 13:54-58) and then the death of John the Baptist by Herod (Matt 14: 1-12). So, on hearing the news of John the Baptist’s death by Herod, Jesus withdrew from there to a deserted place by himself (14:13v). On hearing about the capital punishment and unjust killing of John who was prophetic, and on knowing that he is being recognised as the risen John the Baptist by Herod (14:1), I think Jesus withdrew from the public sphere in protest against the powers of his day to a deserted place. Jesus when he withdrew from the people in the public sphere, the crowd heard it and followed him (14:3). I imagine Jesus’ withdrawal from the public sphere would have been the talk of the town, and by his withdrawal in protest, Jesus was exposing Herod and his dictatorial, reckless, state-sanctioned, unjust killing of John the Baptist, whom the people of his day regarded as a prophet (14:5). Herod, the crony of the empire, misuses his power and executes John the Baptist, meeting to the whims and fancies of his mistress. Herod had every opportunity to prevent the unjust killing of John, but little did he act with and for justice, and eventually John the Baptist became a victim of state sanctioned capital punishment. When people started to search for Jesus, they understood that Jesus withdrew in protest against the powers and principalities of his day, on this occasion Herod. Elsewhere in Luke 13:32, we see Jesus saying to the Pharisees about Herod, “Go and tell that fox for me…” Jesus did not miss any opportunity to critique Herod for his unjust actions and politics.

 

By withdrawing into a deserted place, Jesus stepped away from the centres of the powerful public sphere, who were rejoicing the beheading of John the Baptist. On the other hand, Jesus withdrew to the deserted place, the wilderness, to express his solidarity with John the Baptist, who was a voice in the wilderness, and who lived in wilderness away from the centres of the powers. I again imagine, the crowd later on, when found Jesus in the deserted place all alone, would have recognised Jesus’ withdrawal was not only in protest against Herod’s unjust killing of John the Baptist, but also to express Jesus’s solidarity with John the Baptist, who lived, preached, baptised and spoke truth to the powers from such a site of wilderness/deserted place. The verb “Anachoreo” (withdrawal), used seven times in the gospel of Matthew, had always a suggested pattern of hostility/withdrawal/prophetic fulfilment for Jesus. However, in this instance, in this given text I recognise protest/withdrawal/solidarity pattern of Jesus.

 

Withdrawal as a site of Witness:

When the crowd came to know that Jesus withdrew from the public sphere in protest against the powers, especially Herod, and found him in the deserted place, Jesus had compassion on the people, cured the sick and fed more than five thousand people with bread and fish. Withdrawal for Jesus served as a site of witness, for Jesus did not send them hungry at that late hour in the day, but fed them sufficiently. Warren Carter explains in his book Matthew and the Margins, that this feast of feeding five thousand in the wilderness has to be read in juxtaposition of the previous passage where there was another feast of Herod’s birthday party. If the gathering in the wilderness was about compassion, healing the sick and feeding the hungry, what was happening in Herod’s palace was the exact opposite, heartlessness, revenge, gluttony and unjust state-sanctioned beheading of John the Baptist.

 

Therefore, for Jesus this withdrawal not only became a site of protest, but also served as a site of witness demonstrating compassion to the multitude of people who were hungry. The pompous party at Herod’s palace was happening at the expense of the hungry people in the wilderness, where a few powerful people in the empire own majority of the resources, leaving many people vulnerable, hungry, powerless and bread-less. I imagine, Jesus shares a simple meal of five loaves of bread and two fish to five thousand people not only out of compassion towards the hungry but also as a critique against the pompous birthday bash at Herod’s palace. While the act of sharing food by Jesus with a multitude of hungry people in the site of withdrawal was life-giving act, the party at Herod’s palace was life-denying where the imprisoned John, who spoke truth to the powers was beheaded as a return birthday gift.

 

In his withdrawal from the public sphere into the deserted place, Jesus created a community of wilderness, an alternative public sphere based on the values of thanksgiving, sharing, caring, feeding and demonstrating compassion in action. This community of wilderness became a witnessing community, witnessing Jesus’ protest, solidarity, compassion, healing the sick, feeding the hungry and live-giving acts. After feeding the five thousand, Jesus dismissed the crowd, and the disciples, and again went into solitude to a mountain to pray (14:23). What we gather from this is that for Jesus prayer was a personal act, whereas feeding the five thousand was a political and a public act. In other words, on the one hand wilderness for Jesus served as a site of political and public witness, where the hungry are fed and the sick are healed, and on the other hand wilderness served as a site of personal witness, where Jesus spends time in prayer, waiting and listening to God.

 

As I am completing this reflection, I heard on news that Greater Manchester will be in lock-down again as there is an increase in the rate of transmissions, as social distancing rules have not been strictly adhered to. The easing out of lock down is now withdrawn for people here. Drawing a relevance of this text for us today, the questions that comes to the fore are, what are the signs and sites of withdrawal for us? And how are we witnessing in such sites today? In my quest for reimagining the church today, as we re-turn to the church buildings for worship, we have two options before us, one is Herod’s palace where a pompous birthday bash is happening with the elite and powerful attending, and the other is community of wilderness where feeding of the hungry is happening where people on the margins are attending. For me, churches today are called to be the community of wilderness, where we offer our resources like the five loaves and two fish and willing to work with Jesus in sharing with the rest of the multitude who are hungry and needy.  As churches we are called to withdraw from centres of powers in protest against the unjust systems and make a preferential option of being in solidarity with those on the margins. As churches we are called to withdraw in protest from status quos that uphold oppressive structures like that of racism, casteism, patriarchy. As churches we are called to protest against the unjust policies which are making people go hungry and are called to be compassionate in addressing specially child hunger in our contexts.

 

The new data shows that almost a fifth of UK homes with children go hungry in lock down, as millions of people are struggling to afford for food. In such a context, there is a greater role and relevance for our churches today in addressing hunger which is a reality in our midst, in our own localities. As churches we are called to withdraw from our conventional modes of being and doing church, but rather are called to witness in such sites of withdrawal by feeding the hungry. When I have written such reflections in the previous weeks, I was asked by few of my church friends, are not the charities working on addressing poverty and hunger, and so what is the difference between church and a charity? My immediate response was, if charities are working on issues of poverty and churches are not, that in itself exposes the failure on the part of us as churches for we have not lived up to our call of addressing the needs of the poor, like the hungry in the wilderness. Jesus today wants us as churches to be communities of wilderness, working with Jesus and with one another in meeting the needs of the people, and be witnessing communities living with compassion for people on the margins.

 

On many occasions we have been like disciples saying to Jesus, “This is a deserted place, and the hour is now late; send the crowds away so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” (14:15) Perhaps Jesus is calling to us all to withdraw from such assertions to send people away, for Jesus never wants to send away people in hunger. Jesus then replied to his disciples and he is saying it aloud to us today, “they need not go away. You give them something to eat.” (14:16) Let those that have ears hear this and act now, “you give them something to eat.”        

 

May God in Jesus grant us strength to withdraw from our cosy, comfortable, conventional modes of being church and lead us in our call to be a community of wilderness, where the sick are healed, the hungry are fed and where there is compassion filled with justice for all. May God be with us this summer as we withdraw from our regular ways of doing things, to do something new and different.

 

Rev. Dr. Raj Bharat Patta

31^st July 2020

Pic courtesy: https://www.learnreligions.com/jesus-feeds-the-5000-700201

 

Good news of Jesus today - Raj Patta

Masking Prayer - CBeckett- Raj Patta

The (ab)normal as the ‘new’ normal: The parable of the mustard seed - Reflecting on Matthew 13:31-33

As the churches are beginning to re-open as the lockdown is easing out, with their risk assessments done, making plans for public worship, the real question that comes to the fore is, are we as churches going to get back to the same kind of being and doing church? Though we will begin to gather in our church buildings, there are still lots of restrictions in place, like we are not allowed to sing, no hymn books, no coffee and tea after the service, people sitting in social distancing, track and trace records, can’t have large gatherings, short services, no shaking hands and hugs, one way to enter and another way to exit, hand sanitization and cleanings. Will our church worship services be like what we have always known? Will our church buildings be like what we have known? When we return, it will be a different normal, perhaps we are stepping into an abnormal normal, which according to me is ‘beyond’ normal, especially in the case of church.

 

Jesus spoke to his disciples in at least seven parables about the mysteries of the kingdom of God in Matthew 13, and in 31-33 verses, Jesus shared the parable of the mustard seed. Over the years many have interpreted this parable in terms of size, that mustard seed is a small seed and grows to become a big tree, and so is it with the Christian faith. But if we get the facts right, we know that mustard seed is not the smallest of the seeds for there are many other seeds smaller than mustard seed. Also, mustard seed grows to become a shrub and it never grows to be a tree, leave alone to be the greatest tree. Why then does Jesus shares this parable? Yes, I know many will then argue that parables are allegorical and are told to share a message, and any literal reading of seeking facts might undermine the essence of a parable. As I re-read this parable for our times today, I find that Jesus was sharing this parable with a certain degree of abnormality in mind, that the mustard seed will grow to be a greatest tree nesting many birds on its branches. However, through that abnormality, Jesus is conveying a message of critique and a message of hope to his audience then and now, which is a message that the kingdom of God is ‘beyond’ normal.

 

1.     The abnormal as a critique against the norm of empire:

The parable of the mustard seed is recorded in all the four gospels Matthew, Mark, Luke and John and also in the gospel of Thomas as a parable shared by Jesus about the Kingdom of God. The audience of these gospels were well aware of the first century Jewish kingdom narratives, particularly the metaphorical usage of trees representing the rulers and the empires. In the Old Testament, Assyria and Nebuchadnezzar are depicted as large trees providing shelter to many birds on their branches in Ezekiel 31:6 and Daniel 4:12. In both these instances Assyria as an empire provided shelter to many other neighbouring nations and Nebuchadnezzar as a king provided shelter to his people in his kingdom. When Jesus said that the kingdom of God is like a mustard seed which grows to be the greatest tree in the field nesting birds on its branches, though it was not normal for the mustard seed to grow that way, Jesus picked that abnormality to critique the norm of empire by warning the colonial powers that such an abnormal will be the ‘new’ normal. The kingdom of God grows in an (ab)normal way, defying the norm of an empire, not in the normal way of growing to be a shrub but in a subversive way of growing to be a tree from a tiny pungent mustard seed. The norm of the empire is that the powerful becomes the tree and under the patronage of the powers and principalities, the rest of the nations and ethnicities seek their shelter. But the norm of the kingdom of God is that out of powerlessness, out of smallness the mustard seed grows to become an (ab)normally greatest tree so that the birds of the air can nest on its branches. The parable of the mustard seed becomes a lens to understand that Jesus’ kingdom of God is abnormal to the known empires of Assyria or Rome, yet in that (ab)normality those that are different from mustard seeds find their shelter. Jesus shared this parable of the mustard seed as a critique to the norms and normalisations of the empires.

 

2.     The abnormal as a hopeful aspiration ‘beyond’ normal:

Who would have thought that the mustard seed would grow, become a plant, become a shrub and then turn to be a big tree, greatest of the shrubs? Jesus by sharing this parable was explaining that the kingdom of God begins as a small seed and then grows (ab)normally beyond normal. This parable expresses a hopeful aspiration of the kingdom of God, for it grows (ab)normally, beyond the expectations of the sower, beyond the expectations of the mustard seed, beyond the expectation of the field in which it grows, beyond the expectation of all the hearers and audience of this parable. As is the normal, the kingdom of God which is like a mustard seed growing up, the expectation is to grow as a plant and a shrub. But that edge or notion of growing into a tree and into a greatest tree conveys the eschatological vision of the kingdom of God, which is not limited to the normal, which is not limited to the expected, but which transcends and outgrows the normal. By sharing about the (ab)normal growth of the kingdom of God like a mustard seed, Jesus is conveying that the kingdom of God is not what we think as normal where business is as usual, but kingdom of God is ‘beyond’ normal, with unexpectedness, with surprises, with some shocks, and with no limitations. In that (ab)normality, the kingdom of God provides a hope for the mustard seed to become a greatest tree, which was unthinkable and unimaginable. Hope is not knowing the future, but trusting in the God of the future, for God will lead from the known normal to ‘beyond’ normal, into the (ab)normal walking and working with us.  

 

3.     The abnormal as an opportune space for a different purpose:

What would be the ultimate purpose of an apple tree? To be fruitful and yield a great harvest of apples. Similarly, what would be the purpose of a mustard tree? To grow mustard seeds and yield a great harvest of mustard seeds. These understanding of the purposes of the trees is a very human-centred view of the trees, where we selfishly think that trees grow fruits for the benefit of humankind. But when Jesus narrated this parable, he said that the mustard seed will grow to be a greatest tree, and never mentions about the harvest of the mustard seeds, but Jesus said “so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” Jesus presents an ecological vision of the kingdom of God, where the mustard seed grows into a tree to nest the birds of the air. The (ab)normality of this parable grows to a greater height when Jesus narrates that the mustard seed not only outgrows from a shrub to a tree, but also outgrows to nest the birds of the air. The (ab)normal growth of the mustard seed to become a hopeful greatest tree is not to enjoy the privilege of being the greatest and biggest tree yielding a great harvest, but to be a space of shelter for a variety of birds of the air to nest on its branches. The (ab)normal comes with an ecological vision of trees being grown not to meet the selfish desires of human beings, but to become a space to nest the birds on its branches. With the trees being cut down because of human greed, we can understand how much it affects the housing of the birds.

 

So, seeking a relevance of this parable today, as we prepare for a re-turn to our churches, the call for us is to engage in a spirituality of the (ab)normal growth of the kingdom of God. Such an engagement requires not to re-turn uncritically to the things we have always done, but to re-envision what God wants us to do at a moment like this. In the present context I see the church as a mustard seed, and the kingdom of God is where the church grows (ab)normally to be a tree nesting the birds of the air as its ecological missional calling. No one would expect the church to grow into a tree, but if we want to be part of the kingdom of God that Jesus inaugurated, it might look (ab)normal, but it is the need of the hour, to become a tree to shelter birds, save them from extinction and save the planet.

 

Secondly the (ab)normal growth of the church like the kingdom of God happens as a critique of the empire which comes to us in the forms of capitalist understanding of growth for whom numbers and profits are all that matter. The (ab)normal growth as a church is recognised not in the yield of the mustard seed harvest, but in providing shelter to many people who do not have shelter, becoming a space of hospitality to all those who are on the move, crossing boundaries and oceans, and by offering to be a Christian presence of sharing love, peace and justice with people in our communities. These outcomes certainly sound abnormal to many people for whom church is all about filling the pews, but the parable of the mustard seed speaks to us to think of the kingdom of God growing (ab)normally to be a tree addressing housing issues for birds, for people and to all those that are in need of shelter.

 

In recent news this week, the churches across the denominations in Southampton, UK are working to break down the barriers to housing preventing homelessness by supporting Southampton Churches Rent Deposit Scheme, which has till now funded 79 rental deposits in a year of which 14 were people who were sleeping rough. This for me serves as an example of how the church can grow (ab)normally by supporting housing issues for the needy among us. This is an inspiring model for us as churches in other places to take on board and strive to address the issues of housing.

 

Thirdly, the (ab)normal growth of the church as the kingdom of God happens in the unknown, the unexpected and the unimagined ways of doing church. The mustard seed growing to be a shrub was a normal phenomenon, but growing to be a tree, and to be a housing tree is that extra edge that Jesus was pushing the boundaries, which is but the very meaning of the kingdom of God. We cannot follow Jesus without following this ‘edginess.’ As churches today the calling for us is to allow God to push our boundaries to do things that are different from what we have always done, and to be prepared as churches to grow (ab)normally, ‘beyond’ normal, so that we become relevant for our times today.

 

Allow me to reiterate, for Jesus, the growth of the mustard seed is in it growing to be a greatest tree by sheltering the birds of the air, and so it is for the church in the design of the kingdom of God. Jesus in a way was abnormalizing normality and normalising abnormality. Jesus elsewhere in Matthew 17: 20 said that if we have a faith like a grain of mustard seed, we can do the impossible. May God grant us such a faith like the grain of mustard seed so that we can grow as a church (ab)normally by sheltering those needy people in our spaces. May this parable of the mustard seed inspire us as a church in our reimagining to (ab)normally grow as a church being a church with an ecological vision, and with a communitarian vision with a preference to those on the margins. Perhaps in growing (ab)normally we as a church will find our relevance today. Post-lockdown is an opportune time for us to discover and explore our (ab)normal ways of being a church.

 

Let me conclude with the words of Pope Francis, 

 

“Each Christian and every community must discern the path that the Lord points out, but all of us are asked to obey his call to go forth from our own comfort zone in order to reach all the ‘peripheries,’ in need of the light of the gospel.”

 

Rev. Dr. Raj Bharat Patta

23^rd July 2020

Pic credit: http://leohartshorn.blogspot.com/2009/01/gods-reign-is-for-birds-sermon-on.html