Think about a political discussion today. YOU are WRONG! You are willfully ignorant my friend, do your research, blah, blah and blah, you need to wake up! Sound even remotely familiar? I guess in many ways each side is relying on 'their side' to provide accurate data or information in which they develop their agenda or answer to any given problem or issue. Then too, there are those that base their opinion on spurious sources. Each side will tell you the other one's is using 'fake news' as a resource. It really is astounding, frightening, scary and sad how we have all fallen down this rabbit hole. I hope we can all find our way out.
In today's passage from Mark, we see two totally different stories but each one involves people looking to support their view from a different vantage point. Perhaps it is not too different from today really.
Recently, my husband and I had a bit of a kerfuffle as spouses sometimes do. Funny thing, we were both right. Because we have no interest in abandoning our relationship, we are convinced of each others sincerity and good will, we talk it out explain where we were coming from and voila, an aha moment! We begin to see that my way is not the only way to look at things. Indeed, my way is not the only 'right' way to handle a given situation in spite of the fact that we joke that there is 'my way and the wrong way'! Frank open discussion is key. A willingness to listen and not merely a pause until your opponent runs out of breath so you can quickly rattle on with your own pseudo response. All that becomes is mutual turns at screaming with no real listening involved.
In the early times of Christianity, the 'church' such as it was, was very conscious of heresy. That is, they wanted to maintain true beliefs and fight some "fake" ideas and errant though processes. This was serious business. Losing your faith was more serious than losing . . . your i-phone! I only say that because I just helped a fellow passenger here at the airport. She was simply frantic, distraught and on the verge of panic that someone may have taken or that she lost her phone, she asked me to ring her phone. When you think about the data in your phone - maybe panic was in order - it was serious! That's a digression perhaps but those early Christians were serious about fake ideas ( heresy ). I believe it was Tertullian, an early church father that thought the best way to counter heresy was to fully embrace and understand the position of your opponent.
Can you imagine what the world would be like if actually tried to understand our opponents position? I mean really listening to understand and not simply tolerating someone's speech. It might be miraculous!
Mary T. Lathrap wrote a poem in 1895 about walking a mile in someone else's shoes. This was later subsumed and accepted erroneously as an Native American aphorism. The fact is though, it is wonderful thing to empathize and try to understand what another person is going through. How is it to be Black in America? A cop? A gay man? A trans person? An LGBTQ memeber trying to come to terms with the fact that God loves them? If we could all just try to listen, understand and empathize, the world would be a much better place.
Many years ago, before the world went bonkers with fundamentalist Christianity and Islam, my Dad did a great deal of reading. It was a passion he held until his death. I recall him reading all about Islam. His intent was to understand this relatively unknown ( to us ) religion that was making news in Afghanistan with Russia trying ( and failing ) to intercede. Have we done any better by the way?? Has anyone else been reading or listening to the 'oposing side?'
Somehow I think we will never get out of our rabbit hole unless we start listening more and trying to really understand. Selectively and surgically using Scripture as a means to justify our own ends is not acceptable. I believe it is an affront to God, whether it be The Holy Bible or the Quran.
We may all need our eyes washed, our ears cleaned and try very hard to see what it is like for 'the other guy' to live. We need to try and understand. That is what we need and that is what I pray for.
Mark 12:13-27
Then they sent to him some Pharisees and some Herodians to trap him in what he said. And they came and said to him, ‘Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and show deference to no one; for you do not regard people with partiality, but teach the way of God in accordance with truth. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?’ But knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, ‘Why are you putting me to the test? Bring me a denarius and let me see it.’ And they brought one. Then he said to them, ‘Whose head is this, and whose title?’ They answered, ‘The emperor’s.’ Jesus said to them, ‘Give to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.’ And they were utterly amazed at him.
Some Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him and asked him a question, saying, ‘Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, leaving a wife but no child, the man shall marry the widow and raise up children for his brother. There were seven brothers; the first married and, when he died, left no children; and the second married her and died, leaving no children; and the third likewise; none of the seven left children. Last of all the woman herself died. In the resurrection whose wife will she be? For the seven had married her.’
Jesus said to them, ‘Is not this the reason you are wrong, that you know neither the scriptures nor the power of God? For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. And as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the story about the bush, how God said to him, “I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob”? He is God not of the dead, but of the living; you are quite wrong.’
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