Pidgeon holed

Mark 6:1-6

          I'm not sure how often this happens but I know it does. When family members get back together after some length of time (like after moving away and having a family of their own, (that is: many years), they revert to a type of behavior and respond to each other in the same old ways. Sometimes it's dysfunctional even when they have really moved on with their lives, grown up and actually changed for the better. There's something about the dynamic that occurs. 40 year old children are treated like 12 year olds. The 'baby' of the group, now 50, gets treated like, well, the baby. I don't think anyone is imune.

          This is similar to what is happening to Jesus in todays passage.  He's being treated like the person the people knew. These people made no account for Jesus' growth or his changes or his ministry. The people used the reference they had and stuck with it even though it was wrong. In a way, it's a form of bigotry if you think about it. You take a reference, even if it's atypical, and apply it. You want to pidgeon hole someone into a reference or designation that you are comfortable with.    

          For lack of any other information, we go with what we know, or knew. This doesn't happen to those who keep up relationships and grow together or see the growth in each other.  It happens when you fail to grow or if you fail to learn a very important lesson in life. That is, to change, to recognize change and appreciate change.

          It's part of the syndrome I have noted before. A person brain dies at 40 and the body lives on another 40 years. And I'm not talking about someone who is in a coma even though it may seem they are.

           I'm not wise enough enough to submit a solution to this problem that has been going on probably even before Jesus' time. I can only suggest the following. We must learn to embrace growth. That is, not just change but real movement in our lives, movement within our own heads. We have to learn to see things differently and to appreciate newness and embrace differences.

            We can't think all southerns are rednecks and make a joke of it. We can't tell gay jokes, or Catholic jokes, or Polish jokes, or Asian jokes without running the risk of falling into stereotypical thought patterns that promote prejudice and bigotry. We must train ourselves well to appreciate the diversity of God's creation. This isn't really a substantive measure to take to alleviate this problem we all have. It is more of a call to awareness in fareness to all our brothers and sisters, you name the family.

            Perhaps focusing on God to open our hearts is a beginning. Perhaps that is thee beginning.

          

He left that place and came to his home town, and his disciples followed him. On the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astounded. They said, ‘Where did this man get all this? What is this wisdom that has been given to him? What deeds of power are being done by his hands! Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?’ And they took offense at him. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Prophets are not without honour, except in their home town, and among their own kin, and in their own house.’ And he could do no deed of power there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them. And he was amazed at their unbelief. 

Then he went about among the villages teaching.