Mark 8:27-35
Last Tuesday we remembered 9 – 11,
when four jetliners were seized by terrorists who piloted them into
the twin towers and the pentagon. It was a terrible day for America,
and most of us still can recall the anxiety as we wondered what would
happen next. But a good thing came out of this. For a brief moment
we had a spirit of unity; we'd forgotten all the petty things that
divided us. It didn't last long. Today we seem to be in one of the
most divisive periods in our history. And our politicians and
publications keep throwing gasoline on the fire. Even in our church,
as we hear about the scandals i the clergy and the cover-ups by our
bishops, some clergy are calling for the resignation of Pope Francis,
who is supposed to be the one who is the very symbol of the unity of
the Church.
There is an interesting book I'm
reading It's called “In Good Faith – questioning atheism and
religion”. The author contends that tribalism is the main source
of disunity for humankind, , and the natural tendency for any group
of human beings is to define who is Us and who is Them. And the
dearest definition of us and them includes us being good and them
being bad; as we divide, we also see moral differences. Something
becomes an idol that has power over us. And isn't that obvious? The
people who oppose President Trump have decided that those who work
for him should not be allowed to live normal lives, should be shouted
and spit upon in public, should be denied the right to eat among
people who hate everything about Trump. And it goes both ways. Our
natural state is to be in tribes. In tribes we feel safe, we have
peace. But when we are forced to live alongside other tribes, expect
trouble. Many of the countries in Europe are ethnically uniform and
got along well, developing social policies that increased equality,
made health care universal, brought about other good things for the
citizens. But introduce a new tribe, Muslim immigrants, and all of a
sudden these social democracies are threatened by a rise in the
political power of the nationalist anti-immigrant parties.
So what does this have to do with the
gospel, you ask, shaking your watch to make sure it is still working.
Most of the time when this gospel is written we emphasize that Jesus
is disclosing himself for the first time as the Messiah; or we
challenge ourselves to answer the question Jesus poses, “Who do you
say that I am?” And those are good topics. But I think another
area we should pay attention to in this divisive age is the last part
of the gospel passage: “whoever wishes to come after me must deny
himself, take up his cross and follow me, forever who wishes to save
his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and for
the gospel will save it.”
Down through the ages people saw that
a remedy for tribalism, for Us vs Them mentality, was to create a
larger “Us”. We used to pride ourselves on being a “melting
pot” where nationalities from all over Europe became Americans.
The English language, the idea that anyone could succeed with hard
work and determination, all the other elements of so called
patriotism made us a larger tribe. Of course. And when you think
about it, that's what is going on in China. They are trying to make
a stubborn minority of muslims into Chinese by forcible re-education.
Us vs. Them becomes Us and Them, and there is peace for a while. My
daughter tells me that in Germany all those immigrants that have been
admitted have got to learn German and take classes in citizenship if
they want to take advantage of the benefits of society; in fact those
who don't assimilate are threatened with eventual expulsion. More
Us, less them.
But that is where the radical nature
of Jesus shines forth. He lived in an Us vs Them society; Pharisees
vs. Herodians, Jews vs. Pagans, and among the Jews many more
divisions. Saint Paul even took advantage of this when he was on
trial before a Roman judge and stated that he believed in the
resurrection; his accusers immediately began arguing among
themselves, to the point where the judge called off the trial. Jesus
in the last statement we hear in this gospel, proposes that his
followers be Us for Them. In other words, to follow Jesus means that
we consciously step out of tribalism, and through our actions choose
to live a life which recognizes the universal brotherhood of human
beings. And this is so contrary to our nature that it is possible
only with God's help. And yet it can be done. I think a great
example was Mother Theresa, who strongly and passionately identifed
as a Roman Catholic religious sister, but saw everyone – religion
didn't matter for her view, wealth was unimportant, age had nothing
to do with it -she was for the unborn just as much as the elderly –
she had reached the point where she was living an Us for Them life,
and tried to actualize that in the order she founded.
Where are your dividing lines? What
are the boundaries of your tribe? Remember, having a tribe is
natural, it's in our genes. But Jesus indicates today, and as you
well know in many other places, that the goal of the Christian is to
overcome this natural instinct – and through God's help, our goal
is to become Us for Them people. Is it easy? Of course not. It's a
cross, a cross that Jesus recognizes. But if we take it up, we
overcome death, and as we become this new people, those around us
will say, “See how these Christians love one another!” and they
also will want to live this new way. That is how Jesus wants to
overcome the world. You and I, God willing and through our
cooperation with his grace, will be part of that revolution.
