[_01_] As a general rule, a team or an
individual competitor feels stronger, more confident at home.
This would be true for the NJ
Devils at the Prudential Center, NY Rangers at Madison Square Garden, the NY
Mets at Citifield. And, today, in London, Andy Murray playing in front of the
“home” British crowd at the Wimbledon
tennis championships.
Isn’t it encouraging to have a
friendly and supportive crowd?
[_02_] In the Gospel this Sunday, our Lord and
Savior makes a homecoming.
But this is Nazareth, not
Wimbledon.
While – in London - Andy Murray
of the U.K. receives much encouragement in a very
difficult tennis final
against Roger Federer from Switzerland, Jesus is spurned/rejected by his own
people, his “fan base” in his own country.
This is summarized in the
Gospel declaration which has become a proverb to us, “a prophet is never
accepted in his own country.” (Mark 6:4)[1]
[_03_] Where would my country, or your country
be? In this case, country indicates something local, a hometown.
River Edge, then, is a country
with its own customs, traditions. And, within our country, we have certain
expectations.
Perhaps, our “country” is River
Dell High School, or Roosevelt or Cherry Hill Elementary.
Our country is also our family
where husband/wife, mother/father create not only a home but also a secure
frontier and environment for their children.
And, parents carry out their
responsibility to protect their children from outside dangers and prepare them,
one day, to cross the border on their own.
[_04_] In our reading from Mark, Chapter 6,
Jesus returns To the town and country of Nazareth where he is examined,
criticized, analyzed.
The crowd is not so friendly.
And, the “home field” or “home stadium” seems to be a disadvantage, a
hindrance.
The people of Nazareth prefer
not to receive or heed the teaching of someone they know quite so well.
Is he not the carpenter’s son?
[_05_] And, don’t we all have trouble hearing
advice/correction from those who are very close to us?
Please – we would think -- I’d rather not be told how to dress, where to
go, or whether I should take the George Washington Bridge or Lincoln Tunnel to
get there.
[_06_] In a similar way, the Nazareth crowd /
audience spurns Jesus, rejects him.
They do not – and we do not –
want to experience defeat or correction on our home court.
Isn’t this true when
a family member tells me something I do not want to hear?
Yet, it is through
close/intÃmate relationships that we understand not only our capacity for
love
… but also our own brokenness, our faults.
And, to accept Jesus at home,
in our home court sometimes means going against the mood of the crowd.
[_07_] What is
the mood, the attitude of the crowd in Nazareth? As they might have said in
Nazareth, we say in New Jersey, “you talking to me?”
Surely Jesus can go other
places and ask them to repent of their sins …
Or Jesus should speak to those
folks who do not go to the synagogue or church … maybe they need to change
Or, maybe Jesus should touch
the hearts of those who are very young, very impresionable, those who have much
to learn.
But, surely, the Lord would not
be speaking to me, right?
[_08_] In loving and receiving Jesus in our
home, for the improvement of our home – or hometown – we may have to endure
some discomfort.
We are also called to love, to
sacrifice for our children, our families, for our spouses in ways that require
great strength.
To love someone who is
suffering from an illness for many years, to love someone who cannot fully
communicate takes heroic virtue.
And, sometimes, heroic virtue
also goes unrecognized, unnoticed by others, unseen in the crowd.
The Good News today is that
Jesus tries to reach us (arrive where we are) even though we may resist ..and
the Good News is that when we try to follow him, even in weakness, it is then
that we are strong. [_fin_]
[1] Exactly, NAB = “a
prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin
and in his own house.” (Mark 6:4)
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