Living with the In-Laws

There are certain things we have come to expect in life, like Queensland winning the State of Origin and Shane Warne behaving like a galah. In the Gospels, we have come to expect that the Pharisees are a problem for Jesus and, on occasion, they will go head to head.

However, just like the assumed dominance of the Reds and the idiocy of our beloved leg-spinner, there are exceptions. After all, the Blues won last year and Warne said something insightful once. There are Pharisees in the Gospels who attend to Jesus, who ask discerning questions and who seek his wisdom beyond their own.

So, when we encounter this week’s argy-bargy in Mark’s Gospel, let’s heed the advice of Atticus Finch.
If you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you’ll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks. You never really understand a person until you consider things from their point of view – until you climb into their skin and walk around in it.

The periods of exile which the Israelites had endured through their history had been made more manageable by adherence to their customs and their faith. The extraordinary cultural guidance offered in Old Testament books like Leviticus and Deuteronomy are about identifying as a people of faith and how they live in the world – most especially in their context. When the Jewish community was trying to find its way, particularly during the occupation by the Romans, it was the lay leadership of the Pharisees which gave them direction and identity.

That identity as God’s children was interwoven with how they lived their faith – from the integrity of their worship and fasting, to how they prepared for their meals and cleaned their homes. It all mattered. So, when someone questioned any aspect of their faith and life, everything appeared to be under threat. I’m just glad nothing like that ever happens with Jesus’ disciples now.

The problem is when the worship becomes more important than the one whom we worship, when the observance obscures that which we want to see. Suddenly, the map we have is more important than finding our way.

We can become defensive, because we become frightened. If we change how we worship, or the way we talk about God, or the way we understand the words of Jesus, do we know who we are any more?

We locate ourselves in the living God, not in words on a page. We are saved by the life and death of Jesus, not by our observance. We are moved by God’s Spirit into new places, both risk-laden and wonderful, perhaps even fearful. At the darkest moment of history, a Pharisee attends the body of Jesus, ensuring its safety and honour.

When we follow the call of Christ, shall we bind ourselves in observance, or bind ourselves to Christ?