14TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME (YEAR B)

1st Reading        Ezekiel 2: 2-5

Psalm                   123: 1-2a. 2bc. 3-4 (R. 2ef)

R://"Our eyes are on the Lord our God, till he shows us his mercy" 

2nd Reading      2 Corinthians 12: 7-10

Gospel                 Mark 6: 1-6

THE DANGERS OF REJECTION

Dear friends, today, the 14th Sunday, in Ordinary Time (Year B), is also the 1st Sunday in July (2024). July, according to Catholic tradition, is dedicated to devotion to the Most Precious Blood of Jesus Christ. As we enter this new month, we ask God to continue to save us from evil and shield us from what will separate us from him so that always and everywhere we may be faithful to his commands. 

The first reading for this Sunday is from Ezekiel 2:2-5, a short passage loaded with many implications to help us journey well in life. Let us put the text into perspective. 

The context of the first reading (Ezek. 2: 2-5) is the mission of the prophet Ezekiel. There are three dimensions to the call of Ezekiel, especially his swallow of the scroll ( Ezek. 2: 8-3:4). The first dimension is that, by eating the scroll, Ezekiel is established as a prophet. Between God and the people of Israel is Ezekiel. Notice that it is God to takes the initiative to call. The second dimension is that the message on the scroll is identified with the messenger. The messenger and the message become one. The third dimension lies in the content of the message. The message on the scroll is full of lamentation, wailing, and woe (Ezek. 2:10). Therefore, Ezekiel could easily appear as a messenger of judgment and punishment.  This quick identification is apt when we look at the short passage in the first reading. 

Three times in the first reading, the word "rebel" (Heb: MÂRAD) is applied to the Israelites (2 times in v. 3 and once in v. 5). In fact, this rebellion spans from their fathers (or ancestors) to their children, thus "they and their fathers have rebelled against me; to this day" (v. 3b). This means the rebellion is generational even to that very day. Israel's rebellion is long-standing. Why are they described as such? From the beginning, in v. 3, the description is: "I am sending you to the Israelites, a NATION of rebels". The key is the word NATION. 

The word NATION is rendered in the text in Hebrew as GOYIM. This is the word used to describe the heathen or Gentiles. Simply, GOYIM normally refers to Non-Jews. In Genesis 10: 5, the first time the word appears in the Bible, it was used to describe non-Israelite nations. The word describes a group of people of the same ethnic family who speak the same language. More to it, it is used to distinguish the pagans from God's people, the Israelites. If there is any implication we can draw from this, it is that Israelites are being charged with trying to be like the pagans, and other nations, and despising what God chose and made them to be. This is a clear loss of identity and focus. Wanting to be like others comes with total regard even for their deities. Invariably, Israelites are despising God and his ways, yet they want to bear the name Israelites. It becomes true that you cannot use a different theological concept outside your religion to live up to a moral standard taught by your religion. This is an impossibility. 

The second detail from the first reading is that the despising of God is generational. Their fathers (or ancestors) started it. Now, their children have taken it to a different level, thus "their children are obstinate and stubborn. To them, I am sending you" (Ezek. 2: 4). The words are obstinate and stubborn. The word used to describe "face" (PANIYM) is what is used for obstinate, and the word used to describe the "heart" (LÊB) is used to describe them as stubborn. What does it mean? Their ancestors started something little, but their children inherited it and transformed it into something bigger, which is very much akin to turning one's back on another person, which results in a total disregard for the person. 

Totally, God knows that the Israelites whom he chose and made his "own people" have turned against him and want to take on an image and identity that is not compatible with what they were birthed to be. Regardless of this, he tells Ezekiel to speak to them, whether they LISTEN or RESIST. The word there is LISTEN, rendered in Hebrew as SHAMA. I want to suggest that listening comes with the heart to love and appreciate. This means "doing/acting". Remember that in Deuteronomy 6: 4, the word SHAMA appears and is translated as LISTEN or HEAR, thus "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might". This establishes that Hearing/Listening should lead to love, and it is a matter of the heart. In fact, the Shema(Deut. 6:4) is recited by every Jew daily, emphasising that Jews are well aware of what it means to LISTEN and OBEY. Hence, what God tells Ezekiel is that failing to listen (shama) to the words of a true and chosen prophet of God like Ezekiel himself is failing to love God whose words the prophet speaks and is identified with. Hence, failure to obey a true, chosen, and sent prophet of God is a failure to observe the shama which they recite everyday. 

But, what will it entail to "LISTEN" to the prophet? Remember that the total number of Jewish laws and statutes is 613. The Heart, the Soul, and the Might represent the total number of organs in the human body, and they are 248. The rest 365 represents the total number of days in a year. What it, therefore, therefore means for the people to listen to the prophet is that everyday, give their whole self without reserve to God and do what he commands. When you do this, you will turn from trying to be like other nations, and you will never become like them. You will discover your true self and identity. This is how you will recognise God's prophet, I suggest. To rediscover your true self and identity, turn to the Lord and do what he commands. 

The same issue of a prophet comes up in the Gospel passage from Mark 6: 1-6. The incident there makes us believe that "Familiarity breeds contempt". The passage, in the final analysis, brings us to think about the rejection of God's gift. Jesus' people in his hometown reject the gift of God brought to them by a prophet. 

The people raised 5 questions about Jesus when they saw him teaching in the Synagogue on the Sabbath (Mk. 6: 2). The crux of their questioning was simply about the "Kind of Wisdom he has been given" (Mk. 6: 2). Why? The Wisdom referred to is not an intellectual kind. The wisdom they are talking about called HỌKMAH (in Hebrew) or SOPHIA (in Greek) is a craft. The craft talked about in the passage is carpentry. Why? Jewish sons inherit the occupation of their fathers. We know that Joseph is a carpenter for which Jesus becomes a carpenter. His Wisdom or craft is indeed Carpentry. Why then do they see him teaching in the Synagogue? Teaching is not known for him by his town folks as his wisdom. Meanwhile, he has it. They were doubting it. 

The problem is that they rejected and insulted him. An insult is a reaction that shows a rejection or despising of one's personality and his words. They called him "Son of Mary", thus "Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary..."(Mk. 6: 3). First, it is not his mother who is the carpenter. If anything, he should be Joseph's name that should be put there. Secondly, Jews describe sons by the names of their fathers, not their mothers. This is clear in the genealogy of Matthew (Matt. 1: 1-17). Jesus is, invariably, despised as one of them. He is not recognized as one of them, from their hometown. Therefore, Jesus will react and say, "A prophet is not without honour except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house" (Mk. 6: 4). Because they rejected him, he did not perform many mighty deeds there, only a few. The people lost the grace of God by despising and rejecting Christ, God's anointed one. 

It is clear that we attempt to give ourselves wholly to God daily without reserve so that we do not become rebellious. We can sustain that if we welcome others into our midst. Rejection is not the key. Those we reject can be instruments to greater grace. Even though we endeavour not to be rebellious, we are faced with many predicaments. Never reject anyone. Others can be instruments for our healing.

Pax et Bonum