23 Pentecost
Mtt. 22:34-46
Three years ago I went to Israel on a trip organized and sponsored by the American Jewish Committee. The trip was wonderfully put together for Christian clergy and religious to engage with speakers from both Israel and Palestine. The purpose was to further awareness and understanding of the complexity of the issues in the Middle east. As we gathered as a group in our initial meeting our hosts from the American Jewish committee had some things to say to us. One of the first things they said was, "You know we've done dozens of these trips with politicians, journalists, students and religious leaders. The problem we have with you Christian religious leaders is that frankly, you're too nice. You're so worried about offending that you don't ask the hard questions. Our hosts explained that a huge part of the Jewish religious tradition is built on intellectual engagement, healthy and enthusiastic give and take. While that kind of energetic sparring may seem uncomfortable to us it has the ability to get to the core of issues and problems. Our hosts wanted us to know that we shouldn't disregard the quest for truth in order to be "nice."
That experience has given me new perspective on these controversy stories that we've had for the last four weeks of lessons and which culminates today. This kind of questioning and intellectual repartee was part of the synagogue tradition--part of the teaching and learning process. You'll remember Jesus at 12 impressing the elders at the temple with his knowledge. As early as that he could call up scripture passages and engage with his argumentation. Jesus was a rabbi, a teacher, part and parcel of a teaching tradition. Especially for the gospel writer Matthew this was a most significant role for Jesus.
But what Matthew wants to make perfectly clear is that the Saducees the Pharisees, the lawyers, the religious authorities that come to Jesus are not really seeking intellectual debate. They don't want spiritual enlightenment, they don't want to entertain new information. No they are seeking to entrap Jesus, entangle him, provoke him into saying something so outrageous that they will be able to convict him and get rid of him.
They don't want to grow in their faith or theological understanding they want to protect and conserve what they already have.
So to their question "what is the greatest commandment?" Jesus gives them nothing controversial, new or radical. He merely quotes back to them what they already knew from their days in Hebrew school. He repeats what they already knew by heart-- the beloved Shema of Deuternonomy 6:5, You shall love the lord your God with all your heart and mind and soul. Jesus then links it to Leviticus 19:18 "love your neighbor as yourself."
We've all had lots of teachers. Some teachers are really good for taking our preconceptions and our sacred cow beliefs and tearing them apart. Making us look at them with new eyes and see that perhaps things are not as simple as we had first expected. I recall Mr. Bengston, freshman high school English pulling apart poem after poem. What does this word mean...could it also mean? Why did the poet say this and not that--and suddenly there's a whole world in a poem that we students hadn't imagined was there. Some teachers are good at making the simple complex and opening a world.
And then there are those teachers who can take the most complex and diverse issues, sort analyze and compile into a meaningful and obvious distillation, one shining crystal idea. Dr. Paulsen, Intellectual history. The whole 19 th century; politics, economics, reform--distilled all on one chalkboard
Jesus manages to do that for his questioners. The greatest commandment, and the second like it. But then he turns the table with a question for them. It almost sounds like a riddle, "If the messiah is the son of David why does David call him lord ." Perhaps their preconceived ideas of the messiah are open to challenge and to question. Perhaps they are blinded by what they thought they knew and were expecting. Jesus cuts through all the debate and the argumentation with the heart of the matter--What think you of the messiah?
And so the episode concludes with a telling comment; "From that day no one dared ask him any more questions."
Sometimes it seems to me that we use our concerns and questions to stall and to prevaricate, to set up roadblocks and solidify defenses. Lord I can't follow until all my questions are answered to my satisfaction so let's just keep debating and sparring.
I remember Randy. Randy was a teacher who attended the church where I did internship. His great delight was to come to the Bible study I led and make me squirm. He managed to subvert every Bible study with the historic discussions of theology. How can God be three in one? Why does God allow evil? What is faith? How do I get it? Having come right from seminary I was well versed on the standard arguments but everyone knows there are no standard arguments that satisfy the questions of the ages. Finally it became clear that Randy was just using the arguments as a way to distance and forestall any real commitment to Jesus and to putting his faith into action.
What good is our creed, our enumeration of our beliefs, if those beliefs don't make any difference in the way we live, in the ways we act in our lives? It is not enough to believe something we must live it as well.
Perhaps we live under the illusion that we can argue and debate and think and question and that that is what the faith is all about. But perhaps that's just postponing the inevitable.
Finally there is a moment when Jesus looks at us. Enough of your questions. Enough evasion, dodging and ducking. Call for the question, the question. Now to the heart of the matter. What think you of the messiah?
Amen