Inclusion

Thursday, February 09, 2017

Two weeks ago I wrote about inclusion and cited an example which is retold in today’s Gospel Passage: the healing of the Syro-Phonecian woman’s daughter. Because of that, I am going to re-post the reflection I wrote about that with just a few changes and additions. And as I reread the reflection, I also realize that it has a lot to say about the current political situation in the United States, so that makes it all the more pertinent.  Here goes:

“’Who are my mother and my brothers?’ And looking around at those seated in the circle he said, ‘Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.’”

There is a dualist tendency in religion to exclude. If you are over 60, think of all the terrible things we Catholic children were told about Protestants. I can actually remember praying for my Lutheran grandmother when I was about 12 years old from a prayer book. The prayer asked God to send her a terrible tragedy so that she would come to her senses and return to the True Faith! And we continue to exclude even in our own times. Certain groups, people who don’t believe like we do, people who don’t behave like we do, people who don’t believe in Jesus, people who don’t believe in God, Islamic peoples, etc., etc., etc., ad naus. And there are many texts in Scriptures that exhibit a dualist tendency as well. Consider the Jews and the Samaritans, for example, or even some statements in the letters of Paul that declare who is or isn’t fit for the Kingdom of God.

But there is also an evolution in the Scriptures, as well as an evolution in Jesus Christ Himself. Recall how at first he refused to heal the daughter of the Syro-Phonecian woman, but then, because of her persistence and her faith, changed His mind and redefined His mission which He had previously said was only to “the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

And here, near the very beginning of Mark’s Gospel, we see Jesus extending the boundaries of His family to include the people who were listening to him. His only qualification: those who do the will of God. And we must be careful here not to assume that we know who it is who is doing God’s will. God often works through people who do not belong to our group, our faith, our orientation, our lifestyle, our practices, our notion of God. My goodness, God even works through atheists! I’m thinking of a composer who wrote many of the most beloved hymns of Christianity who declared himself to be an athieist, and yet he wrote more beautifully about the Christian faith than many believers could even attempt. Was he or wasn’t he doing will of God? Would Jesus include him as part of His family? Be careful how you answer. The best answer of all is not to answer, but simply to hold the mystery in your heart, just as it is so important for us to do with every single individual we encounter. Just as Jesus said never to judge, I would suggest that we must never make assumptions about anyone. As I said yesterday, we never know what burdens another individual is carrying, or what pain is part of that individual’s history.

As you read today’s Gospel (Mark 7:24-30) keep this drive to inclusion in mind and you will see it occurring in stories and passages that you may never have seen in that light before.

And if you continue to pray “Enlarge my heart” as I suggested yesterday, then keep in mind those you would have a tendency to exclude and ask the Lord to help you change your mind about them as well.

God bless you!