As we go about our days, we necessarily label, classify, and prioritize. What’s “in” and what’s “out” on our priority list? Because humans are social beings, we tend to do the same thing with people. We can only invite six people to the dinner party. Our young child wants to invite certain friends to her birthday, but we’re keenly aware of who the parents are, and the prospect of spending several hours with them is enough to give us pause.
The Oscars. The Super Bowl. TV talent shows. Your son’s Little League championship. We live in a culture set on competition. The desire to “be the best” goes beyond hobbies and into politics, the corporate world, and parenting comparisons at the park. This desire is as old as the human race, and it surely arose in Jesus’ day. While Biblical society was significantly less open and upwardly mobile than our own, power was attractive. From what we know, many of Jesus’ disciples had come from lowly backgrounds. Now they followed an increasingly popular rabbi who seemed primed to do something big.
Jesus has many who love His Kingdom in Heaven, but few who bear His Cross (Luke 14:27). He has many who desire comfort, but few who desire suffering. He finds many to share His feast, but few His fasting. All desire to rejoice with Him, but few are willing to suffer for His sake. Many follow Jesus to the Breaking of Bread, but few to the drinking of the Cup of His Passion. Many admire His miracles, but few follow Him in the humiliation of His Cross. Many love Jesus as long as no hardship touches them. Many praise and bless Him, as long as they are receiving any comfort from Him. But if Jesus withdraw Himself, they fall to complaining and utter dejection.
“Jesus ... went by way of Sidon ... into the district of the Decapolis.” For most of Jesus’ ministry, he remains in Galilee and areas with a predominantly Jewish population. Today, however, we see Jesus traveling through a heavily pagan area. This makes the utterance of faith in today’s Gospel all the more astounding. “He has done all things well.”
The range of emotions that most of us have felt in the past two weeks over what has been covered by the media about our Church is vast: Anger, Shame, Sorrow, Disgust and Dismay to name a few. What can the average person do to make any difference? As someone who has read extensively on the subject, I can say that the answers are not so simple, but the response each individual person can make is very powerful.