Sunday November 26, 2017
The 'Joke Only' King
Some years ago there was a fashion for "Joke Only" t-shirts. You would see someone wearing a t-shirt with the words "I am Muhammad Ali" or "I am the richest man in the world" or "I am Miss Universe," only to find, when you get closer, the words 'joke only' written there in smaller print.
Today we are celebrating the Feast of Christ the King and if any title deserves the subscript 'joke only,' this one does. When we think of kings we think of palaces and power and pomp; we think of might and armies. But Jesus rejected all that sort of stuff. He was born in a stable for animals, he spent most of his life in a carpenter's shop; he rejected the temptations to use power, prestige or possessions to achieve his mission from the Father; in his preaching, he irritated both the civil and religious leaders of his time so much that they had him crucified on false charges. King indeed! Although when he rose from the dead a few days later it was no joke, except that it was a joke on the power who thought that they had got rid of him!
To call Christ a King may be a joke from one point of view, but he certainly was a leader who knew his priorities. His priority was the will of his Father and he rejected anything that was contrary to it. In matters of religion, especially in times of tension and confusion, there are always two dangers to be avoided; atheism and fundamentalism. One way of dealing with tension is to let go of any idea of God or of God's importance or place in life. There are many people who are practical atheists; they may even continue to go to church but God really has no place in their lives. The other danger is to try to handle our fear or our sense of being overpowered by reality, by fixing on to some limited aspect of reality or of religion and to sacralize it and make it into the whole truth. This could be the Bible or a book, or a shrine or devotion, or a practice. It is defining God and putting him into a box or a formula. When we do this we will very soon be saying "you are holy only if you see things my way and if you do not you are damned."
Jesus de-sacralized several formulas, kinds of fundamentalism, that were prevalent in his time and can still be seen in different shapes and sizes today within and outside the Catholic Church. The Pharisees had sacralized Law; they had reduced God to keeping the Law. But Jesus said that people are not made for the law, rather laws are made to serve people. The scribes identified God with theology and philosophical discussions. The Sadducees identified God with money - money for them was a sign of God's blessing even if it was acquired by shading dealing. For the high priests God was identified with liturgy and temple service: for the zealots God was in political liberation. The Essenes sacralized what we would today call religious life. While all of these are of great importance in a balanced spirituality, Jesus said "no" to sacralizing any one of them and making God fit into that box. We must let God be God.
In the creation story, we are told that our God made only one creature in his own image - the human person, male and female. In the final judgment scene, we see that we will be judged by how we have reverenced God in that image. We will not be judged on our novenas or devotions, but on our love for one another.
When we use words about God we are boxed in by the inadequacy of the words and we are always trying to get a hold on God through them. While this can be a necessary step we are also called to go beyond it - to let go of all limits and let God be God. In being still and centering before God without any preconceived ideas or plans or requests, God will bring us into truth and awareness. If there is anything in our own lives that is contrary to God's Reign - or anything in the world around us, anything that is destructive of the people with whom we relate or can influence, God will make us aware of that reality and make us face it honestly. God will give us the wisdom and courage to face reality and to respond to God as Ruler of that reality. And that challenge is no joke!
