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You have heard the adage, “Familiarity breeds contempt.”
Today’s Gospel story is a textbook example of
this old saying.
The expression “familiarity breeds contempt” was first used in literature by 14th century English author Geoffrey Chaucer in his works the The Canterbury Tales, specifically the Tale of Melibee. Experts say the phrase may have its origins in Aesop’s fables. Aesop was a slave and storyteller in ancient Greece nearly two-thousand years before Chaucer. So, the concept is as ancient as proverbs or wisdom in the biblical tradition.
In a nutshell, “the phrase ‘familiarity breeds
contempt’ means that the more people know about each other, the more they
dislike each other. Basically, the longer people know each other, the longer
they will see the flaws in each other; this could lead to resentment.”
But how can this be with Jesus?
His hometown family and friends knew what is called
the “hidden life” of Jesus, as a boy and young man, as the son of a carpenter
and the son of Mary.
Now they are familiar with his recent wonderous works outside of their community. These miracles had made Jesus famous all over the countryside. But his fame did not enkindle pride in his hometown, but enflamed contempt.
Some biblical scholars suggest it was envy that
bred this contempt; envy that Jesus was doing all these amazing things in
places other than his hometown.
Again, we need the lens of first reading from
the Old Testament to fully understand context here.
The first reading is about the Prophet Ezekiel’s call to mission by God. As the Israelites are returning from exile in Babylon, Ezekiel is called by God to tell the people they had lost their way.
Many
prophets were sent by God to foreign lands to prophesy before people outside of
their faith tradition (think Jonah and Moses). Ezekiel is sent to his own
people, the chosen people of Israel, who had turned their backs on God.
When
we hear the story of Jesus’ experience in his hometown, we have a clearer
understanding of what Gospel writer Mark was trying to convey.
Jesus
was not only rejected by his hometown crowd, but eventually he would be
rejected by the people of Israel at the end of his ministry, going from Hosanna
to “Crucify him” in Jerusalem in less than a week.
Sometimes we do not like the message. Sometimes we do not like the messenger. Sometimes we encounter the truth of God with contempt.
This
is what it is to be human. And why we need Christ in our lives to form and
conform our hearts to his.
Mark
has placed this story in the middle of several amazing stories of healing of
those whose faith had saved them and their loved ones, including a little girl
raised from the dead. Here is a story about his hometown lacking in faith. The
next story is about Jesus sharing his healing power with his disciples in the
Mission of the Twelve who would carry out Jesus’ ministry long after he was
gone.
The
sandwiching of a passage about his own hometown rejecting him in their lack of faith,
with those who had abundant faith in Jesus, is intentional and instructional
for all of us.
Preaching to one’s own people can be the most difficult of all.
People
who know you, know your weaknesses and foibles, know your background, these can
be the hardest to people to reach.
I, too,
have experienced the phenomenon of “familiarity breeds contempt.”
A few
years back, I preached on the U.S. Bishops letter on racism (see linked homily).
The Advent message struck a chord in my previous parish community with a handful of parishioners and led to angry outbursts by a small group of people who did not think racism was something to be preached from the pulpit.
These
people knew me as a deacon for years. They knew my personal story and how God had
called me out of my professional life and into full-time ministry. And they had
contempt for the message and contempt for its messenger.
This can
happen sometimes when the truth of God is being spoken.
This
is why God’s words today to Ezekiel hit the mark on the challenges of living up
to our call to be prophets,
“Hard of face and
obstinate of heart
are they to whom I am sending you.”
To those in Jesus’ native place, they are wondering, “Who does he think he is?”
As
Jesus reminds us today,
“A prophet is not without
honor except in his native place and among his own
kin and in his own house.”
This story
is also about us, a story about our mission to an unbelieving world and our
unbelieving family and friends.
We are
all prophets. Every baptized person is called by our faith to be Priest,
Prophet and King. Not just clergy or religious. We all will face rejection to
the message of God with some in our lives.
Bishop Robert Barron says, “Prophecy is never a matter of one’s own ruminations or philosophical conclusions, or private opinions. Authentic prophecy, when you are speaking the word of God, always comes from the Spirit of God… Prophets are seized by a power beyond them, their seized by the Spirit of God. You might say they’re gripped by an authority outside of themselves, a power they don’t control.”
St. Teresa of Calcutta once said, don’t be surprised
at all if you face opposition when you function in the prophetic role.
Remember, "you are called upon to be faithful, not necessarily successful.”
This is the challenging call for us all.
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