THE SUBVERSIVE CHRIST

Fr Jim Cogley

There was something about the way Christ lived that eventually led to his crucifixion. By his actions, ideas and works he challenged the status quo; he upset the traditional way of behaving and invited people to think differently. So, his first words in the Gospel of Mark were repent and believe the Gospel. The Greek word used is metanoia which means to have a change of mind and a change of heart. If people were thinking of a kingdom in the future, he taught them that the Kingdom was here and now, in fact it was within them. Where people saw God as distant and remote he taught them that God was Abba Father and so close as to count the hairs on their heads. Where so many thought that God looked upon them with eyes of disapproval, he assured his followers that God could only look upon them with the eyes of his own nature which was unconditional love.

To read the Gospels or any piece of Scripture only from a historical perspective is to do it a serious injustice and deprive it of power to be a living creative word. During the time of Christ, we certainly can see prevailing attitudes and deeply rooted ways of thinking. However, they were never unique to his time, but to a greater or lesser extent have been present in every age ever since. One of these is the belief that I have to save my soul and by the merits of living a good life will gain admission to heaven. At its core this is egocentric religion that places Christ as a figure to be looked up to, admired and imitated. It reduces the Christian life to a worthiness contest where how well ‘I’ have done will determine my future in the next life. In other words, the extent ‘I’ have climbed the ladder of salvation (or perfection) in this life will determine what level I will get off at in the next.

There is a strong religious mindset in every age that largely has a closed mind to the Gospels. This is even true for those who have heard the scriptures read daily – who have ears but they cannot hear.  It’s as if their ears are closed to the truth and their eyes are veiled to spiritual realities. There are always some who may pride themselves on having done well in their religious journey and even so much better than most. This itself could be counterproductive on the spiritual quest where poverty of spirit is a prerequisite and even one’s good works need to be discarded as fitly rags. Religious pride is a bubble that many want to hold onto rather than allow it to be pricked by the newness of the Gospels. So it is that it is often the bastions of traditional practice who are most resistant and dismissive.

It is part of the religious mindset in every age to place undue emphasis on external observances and adherence to certain rules and regulations. This exteriority usually comes at the expense of interiority where there can be a chronic lack of awareness and very little experience of the numinous. This was the mentality of the Pharisees who prided themselves on their own religious performance but despised everyone else. It was the self-righteousness of this group that Christ slated over and over. He even went so far as to call them whitewashed sepulchres, that looked good on the outside but inside were full of all kinds of corruption. It is understandable how his teaching clashed so much with this group that they were always watching to trip him up on theological questions and to bring him to trial for possible breaches of the law. Sometimes these questions were a trap and no matter what way he answered it would not be right. Like, ‘should we pay taxes to Caesar or not’? To say yes or no would spring the trap.

A very strong religious mentality that was prevalent in the time of Christ and flourishing to the present day is that of insiders and outsiders; those deemed worthy and the unworthy. It is against the backdrop of this mentality that the Gospel is always not just good but shocking news. In Christ’s time there were nearly as many who were not permitted inside the Temple as those who were. Tax collectors and shepherds were just two of the categories excluded as were the prostitutes and sinners. Even the Court of the Gentiles had been taken over for commercial interests with money changers and the buying of sacrificial animals. What was utterly shocking for the religious people of Christ’s time was the company he kept and the way he ate and drank with all those who were considered the outsiders. In eating with them he was in communion before they had repented of their lifestyle. To those with a religious mentality this was totally unacceptable, there were rules that had to be respected and adhered to and he was now putting the cart before the horse.

In religious thinking repentance always comes before communion. With spiritual awareness it is love that paves the way for genuine change of heart. One day as Christ was leaving Jericho, he saw a man up a tree. He had never met him before and knew nothing about the fact that he was the despised Collector General of Roman taxes in the area. This man who was physically challenged had climbed the tree to see Christ but had also exposed himself to ridicule and taunts from the crowd. Christ reacted to seeing any human being treated in this manner and tongue in cheek said, ‘Zacchaeus come down do we not have a dinner date this evening’? Here, he was offering communion without any mention of repentance. It was only after the meal and experiencing himself loved that Zacchaeus truly opened his heart by promising to share his riches and rectify his injustices.