1st Impressions Vol 2

In our busy and hectic world, the Gospel invitation of rest to those who are burdened and heavily laden is a welcomed one. Although you don't hear those exact words very much in modern times, the word "overwhelmed" is indeed prevalent. The need for "rest" seems to permeate our society whether it is just a much needed vacation, a brief change from non-stop activity or some time to think and redirect oneself in a major way. As with many of the Lord's invitations, however, at least for me, I have to accept it in small doses.

In my mind, there is no doubt about the rest part. It is there, waiting for me, and I need it ! I am not so sure that I am 100 % on board with "my yoke is easy and my burden is light", however. That means I have some work to do, by the way, not that I doubt what the Lord offers. The burden part is easier for me to grasp, for I do not feel that doing what the Lord requires to "belong" to the flock to whom He gives this welcomed rest is very difficult all the time... although at times it is rather challenging. Doing the right thing when the wrong thing is obvious makes life so much easier.

The "yoke", however, that part of always being in sync with the Lord is different. The gift of discernment comes in little pieces to me, it seems. The smoothness of working together, seamlessly, with no dramatic ups and downs, is just NOT easy. Perhaps the strategy of working is all wrong. Perhaps the strategy of relaxing and letting the Lord not only do the directing and the leading but most of the work is where the smoothness will come.

That is what I am trying to discover in this unusual time after a move across the country where I have more time to relax than I have had in a while. My furniture etc. has not yet arrived and I have little to unpack. It is a time where I am trying to initiate a new routine with time to enjoy the newness of my surroundings and build a life that includes lots of rest. The flowers and the clouds bring much joy as does each new person that I meet. It is a peaceful time. My hope and prayer is that the glitches that are occurring in a new place will be met by that sense of peacefulness within me so that smoothness will be an expected part of my new life. I guess I can check out the yoke once my furniture arrives so I can see how I have blended into a new way of doing things, a way where I am not in charge but the Lord is.

MUSINGS AND OTHER ARTICLES AVAILABLE ON WEB SITE LINK LISTED AT BOTTOM Musings from Michael©

'I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to mere children.'

I have a friend a good and holy Jesuit who is also a world-renownned Biblical expert I'll call him Father Smith. And his particular expertise is in Biblical languages he is supposed to know many oof the languages which existed in Palestine in Old Testament times - which is not bad at his current age of 84!

But, to tell you the truth, he is also a very, very boring teacher. And not all of his students could really believe that such a boring teacher could really be such a brilliant scholar. So, one day, his students decided to put him to the test. They got together and went down into the basement of the library. And there, amidst rows and rows of dusty shelves that clearly nobody had looked at for years, they found a copy of a document in Ancient Assyrian at least that is what it said on the cover. So, they took iit out of its cover and, at his next lecture, Fr Smith found it waiting for him on the lectern obviously a challenge. He picked it up, lookedd at it for a few moments, then read out a few lines, translating it as he went along.

And then he said, 'Yes, it is Old Assyrian, but rather late Old Assyrian and not very good style. If you look on the next shelf above where you found this, fourth scroll from the right, you will find a much better piece.'

And with that he went on with his lecture, having earned his studentsâ€™ undying respect even if not their total attention.

However, when he came to teach me, he was 79. He told me that thrree years previously at age 76 he had had the revelationion of his life. It is one of the rules of St Ignatius that all of his men should at least once a year spend some time teaching 'unlenlettered children'. Fr Smith had decided to fulfil this obligation by conducting a Sunday school class for 15 year olds. He was very nervous about this because he knew he was a very boring teacher and he was not sure how he was going to get on. But he gave them a passage to read and think about and it happened to be the parable of the Prodigal Son. And then he started teaching them about it: about the significance of the journey of the prodigal son to a far country; its relationship to population movements in Ancient Palestine and some interesting parallels between Jesusâ€™ manner of telling parables and the ancient Jewish tradition of 'midrash' the waay in which the scriptures are augmented and amplified by rabbis to meet the practical circumstances of the contemporary believer.

Within about 15 minutes, three of the children were asleep and the rest were obviously bored silly. So, he stopped talking and not sure whatt to do next he asked if anyone else had anything they wanted to ssay. And a few people talked a little bit but didnâ€™t say anything very much and then there was a long pause.

But he noticed one girl with very red eyes as if she was about to cry. And she seemed to be half wanting to say something and half too shy. So he asked her to speak. She was reluctant, but he encouraged her. And then she began to speak about how this passage reminded her of her father beating and abusing her. And how reading and praying over this passage made her realise that she had another Father who is in heaven. And how this made her feel loved and cherished really loved properly for the first ti time since she could remember.

When she had finished speaking, nobody said anything for a very long time. And then they all prayed together. And Fr Smith suddenly realised that, although he had given his entire adult life to the study of Scripture, he had actually completely missed the point. Scripture is not the study of ancient texts for what they tell us about the ancient near East, although that can be important and even interesting if youâ€™re that way incclined. But Scripture is the living encounter with God, whose Son came among us to bring us the Church. And it was his disciples who left behind these documents which the Church gathered together and called the Bible " through which we too can know what it was like to meet God on earth. And so, every day, Father Smith of the Society of Jesus makes this prayer:

'I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to (and through) mere children.'

The words from today’s Gospel have found their way onto prayer cards and can be found in thousands of Missals, prayer-books, handbags and pockets. There are times in everyone’s life when the invitation "Come to Me all you who labor" sounds like music to our souls. One of the most beloved passages in the New Testament. Here the Lord summarizes the invitation to discipleship that characterized His earthly ministry, but to understand the invitation of this passage, we need to understand the background.

In this passage the Lord was addressing the people of Israel who were burdened and weighed down with the externalism and the legal do’s and don’ts of the Pharisees, and with the consequences—the guilt, frustration, and dissatisfaction that always goes along with legalism. But even though the Old Testament Law was good, holy, and righteous, it did not bring liberty because it was weak in that it depended on man. It did not provide the means of fulfilling the law and thus it left man under the guilt and load of sin. Rather than freedom, it brought oppression. Paul called it an administration of death. Instead of a sense of release, it brought a sense of guilt and failure. Those who were under the Mosaic Law were said to be yoked to Moses. Those who were under the authority of the Pharisees were said to be yoked to the Pharisees. As an illustration, see Acts 15:7-11.

It is in the midst of this religious setting that the Lord makes a very gracious invitation to all who would want to experience the relief, joy, and the blessings of His life through a grace/faith relationship with Him. This is an invitation aimed at all, at the curious and at the convinced to bring them to a place of a deeper level of commitment in which they are to take His yoke and learn from Him as committed disciples.

There are times when we are overburdened and weary - when we are confused - when life seems to overwhelm us. Other people seem to be so much better at coping than we do - and we wonder, sometimes, what their secret is. The promise of rest in Jesus seems very sweet.

A slight complication is presented by His addition: "take My yoke upon you..." How is this giving rest for people’s souls? Elsewhere in the Gospel, Jesus berates the Pharisees for laying burdens on people’s backs and not lifting a finger to help them to carry them. Is He not doing the same here?Perhaps - but He promises that His yoke is easy - and the burden light. Jesus does not weigh His disciples down with teaching that they cannot follow. Yes, it is tough sometimes, but it is always founded on love. Jesus invites His disciples—and us--to shoulder His yoke and learn from Him - gentle and humble in heart.

He may be referring to the practice of yoking a young and inexperienced animal alongside one who is well-trained. The more experienced creature trains the other almost by example - gradually, it learns how to work until the day when it can manage alone. Perhaps too, an older one approaching the end of its working life may be yoked to the one in its prime - so that it can still work but the strain is taken by the partner. So with us too, perhaps--Jesus invites us to take His yoke so that He can teach us - not by laying burdens upon us - but walking alongside us and helping us to learn to do things His way... and promising too that He will never leave us overburdened.

When it all gets too much - or we lose our way - He will be there alongside us again - a gentle, humble but infinitely strong and wise Leader

Volume 2 is for you. Your thoughts, reflections, and insights on the next Sundays readings can influence the preaching you hear. Send them to jboll@preacherexchange.org. Deadline is Wednesday Noon. Include your Name, and Email Address.

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