Have you ever been guilty of looking at someone your age and thinking, surely I don’t look that old. Well a woman name Alice Smith, was in the waiting room for her first appointment with a new Dentist in town. She noticed his Dental diploma which bore his full name. Suddenly she remembered a handsome, dark haired boy with the same name that she went to High School with . . . and she had a crush on him. Could it be the same man?
Well, when he came in for her appointment, she quickly discarded the thought . . . for (as she described him) was balding, too many wrinkles. He couldn’t be a classmate. But after he examined her teeth, she asked him, “Did you, by chance, go to Marshall High School?” “Well yes I did.” “When did you graduate?” He tells then says, “Why do you ask?” “Well, you were in my class.” “Really, what subject did you teach?”
Ouch. Sometimes there are things like that to make us clench our fist, in anger. There could be lots of things that have made you clench your fist lately . . . that awful conversation around the Thanksgiving table, that noisy neighbor, those people we hear about on the news who think like that or act like that, (whoever those are). Those people who make us so mad, or fearful, even paranoid. Sometimes a good “grunt” does the trick. Try it everyone . . . clench your fist and grunt.
Well, this is the last Sunday of the church year. We’ve been hearing Mark’s gospel all year long. But Mark is a short gospel, only 16 chapters so often throughout the year, the church plugs in something from John’s gospel. Mark was the first of the four gospels to be written. John is the last of the four. The gospel story occurs at the end of Jesus’ ministry (i.e. right before he dies on the cross). Mark’s gospel starts out, not with the Bethlehem story (as Luke and Matthew do) but with Jesus being baptized and the first words from Jesus is the Greek word, “metanoia.”
Often that gets translated as, “repent” which is a bad translation for the word usually implies that we have done something wrong and not what Jesus intended. The word metanoia comes from two Greek work: meta (meaning above) and nous (meaning mind). So the first word of Jesus recorded by Mark is metanoia, a more accurate meaning is to have a bigger mindset, look at things like God would look at them . . . and not only from your own interest, your own fear or your own paranoia. A better translation would say, “Be un-paranoid and believe in the good news. Live in trust.”
Fr. Henri Nouen, wrote some beautiful books on spirituality. One of his classics is With Open Hands. In the book he talks about how Jesus faced his trial and crucifxion. He seems to have an open hand when talking to Pilate . . . not trying to argue, but simply stating the facts. Pilate is bit paranoid because he fears the new king will take over his kingdom. Then later on in the story, Jesus opens his hands to be nailed to the cross. Now maybe Jesus was actually nailed through his writs (as some experts suggest) but go with me . . . his hands are open, not to fight, not to argue . . . but to have a bigger mind, a bigger heart and to trust.
Some of the early church writers (we call them church fathers) suggested that each of us have two minds and two hearts. We each have a bigger mind and a bigger heart . . . where we can forgive, be calm, act more saintly. Symbolized by an open hand. Try that, open your hands. Doesn’t it simply feel different?
We also have a petty mind and a petty heart . . . where we don’t trust anyone, we feel wounded, we want revenge, we’ve got to self-protect. That can be symbolized with a fist. Try making a fist again.
When there is a disagreement, an argument or when we feel threatened . . . we always have two choices . . . to be paranoid (closed fisted) or metanoia (open hands). We all can do either:
[have all close fist, then open them]
petty or try to become big hearted
bigoted or try to be open minded
suspicious or trusting
narcissist or more saintly
hoarding or generous
Jesus models for us a way that is so different than most anyone else. He was a king NOT like anyone else. He fled when people wanted to make him a king. He didn’t come to serve but to serve others. He washed feet. He hung out with the those people. Recall the people that you might have called those people . . . that’s the group Jesus would be eating with.
He says,
when you get slapped . . . turn your check and get another.
When they insult and hate you . . . rejoice and be glad.
When you are giving and giving . . . you are actually receiving
You are only going to learn how to live . . . when you learn how to deal with loss.