{"id":13606,"date":"2021-10-17T00:00:34","date_gmt":"2021-10-16T23:00:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/turski.blog\/?p=13606"},"modified":"2021-10-17T00:00:34","modified_gmt":"2021-10-16T23:00:34","slug":"29th-sunday-in-ordinary-time-4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/?p=13606","title":{"rendered":"29th Sunday in Ordinary Time"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u2018Power struggle\u2019 is the term we use to describe \u2018a situation in which two or more people or groups compete for control in a particular sphere.\u2019 (Oxford Languages)<\/em> Commonly we associate a \u2018power struggle\u2019 with \u2018the big-boys\u2019 in influential areas, like politics or economy, while we, the little people, have to suffer the consequences. For example, the current spike in energy prices is a result of a power struggle between various international actors for access to gas. So, you might be surprised by a claim that most of us play a more or less active part in a power struggle, though – admittedly – on a much smaller scale or at a lower level. Have you ever argued or had a row with someone? If so, that was your power struggle in its most visual or audible way. Other ways of power struggle can be quieter or more conspicuous, but the aim is the same: taking control of the situation. This is how we are hard-wired as social animals; it\u2019s an ongoing, natural, instinctive desire to be in control of our own destiny. And – as we see in today\u2019s gospel – no one is free of such desire.<\/p>\n

\u2018Do us a favour. […] Allow us to sit one at your right hand and the other at your left in your glory.\u2019<\/em> At first glance, this request made by James and John might seem peculiar, particularly to our modern mind. Their request referred to the way a royal court was structured. There was a sovereign, such as a king or emperor, sitting on his throne as a central figure. His advisors would be positioned beside him; the more influential the advisor was, the closer to the monarch would he stand. Those sitting beside him were the most powerful, having literally access to the king\u2019s ear. To this day we use the phrase \u2018right-hand man\u2019 as \u2018someone’s close assistant and the person they trust to help and support them in everything they do.\u2019 (Collins Dictionary)<\/em> When we categorise MPs as backbench or front bench, we actually reflect their direct influence (or lack of it) on the government or the opposition\u2019s leadership. Back to the gospel. Jesus\u2019 disciples, like most of their other contemporaries Jews in the Holy Land, imagined Jesus as a political figure, a leader in their struggle for an independent and powerful kingdom of Israel. A leader in the manner of past heroes who had thrown off the yoke of foreign oppressive powers. James and John\u2019s request was an attempt at ensuring their political position in the future glorious royal court of Jesus\u2019.<\/p>\n

Interestingly enough, Jesus didn\u2019t dismiss their request outright. He used it as a starting point of conversation: \u2018Can you drink the cup that I must drink, or be baptised with the baptism with which I must be baptised?\u2019<\/em> Again, the language here is outdated but the symbolism was obvious to the audience of the gospel, the ancient Christian community. Baptism was symbolic participation in Jesus\u2019 death; \u2018drinking the cup\u2019 was a symbol of participation in His suffering. Effectively, Jesus turned their request upside down; they\u2019d thought about power, influence and privileges, He brought their attention to the downsides of being His closest. They responded positively to the question; I suppose they embraced the difficulties as a price worth paying for the ultimate share of power. Jesus accepted their \u2018Yes\u2019 and – prophetically – confirmed that \u2018the cup that I must drink you shall drink, and with the baptism with which I must be baptised you shall be baptised\u2019<\/em> but He made it clear that it would not guarantee them their desired positions: \u2018as for seats at my right hand or my left, these are not mine to grant; they belong to those to whom they have been allotted.\u2019<\/em> As it would turn out, those fell to two criminals crucified with Jesus, one on his left and one on his right side. The prophetic embrace of \u2018the cup and the baptism\u2019 was fulfilled in the lives of James and John; the former was martyred in Jerusalem, the latter suffered for his faithfulness to Jesus.<\/p>\n

We might think that the other ten Apostles felt indignant with James and John because of their shameless, dishonourable plotting. They felt indignant because James and John had beaten them to it! All of them were plotting, scheming and fighting for position and power within their small community. That\u2019s why Jesus addressed all of them at the end of today\u2019s gospel reading and explained to all of them that in Jesus\u2019 kingdom power was to be exercised by serving others. He presented himself as the model of such service: \u2018the Son of Man himself did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

St Mark included this episode in his gospel to address bickering and power struggles within the early Christian communities. The Acts of the Apostles and virtually all letters by St Paul clearly testify how those communities were often quarrelling, sometimes even torn apart by ambitions, factions and power struggles. St Mark\u2019s reference to \u2018the baptism\u2019 and \u2018drinking the cup\u2019 used in Jesus\u2019 argument was a call to renew the Christian spirit of self-denial and service. In that respect, this call remains relevant to each one of us. In baptism, our sinful boastfulness was buried with Christ, and we rose back to a life of charitable love. By drinking the cup – i.e. participating in Holy Mass – we renew our commitment to serving one another as best we can, be it at home, at the workplace, in the neighbourhood or wherever we happen to be.<\/p>\n

\n

Image by Sch\u00e4ferle<\/a> from Pixabay<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u2018Power struggle\u2019 is the term we use to describe \u2018a situation in which two or more people or groups compete for control in a particular sphere.\u2019 (Oxford Languages) Commonly we associate a \u2018power struggle\u2019 with \u2018the big-boys\u2019 in influential areas, like politics or economy, while we, the little people, have to suffer the consequences. For example, the current spike in energy prices is a result of a power struggle between various international actors for access to gas. So, you might be surprised by a claim that most of us play a more or less active part in a power struggle, though – admittedly – on a much smaller scale or at a lower level. Have you ever argued or had a row with someone? If so, that was your power struggle in its most visual or audible way. Other ways of power struggle can be quieter or more conspicuous, but the aim is the same: taking control of the situation. This is how we are hard-wired as social animals; it\u2019s an ongoing, natural, instinctive desire to be in control of our own destiny. And – as we see in today\u2019s gospel – no one is free of such desire.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[5,8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13606","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermon","category-year-b"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13606","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13606"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13606\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13606"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=13606"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=13606"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}