9/17/15 Reflection - Fools

http://usccb.org/bible/readings/091715.cfm

1 Timothy 4:12-16
Luke 7:36-50

The scene described for us by Luke in this morning's gospel reading is worthy of a tabloid front page with a banner headline. I can see it now: "Sinner Cries Over 'Holy Man's' Feet." or, how about "Woman With Foot Fetish Invades Pharisee's Home." or yet another alternative "Are Tears the New Coin of the Kingdom?" In any case, we've little choice but to check this one out.

Simon (apparently that's the Pharisee's name) invited Jesus over for dinner. A typical, even common practice. You run into someone you think you might like to know better so you invite them over for dinner. Maybe you can get them to relax over a glass of Bordeaux. So, Simon invited Jesus.

Now, to all appearances, Simon seems to have been an OK guy. As a Pharisee he must have been an upstanding member of the community; he was probably on the board of directors at the synagogue. Maybe he was even influential with the Chamber of Commerce or the Better Business Bureau. He was, arguably, among the wealthier residents of the community. He held fast to traditional values. He was cautious about Jesus; and, at least as Luke images the details in his gospel account, he wasn't going to attach himself too closely to Jesus until he knew more about him. We can also safely assume that he went to the synagogue every Sabbath, that he adhered to the Law of Moses somewhat rigidly, that he followed the teachings regarding ritual cleansing, and that any change in the spiritual arena was a matter about which he was likely to be skeptical. Along with these characteristics we might also guess that he was satisfied with his spiritual life, that he was comfortable knowing that he was pleasing to God, and that he viewed spiritual growth as simply another layer of icing on his already frosted cake. Obviously, these last three observations are prejudicial judgements; but I might get away with blaming Luke's bias against the Pharisees for that.

Now enter the sinful woman!

She was a fairly well known resident of the town --- at least Simon knew who she was --- whether or not he knew her in her professional capacity we cannot say. Her occupation had apparently brought her a measure of financial security as evidenced by the expensive alabaster jar she carried. And, considering the way she barged in upon another man's home, and that at dinner time, we would have to assume she was a woman with a serious degree of determination, maybe even a leader in the women's lib movement of her day. After her dramatic entrance, she proceeded to make a public spectacle of herself, weeping profusely all over one of the guest's feet. And, if that wasn't enough she dried his feet with her hair and anointed them with ointment from the alabaster jar.

What a contrast these two principals from the story make!

Simon observed the woman --- both her arrival and her startling actions. His opinion of her had already been formed by his attitude toward her known sinful behavior. His opinion of Jesus was quickly being shaped by Jesus' response --- or rather, by Jesus failure to respond to her touch. And, as these events rapidly played out, his reserved interest in his dinner guest, just as rapidly, began to dissipate.

In all probability, the woman likewise observed Simon. Her opinion of him had, like his opinion of her, already been formed. But she didn't care. That was not the reason for her bursting in on the scene. She proceeded with her embarrassing behavior in front of them all.

Jesus, of course, observed them both. Afterwards, He even provided a few words by way of an analogy to help Simon understand the relationship between love and forgiveness in the scene he had just witnessed. But it was not the words of Jesus that lingered in my mind as I reflected on the drama of the incident. Rather, my thoughts turned to the interaction between Jesus and each of the two other principals of the story.

From that perspective, I can hear words being spoken by Jesus to Simon that are an extension of those recorded by Luke:

When I came into your home, Simon, you did not receive me as a guest, but as a curiosity. In fact, you did not even receive me as if I were truly welcome by extending to me the common and customary foot washing. You certainly didn't anoint my head in expectation of the Messiah you hoped I might be. Neither did you acknowledge me as a man of God or even as one coming from God. Your manner conveyed detachment, as if you were waiting to see if I was even a man you deemed worthy of your recognition.

But you see this woman? She is a sinner, like yourself. And, while you may judge her sin to be more shameful than your own, neither her sin nor your judgement has deterred her in her search for God. And there is an even more profound difference. She entered your house with such a passion to see me that I doubt whether you or your servants could have stopped her. She knew in her heart that she was in the presence of holiness even as you debated within yourself what was the source of the miracles. Her tears came from the depths of her being; and her sorrow seemed inexhaustible. As you sat comfortably by in your judgment seat, she acknowledged her sinfulness before all present --- no excuses, no rationalization --- just tears of truth. In the end you would have dismissed her as a fanatic and judged her actions to be the result of hysteria. But love sometimes makes us appear both fanatical and hysterical. It frequently makes us appear to be fools.

Listen, Simon, to the words of the poet.

Love, love changes everything, hands and faces, earth and sky.
Love, love changes everything, how you live and how you die.
Love, love changes everything, days are longer, words mean more.
Love, love changes everything, pain is deeper than before.
Love will turn your world around, and that world will last forever.
Yes, love, love changes everything,
Brings you glory, brings you shame.
Nothing in the world will ever be the same.
Off into the world we go, planning futures, shaping years.
Love comes in and suddenly all our wisdom disappears.
Love makes fools of everyone, all the rules we make are broken.
Love, love changes everything.
Live or perish in its flame.
Love will never, ever let you be the same. (Andrew Lloyd Weber)

Yes, Simon, love makes fools of everyone; there are no exceptions. It has already and will again make a fool of me. To the rest of the world the love of this woman made an embarrassing spectacle, a fool of her. But, in truth, it was you who were embarrassed, not her. For her, love had changed everything; and her pain, her longing for the holy, was deeper than ever before. That force of love will continue to change how she lives and how she dies. She has no choice. She will live in its flame; and she will not perish, but will have everlasting life. My apostle, Paul, will put words to this in just a few years when he describes his life for the Christians at Corinth.

"I think that God has exhibited us apostles as last of all, like men sentenced to death; because we have become a spectacle to the world, to angels and to men. We are fools for Christ's sake . . .
" . . . we hunger and thirst, we are poorly clothed and buffeted and homeless, and we labor, working with our own hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; when slandered, we try to conciliate. . . "
(1 Corinthians 4:9-13)

Love, love changes everything!

I hear you, my Lord. I hear you speaking with the same burning desire you would ignite in me. I hear the heartache in your voice, the yearning from your heart. I hear your cry for me to love you with a deep and abiding passion and not with a studied reserve. I hear your invitation to allow my love to explode with a joy that bursts into laughter, knowing that you are with me. I hear you calling that I turn to you with passionate tears, knowing that my sin separates us. I hear you, my Lord, speaking to me through the woman who would love you with abandon, the woman who would allow her passionate love to insist on speaking with you -- even if she must speak with nothing but tears.

I hear you, my Lord as you quietly say to me: Let love in. It changes everything. Only when the fire of love burns within your heart will you avoid perishing in its flame.