A Call to Covenant
Nov 18, 2009
Deborah Hughes-Habel
In 1991, my new husband and I along with my 15 year old daughter moved to Kobe, Japan to begin a new life. It was a decision that my husband and I had contemplated and researched for a long time prior to making the trek halfway around the world to live and work in a foreign country without familiar resources. I remember how I wanted my daughter to be with me. My relationship with her was and still is one of the most significant relationships of my life. She is someone I would risk life and limb for and I couldn't bear being separated from her. As she was a teenager, I knew this move would be a hard sell.
I remember the day I posed the question to her. To my surprise she said yes after quietly considering what her life would be like without her father and her brother's close presence and the loss of her familiar relationships with her high school teachers and friends. Taking these things into consideration, I promised her that I would provide for all her needs and that she would not lack for anything while we lived there. I was asking her to change her life completely but all I could really offer her was what was most apparent; my eternal love and companionship. What I was asking from her was to accept my promise and reciprocate by loving me and sharing her life with me. I was asking her to struggle with me while we made our way in a new and unfamiliar world. I knew that adjusting to life in Kobe, Japan would be one of the most difficult things she would ever have to do and that to promise me her love and companionship in a new and unknown environment would be a life changing experience.
The blessing that came out of this covenant between my daughter and me was her awareness of what comes from a shared committed relationship. She knew that she was not obligated in any way to come to Japan with me. Her father would of provided that same love and commitment back in the United States but she was willing to commit to what she perceived was so much more. While living in Japan, she learned to appreciate the experiences of cultures and class outside of her own. Through sacrifice, she found a deeper meaning in her life. She was able be in a humble place, living and studying with people unlike herself and with fewer resources than she would have enjoyed back in Utah. She learned about sacrifice and how to be aware of the needs of others, especially the less fortunate, and she gained a greater understanding of love and abundance. Her experiences in Japan molded her and shaped her into a loving, compassionate and self-actuated woman. Today, she is an example of servant leadership while practicing as a veterinarian and teacher of animal genetics.
I wanted to tell you this story as it seemed particularly pertinent to today's gospel passage in Matthew. The themes of covenant, relationships, sacrifice and servant hood just jumped out at me. The story of the tax collector portrays a message of servant hood that entails sacrifice and commitment. The evangelist Matthew sees the opportunity to teach his community the wisdom of Jesus as the fulfillment of the Mosaic Law. We focus very quickly upon the dilemma that Matthew wants his audience to hear.
Jesus and the disciples, who have no visible means of support, are making their way towards Jerusalem and while stopped at Capernaum, the tax collector catches up with them. When Peter was asked whether Jesus would be responsible to pay the required tax, Peter answers affirmatively. As the tax collector is an undesirable character in Matthew's community, we can see how relationships come along that are not always desired or valued. Before Peter could tell Jesus about his encounter, Jesus asks him, "From whom do kings of the earth take toll or tribute? From their children or from others?" Right away we know that we a looking at a power dynamic that will need to be overcome; a power dynamic none too unfamiliar to either the disciples, Matthew's community or for us for that matter. When Peter judges that the "others", meaning anyone outside of the Jewish Christian community, should pay the tax, Jesus affirms his understanding of his faith but challenges him to look beyond his limited point of view. Jesus says, "... so that we do not give offense to them, go to the sea and cast a hook; take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a coin; take that and give it to them for you and me."
Now Mathew's community, along with the disciples, has a dilemma. They can either refuse to pay the taxes owed as a sign of their arrogance or they can humble themselves and take the right road to seek a more just and civilized relationship. Jesus takes the initiative to engage Peter and offers a morally righteous solution to the dilemma. Jesus doesn't back away from the situation but finds the middle way. He models for Matthew's audience a way to honor and respect relationships outside of their community. He makes a statement that reflects upon the seriousness of these relationships when he says "so as to not give offense".
Something told me this phrase "so we do not give offense to them" was a phrase we should be looking at in this Gospel passage. The Greek word for to give offense is skandolizo (skandalizo). Matthew uses this word or forms of this word over thirteen times in his Gospel. In the New Testament Greek Lexicon, skandalizo means "to put a stumbling block or impediment in the way, upon which another may trip and fall" The significance of this word did not fall on deaf ears for Matthew's audience and it shouldn't on ours either. Now we know the meaning that is implied here; when you covenant to be in relationship with someone you must promise to honor, trust and obey.
Matthew wants his listeners to know that as Christians we are called to a higher standard and a greater commitment in relationship within our communities and with the "other". I cannot help but think that Matthew further implies that, as disciples of Christ, our identities change as we are shaped into persons with integrity that value relationships in such a way that gives meaning to our lives. It is only within these relationships, we can be models of Christ's sacrificial love. The opening verse of our reading shares the second prediction in Matthew's Gospel of Jesus' death and resurrection; the ultimate love sacrifice and model for new life in relationship with God. Mathew is teaching his audience that while you may sacrifice when you reach beyond what is known to you; your commitment will bring the gifts of love, service, justice and peace to the relationship. This can only lead to a life changing and life giving experience. By dissolving the polarity of "us" and "them", we will be humbling ourselves as Jesus Christ humbled himself on the cross to serve as the Savior of the world.
Our Baptismal Covenant serves as a statement of commitment to relationship as described in our Gospel reading. As Jesus directed his disciples to act on their commitment and to pay the price that is required to keep their covenant faithful and true, we are called to take action too. I will faithfully continue the apostles teaching and fellowship. I will resist evil and repent and return to the Lord. I will proclaim the Good News of God in Christ. I will seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving my neighbor as myself and I will strive for justice and peace and respect the dignity of every human being.
But are we truly committed to what our Baptismal covenant calls us to do? These words sound beautiful but do we truly live by them? It almost seems that these promises are forgotten as soon as the words leave our lips. The power dynamics of our relationships in the world today tear apart our hearts and souls. Because we are set in this dichotomy of the "us" and "them", we are left with feelings of hate, distrust and despair. The fractured relationships of our political, social, economic and religious structures further stigmatize and marginalize the "others" leaving no room for hope in our lives that bring the values of Christ into the world. The values of dignity, self-worth, justice, peace and love do not surface in today's society where greed, power, control, injustice and hate shape the world's consciousness.
As future leaders of the church, some of us will soon to be ordained priests, deacons and chaplains. This is what we will face in our ministries. How are we to find that middle way and cling to our roles as servant leaders for Christ's church? Will we be caught up into those power struggles and forsake our call to be Disciples of Christ?
Jesus said to Peter, "then the children are free". As children of God, we are free to make choices to answer our calls to ministry and calls to enter into relationships that nurture the Body of Christ. In fact, as Matthew states in his Gospel, we are compelled not to give offense or scandalize that which reveals God's self. God draws us into these relationships with the "other" so we are better able to grow and mature into compassionate, loving Christian leaders. As we become aware of ourselves by humbly seeking that middle way with everyone that touches our lives, we can find the power of the love of God within ourselves and each other. Seeking the righteous path will be a struggle but when we find ourselves in new and unfamiliar places, we can rest assured God has provided for all our needs. As models of our Baptismal covenant and committed ministers of the church, we can only find the middle way by humbling ourselves, by loving greatly and equipping the disciples in Christ's church through formation, education and guidance in the values of Christian living. We know that this call to discipleship and mission involves risks and self-sacrifice but we must take the initiative and be the moral voice of God because we know we will always enjoy the eternal love and companionship of God our Father in relationship through the Son, Jesus Christ.
