Sunday Homily 10-4-09, 27th Ordinary Time
Readings: Genesis 2, 18-24; Psalm 128, May the Lord bless Us all the Days of Our Lives; Hebrews 2, 9-11; Mark 10, 2-16.
Genesis:
Date of Compilation: Most likely during the Babylonian Captivity, i.e., around 600-550 BCE. But the material for the sources was coming together over 200 years.
Authors: 4 major sources–
The J or Y source (for Yahweh), coming from Judah, the southern half of the divided Jewish state after Solomon's death.
The E source (for Elohim), coming from Israel, the northern half of the Jewish state which was destroyed by the Assyrians ca. 700 BCE.
The D source (from Deuteronomy), coming from the revisions of the prophet Jeremiah's & his companions.
The P source (from the priests), which or who during the Babylonian time took the material from the first 3 sources, wove them together, edited them.
How do you know: by text analysis, noting different styles of writing, place references (e.g. mention of the Tigris & Euphrates in our chapter 2, which says "Babylon."), event references, people references, and agendas behind the stories (e.g. Sabbath & Creation Story #1).
Subject Matter: A panorama stretching from the two stories of creation, through The Fall, Cain & Abel, Noah & the flood, the Tower of Babylon, the Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, & Jacob, Joseph and his jealous brothers, Joseph as governor of Egypt & his brothers' visit & eventual migration to Egypt.
Our Selection: we will read the whole of creation story #2, chapter 2. The story comes from the Y or J source, but note the mention of the Tigris & Euphrates, which a person in Babylon would appreciate ( A clue that a priestly source has inserted a geographic reference. Why would a Jewish high priest be familiar with Babylonian rivers? Babylonian Captivity. ).
Hebrews: We will read from Hebrews for the next 6 weeks (excluding All Saints), right up to the feast of Christ the King, which marks the end of the liturgical year. Then we begin Advent and a new liturgical year.
Author: unknown, but he wrote excellent Greek. Not Paul.
When Written: 85-95 CE, i.e., 50 plus years after Jesus' death
Subject: superiority of Christ. Rather convoluted.
Sources St. Louis U. Sundays, John Shelby Spong
Concerning Divorce, Remarriage, & Adultery
After hearing what was said about divorce and remarriage, I can imagine you are thinking, "Okay, Stack, what are you going to say about this topic?" I intend to talk about it. But first, a story.
The first week of September Rosemary & I went to Seattle to be part of Gloria Eshelbrenner's wedding. Since it was our first trip to Seattle, we traveled there on Monday. We had been told that we would not need to rent a car because our little B & B was close to the center of town. Great.
So I am looking at transportation from the airport, shuttle, Gray Line tour bus, or city bus for ca. $2. Guess which I suggested to Rosemary. It is not only the cheapest, but the most adventurous. We took the Gray Line. Which deposited us in the center of town, where we walked a block or so, having an ice cream along the way, to a city bus, which turned out to be an electric bus. Great.
Half way along the route our electric bus breaks down. The overhead pulley disconnected from the electric cable and the driver could not reconnect it.
We had been talking with people around us and when we stopped a number tried to help us find where we were going. Finally a guy stepped forward, asked the address, said he thought he lived close to our address, and told us to follow him.
We walked up hill, caught another electric bus, rode a mile or so, got off, turned up a street, and the guys said, "There is your house. I live in that house across the street." We were touched by the hospitality of the people on the bus and especially of this new neighbor.
I remember this incident when I reflect on the words of Jesus, "whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her; and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery." Strong words. Five comments: Jesus' words, hospitality, Mark's environment, Mark's intention, for us.
First, you may put your money on it that these words are not words of Jesus. Students of the bible consider almost no words directly attributed to Jesus to be his exact words.
Why? Because Mark did not know Jesus and he is writing from oral sources 30 years after Jesus' death. They had no recording machines in those days. Can you remember what happened 30 years ago? Super Bowl winner? Pittsburg. President? Carter. Big news? Ayatolloh Khomeini held embassy hostages. A prophet of that time? MLK had been killed in '68. We can remember his line, "I have a Dream,' because it has been repeated so often.
Secondly, Jesus' main message about God: hospitable, like those people in Seattle. He talks hospitality, inclusion, not exclusion, acceptance, not rejection. E.g., Prodigal Son, to name only one.
Thirdly, Mark's environment. Bible students think whoever put this booklet together wrote for Gentile Christians living in the Roman Empire, probably in Rome or Antioch, Greece. He (she unlikely) wrote just after the destruction of Jerusalem & the temple by the Romans after a failed Jewish revolt, 70 CE. More persecution was expected throughout the Empire. (Note that the Jews never again had possession of Jerusalem until 1948 when it was granted them by the Allies after WW II & the Holocaust)
Fourth, Mark's intention: encourage these Gentile Christians living in probably Rome to remain faithful despite coming troubles. One method: keep families united. Don't break up. Marriages were arranged by families at this time. Kids did not choose their parent, kids did not choose their spouses. Marriage strengthened bonds for self defense and economic survival. Divorce ruptured these bonds, not just between the couple. Remarriage caused even more contention. Thus, divorce & remarriage is strongly discouraged for even survival reasons.
Fifth: for ourselves. Context vs basic message.
A. Understand the context of our passage, Mark's background and intention.
B. Consider this the ideal, the infinite demand.
C. Remember the basic Christian message: God's infinite acceptance & hospitality, like the people in Seattle.
What have you gotten for yourself from these observations?
Picture 1: The Choir, Shonda, Celeste, & Ray
Picture 2: Birthdays & Anniversaries, Frank, Richard & Sheila
Picture 3: Denni reading Genesis
Picture 4: Tom Reading Hebrews
