Difficult Words

Homily for the 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today we the Gospel is difficult to hear and difficult to understand. We tend to be revolted by the notion of someone maiming themselves by cutting off a limb plucking out an eye. However, in his time and in his culture, Jesus is really talking about something that is completely outside our experience. It is important for us to remember that people who were blind or lame or deaf or who were chronically ill were excluded from the communal way of life as it was lived in the first century.

First of all, the word “Gehenna.” We tend to equate Gehenna with our notion of hell. However, this is really a reference to a specific place; namely, the garbage dump outside of the city or town where refuse is burned. People avoided coming near this place at all costs. The smoldering fire and smoke made the air unbreathable and unhealthy. The stench was overpowering. Most people never went close to these smoldering heaps of detritus, except for one specific kind of people – people who were ritually impure. For instance, lepers were forced to live outside of the community because the Law of Moses considered them unclean or ritually impure. They inhabited these garbage dumps because they could find clothing and food that was thrown out. Throughout the Gospel, Jesus approaches people who were deemed unclean. He healed the lame and gave sight to the blind. He also healed lepers. While the Law of Moses excludes such people, Jesus includes them. The Gospels record the many miracles of healing that Jesus performed through his touch. Consequently, when he uses the example of cutting off a foot or plucking out an eye, he is really saying that it would be better to go through life in this “unclean” or handicapped condition than to sin against him.

The second thing that we must consider is his use of the term “little ones.” Here again, we tend to think that he uses these words to describe children. However, he is really using the term “little ones” to describe his disciples, those who have placed their trust and faith in him. We can be pardoned for misunderstanding Jesus’ use of this term because just last week we heard in the Gospel of how Jesus placed a child in the midst of the disciples and asked them to be like that child. Next week’s Gospel text will be similar. However, today’s Gospel text specifically refers to the “little ones” as being those who have placed their faith in Jesus. Little children are not capable of this kind of relationship. In the context of today’s Gospel passage, his disciples are the little ones, we are the little ones. We are the ones who are vulnerable to the kind of sin of which Jesus speaks today. As we listen to this Gospel passage today, we must recognize that Jesus is speaking of the importance of our loyalty to him, of our connection to him. We must also remember that in this Middle Eastern culture, these people thought of themselves as being part of the community rather than thinking of themselves as individuals.

Consequently, as we read today’s Gospel text, we must realize that our connection to Jesus, our relationship to him, is more important than life itself. In fact, Jesus expects us to remain loyal to him at all costs even if it means maiming oneself in order to avoid sin.

The mission of the church is to allow the flow of God’s grace to inhabit every one of us. Anything or anyone that inhibits the flow of God’s grace is contrary to and an enemy of the mission that Jesus has given us. As he states very clearly, “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were put around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.”