I love getting my way. In fact, when I was in training for priesthood my family had a nickname for me that emphasised this. Unfortunately I can't share the nickname with you. But, suffice to say that it emphasised the specialness of what I was doing with my life, and, of course, how my Mum would look after and spoil me when I came home from college. I'm sure you can imagine what I mean.
I think we all like to get our way. Certainly the disciples in the gospel liked to get their way. So much so, in fact, that they were disturbed by someone who wasn't doing things their way! "Master, we saw a man who is not one of us casting out devils in your name: and because he was not one of us we tried to stop him." Another way of putting this is: Because he doesn't follow us, because he doesn't do what we do, we tried to stop him. This is a more challenging way of putting it. What it highlights is that, in the Christian community, in the Body of Christ, there are always those who are less interested helping people to follow Jesus and more interested in getting people to follow themselves. So, this is a critique of the abuse of power in the early Church. It is also a critique of the abuse of power in the contemporary/modern Church. This happened among the apostles, whom we remember from last Sunday were more interested in discussing which of themselves was the greatest rather than listening carefully to the bad news that Jesus was breaking to them about his passion and his death.
To emphasise the point, Jesus sounds out a number times, notes of positive encouragement and then, four times he reproaches the disciples for their attitude, simply because they don't get it. Jesus is clear. There is only one Way. And it is Jesus' Way. God's way, not man's. It's not my way, or your way, or our way. It is Jesus' way. To get the attention of the disciples, Jesus throws a hissie fit.
"You must not stop him: no one who works a miracle in my name is likely to speak evil of me. Anyone who is not against us is for us. If anyone gives you a cup of water to drink just because you belong to Christ, then I tell you solemnly, he will most certainly not lose his reward. But anyone who is an obstacle to bring down one of these little ones who have faith, would be better thrown into the sea with a great millstone round his neck. And if your hand should cause you to sin, cut it off;... And if your foot should cause you to sin, cut it off;... And if your eye should cause you to sin, tear it out;..."
This tantrum that Jesus throws is with the disciples – attack is the best form of defence. Jesus wants to show them, and to show us, the futility of power for power's sake – he wants to show them that the most important people in the Kingdom of God are the little ones: the ones who we perceive have no power, no authority, no voice. It is they who are in first place in the Kingdom of God.
And how we know that we have not lived up to this instruction of Jesus. How we know now how the contemporary Church was involved in the abuse of those with no power, with no authority, with no voice. So, the Gospel is fresh, and new, and full of new life. Because the Gospel is Jesus' way, not our way.
A quick note as I finish today's homily. We can be tempted to read or hear today's gospel passages to do with cutting off hand or foot or tearing out our eye; we can be tempted to read them in an individualistic sense which would mean that we do not hear or read the Gospel as it was intended. It is a clear criticism of the Body as the Body of Christ – as the community of faith. So, to cut off a hand or foot or whatever should be heard as addressed first of all at the community not at the individual.
