The Rejection of Jesus (4th Sunday Ordinary C)

At a dinner for a cause with a group of prospective benefactors in Manila, I was warmly welcomed by a Doňa who started to show delight in listening to what I do in Mindanao. In the course of our conversation, she asked about the presence of Muslims in Mindanao and expressed her strong aversion to them. Wanting to offer her a new way of seeing and to loosen up her apparent prejudice, I told her about my friendship with some Muslims I know. In short, I told her that in my observation a truly religious Muslim is one that pleases God too.

I thought I was doing just fine until I realized that the rich lady did not like our conversation.  For the rest of the dinner, she gave me the cold shoulder. I realized too what a lousy fundraiser I was!

Jesus, in today’s gospel (Lk 4:21-30), evokes initial delight from his kinsfolk as he announces the fulfillment of the messianic prophecy of Isaiah in his person and ministry. But as he continues to address them, he eventually gets the ire of the people. The gospel reading ends in a violent rejection of Jesus by the people.

Why is Jesus rejected? In Luke’s account two reasons may be gleaned: First, the exclusive mindset of the people of Israel clashes with Jesus’ message of the universal love of God and, second, the prophetic stance of Jesus does not conform to their long-held beliefs.

The universality of God’s love versus the religious exclusivity of Israel. The people of Nazareth, in solidarity with the belief of the whole of Israel, had been made to believe very strongly that God’s promise of salvation is for them—as in exclusively for them! After all, they were the chosen people of God. God’s fidelity was seen as his exclusive love for his chosen people. The pagans, for certain, were excluded. They did not deserve God’s grace.

But in the gospel today, Jesus is radically overturning this belief with his announcement of the universal love of God. He points out to them how the prophet Elijah was sent during a severe famine to a widow not in Israel but in Zarephath in the land of Sidon. And during the time of prophet Elisha when there were many lepers in Israel, only Naaman the Syrian was cured (vv. 25-28). The God of Jesus cares for pagans too!

The Nazarenes think that they are exclusively entitled to the wonders that Jesus is said to accomplish. But Jesus announces a universal ministry. Hence, they reject Him as they cannot bear the thought that people outside their own family, clan, or milieu can share in the same grace or privilege.

Sometimes we also think and act this way. We wish every blessing the people in our circle—family, friends, organizations, social class, and religion. But we don’t care for those who are outside. Our calling to love seems to end within the exclusive boundary that we have set. Today’s gospel then is an invitation for us to examine our tendencies to exclusivity and to recognize the universality of God’s grace and the gift of salvation. In simple terms, Jesus is presenting to us God as the loving Father of all peoples. Instead of grumbling, we ought to rejoice at the blessings of others.

Do we praise God when people outside our intimate circle are blessed?

Jesus’ prophetic stance versus the convenience of conformity.  For the Nazarenes in today’s gospel reading, the good news is that which conforms to their expectations, desires, wishes, and long-held beliefs. What contradicts or supersedes their beliefs meets outright rejection. Jesus is rejected because his prophetic stance does not in anyway conform to their wishes.  Jesus is therefore seen as a threat rather than as a bearer of glad tidings.

Christianity today can also tumble into the same pitfall when it becomes too comfortable with what is. When it is too identified with the status quo to see the injustices, Christianity can become un-prophetic. When it is too closed-minded to embrace new perspectives and innovative approaches, it can become stagnant and irrelevant.

Jesus’ consistent prophetic stance reminds us not to settle easily with the convenience of conformity. This is despite the threat of rejection or persecution. We always wish to have a better society, but we find it difficult to achieve it because most of us are contented to ride safely where the current goes; we conform, for instance, with the "standard operating procedures"--our euphemism for systematized under-the-table transactions; we sell our votes because everybody is doing it anyway; we passively allow our natural resources to be plundered and destroyed beyond remedy. At the end of the day, we point our fingers to one another for the ills of our society oblivious of the fact that what we need to do is to be prophetic enough to stand firm on the values of God's kingdom thereby challenging the sinful structures that we ourselves built .

Can we be prophetic enough to challenge beliefs, practices, immoral procedures we observe in our work places? Can we commit to proclaim and work for better structures in society guided by the gospel values despite the risk of being rejected?

Today’s gospel then invites us to do two things: to rejoice when others are blessed and to be prophetic amid the ills of our society.