It happens every so often that, as I read and ponder the scriptures, an idea presents itself to me, and at first I think, “Whoa, that’s a new way to understand things; I never thought of it that way before…” but then, during the days and weeks that follow, I see that idea or concept everywhere, until I think, “Whoa, why had I never seen that before?”
A few months ago, that happened with the idea that the way of Jesus is bigger than any religion. Well, you’ve heard me say that quite a few times since, even though the first time that idea occurred to me, it startled me. Now, it is so easy for me to see that it is true.
A little more recently, the idea occurred to me that following Jesus means refusing to play the game, refusing to play by the rules that determine who is a winner and who is a loser. I guess this idea isn’t really new, but the way that I have learned to talk about it is new, at least for me. Now, however, I see it everywhere.
Last week, I talked about how the kids on the TV show Glee refused to play by the rules, the rules that the world used to determine who is a winner and who is a loser. Well, earlier in the season, there was an episode in which one of the students anonymously posted on a bulletin board a popularity list. Those at the top of the list were the coolest kids in school; those at the bottom were the most un-cool. Obviously, this list created quite a bit of drama on campus, especially for those who found themselves at the bottom of the list.
A similar thing happens in the book Diary of a Wimpy Kid. This book has been at the top of the bestseller list, which may be surprising to you, unless you happen to have an elementary-aged boy in your house, which I do.
In the book – and also in the movie – there is a list of who is popular and who is not. The main character created the list for his own use, so he could see just where he stood on the social hierarchy, and figure out what he needed to do in order to move up the list. But of course, events transpire which, much to his horror, cause him to move not up, but down.
The Diary of a Wimpy Kid takes place during the first year of middle school, and a list of who is popular and cool seems immature, yet appropriate for that age. It’s funny, too. Adults who read the books or who have seen the movie with their kids can laugh at it, remembering their own middle school days, when things like that seemed so important … and they can give thanks that they are now adults, and have put behind them those childish ways.
Ah, but then there is that list in the Sunday Times, at the bottom of the Calendar page, that describes certain people in society or certain cultural phenomena as being overrated or underrated. In essence, this section of the paper is describing who needs to move up the list and who needs to move down.
And then there is the conventional wisdom section of Newsweek magazine, which includes the names of a dozen or so people; and right next to their names is a little arrow that either points up or points down, to indicate which direction they are moving on the list of what’s cool.
And then there are the bestseller lists, which I’ve already mentioned, and the Billboard charts, and a whole host of similar lists. We even have lists like these in our denomination’s yearbook: a list of the churches that baptized the most people in the past year, or that gave the most to the Disciples Mission Fund. It’s not too hard to interpret such lists as indicators of who are the winners and who are the losers in the church membership game. That’s not the intention of those lists, I don’t think; but it’s not hard to interpret them that way.
I’m beginning to think that lists like these are a part of our psyche, whether we are conscious of them or not. And yes, they are immature; and yet we carry those lists around with us, in our heads, constantly comparing ourselves to those around us. Our position on these lists is determined by what others think of us; and what others think of us is determined by such things as what we do, where we live, how much money we have, and with whom we associate. A lot of people refuse to do certain types of work or associate with certain types of people, because it will bring them down on the list of winners and losers. It is beneath them to do that work or to associate with those people.
This is the thinking that goes on inside all our minds. I for one like to think that I’m immune to this way of thinking, but I know that I’m not. I don’t always intentionally set out to compare myself to others, but more often than not, I find myself doing it without even realizing it. I find myself worrying too much about how to be respectable in the eyes of the world. I evaluate where I am on the list of winners and losers, sometimes without even realizing what I’m doing at first, and act in ways that I hope will move me up on that list. And I bet you do, too.
This is nothing new. People living in the first century had their own lists. At the bottom of the list were people who were unclean: those who had skin diseases, or who worked with unclean animals (like pigs), or who had mental illness, or who were possessed by demons. Dead bodies were unclean, and so was anyone who had contact with dead bodies.
In fact, just coming into contact with – or associating with – uncleanliness made you unclean. Whatever it was that put a person at the bottom of the list was contagious, and they could bring others down just by contact or association.
Demons were unclean, and at the bottom of the list. Non-Jews were down at the bottom, and anyone who was associated with the Roman government was down there, too. In fact, the number of those at the bottom of the list was far greater than the number of those at the top. The number of losers was far greater than the number of winners. This just made everyone try all that much harder to move their own names up higher on the list, even if they had to push others down in order for that to happen.
Now it so happened that Jesus had arrived at the land of the Gerasenes. Who were the Gerasenes? They were non-Jews. Actually, scholars think Luke might have been a little confused in saying that Jesus was in the land of the Gerasenes, which is why the NRSV includes notes that mention that perhaps what Luke meant was the land of the Gadarenes, or perhaps the land of the Gergesenes.
It’s not really important though; what is important is that Luke simply wants the reader to know that Jesus was not among those who were a part of the Jewish mainstream. He was among those who were lower on the list than that.
When he arrived, Jesus was met by a man who had been possessed by demons. That alone should be enough to let us know that this particular man was at the bottom of society’s list, but Luke goes on to say that this man wasn’t in his right mind: he went around wearing no clothes, and did not live in a house, but instead, lived among the tombs, the place of the dead – another sign of uncleanliness.
When Jesus asked the man for his name, he replied, “Legion,” which is clearly a reference to Rome and its military. More uncleanliness. When Jesus cast out the demons from him, they entered a herd of swine. Pigs! Still more uncleanliness.
It’s almost ridiculous how low all this places this man on the list. It’s just one thing after another. Luke takes the list of winners and losers, places this man at the bottom of that list, and then moves him down about five notches below that.
This is a man who any decent, respectable person would avoid at all costs. If you see him, you look the other way, walk a little faster, and pray to God that he doesn’t call out to you….
But that’s not what Jesus did. When Jesus saw this man coming toward him, Jesus turned toward the man, and walked in his direction. He even spoke to the man, ordering the unclean demons out of him, and the man not only called out to Jesus, but addressed him by name, calling him “Jesus, Son of the most high God.”
There is no doubt what the onlookers were thinking: This man – this man – knows Jesus?
Clearly, Jesus’ reputation is shot.
And Jesus doesn’t even seem bothered by this. He doesn’t avoid this man, and he obviously doesn’t care about what associating with him will do to his ranking on the list.
Jesus’ concern isn’t with lists and rules that determine winners and losers. He doesn’t care about who’s overrated or underrated in society’s eyes. He doesn’t care about how popular he is. He doesn’t care about which way he is moving, up or down, according to conventional wisdom.
What Jesus does care about is restoring wholeness to those whose lives have been broken; releasing people from whatever form of captivity they find themselves in; reaching down to those who are at the bottom, and letting them know that, in God’s eyes, there are no popularity lists. There are no rules of the game. There are no losers.
In God’s eyes, everyone is equal. In God’s eyes, everyone deserves to be restored to wholeness. In God’s eyes, everyone deserves to be saved from whatever hell they might find themselves in.
God’s passion is Jesus’ passion, and Jesus acts accordingly.
How does the crowd respond to this?
The scripture says that when they saw what Jesus had done, they were afraid. They asked Jesus to leave, for they were seized with great fear. Luke’s choice of words here shows that the fear by which they were possessed is every bit as demonic as the unclean spirit by which the man was possessed at the beginning of the story. He was seized by a demon; they were seized by fear.
They were seized by fear, because they realized what Jesus had done: he had allowed himself to be dragged down the list by associating with this demon-possessed man. Somehow it didn’t seem to register with them that this man was now restored to wholeness, now able to function as a part of society. Apparently, you can’t move up the list that quickly.
Or, maybe they just didn’t want him to move up the list, because he might surpass them, causing them to slip down a notch.
Whatever. It was too much to consider. And Jesus had to go.
Now, perhaps your religion would tell you to avoid those who are at the bottom of the list. Avoid the homeless. Avoid those afflicted with AIDS. Avoid the folks waiting at the bus stop. Avoid the mentally ill. Avoid immigrants. Avoid anyone who speaks with an accent. Avoid gays and lesbians. Avoid thinking about people in the third world. Avoid worrying about children who don’t have a blanket to keep them warm at night. Avoid anyone who might bring you lower on society’s list of winners and losers.
But the way of Jesus is bigger than that. The way of Jesus doesn’t care about lists of popularity or importance. The way of Jesus only cares about enabling every child of God to live as equals, to live lives of wholeness, in the kingdom of God.
If you and I are to be followers of that way, we need to let Jesus remove from us the fear that holds us back.
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