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Meditation for Tuesday, March 10
Harriet Ross Tubman
Reading: Mark 6:1-13
He left that place and came to his home town, and his disciples followed him. On the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astounded. They said, ‘Where did this man get all this? What is this wisdom that has been given to him? What deeds of power are being done by his hands! Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?’ And they took offence at him. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Prophets are not without honour, except in their home town, and among their own kin, and in their own house.’ And he could do no deed of power there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them. And he was amazed at their unbelief.
Then he went about among the villages teaching. He called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics. He said to them, ‘Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place. If any place will not welcome you and they refuse to hear you, as you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.’ So they went out and proclaimed that all should repent. They cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.
Meditation by Jeremy O’Neill
This passage from Mark’s Gospel is particularly fitting for the day that the Episcopal Church remembers Harriet Ross Tubman. Tubman is most frequently associated with her work on the Underground Railroad, which was a network of unassuming people working together to bring about a better world. In this story, Jesus is teaching in the synagogue and the crowd says “Where did this man get all this? Is not this the carpenter?”
In typical Marcan brevity, we are left without any details of what Jesus actually was saying and teaching. Presumably it wasn’t about carpentry, as that seemed to be what was expected of him. We can safely assume that he was speaking as he often does about a transformational relationship with God and the transformational call of us all to love radically and generously.
Some might have thought that Jesus lacked the proper qualifications. Some might have argued that he should stay in his lane and focus on what was expected of him by the crowds. He then proclaims that “prophets are not without honour, except in their home town, and among their own kin, and in their own house.” And so he feels that there is no more opportunity for him to do good work in that place, and he moves on. He leaves home. He begins a journey in search of a more receptive context - not unlike enslaved people following the North Star in search of freedom and dignity.
At the same time as the Underground Railroad, America’s wealthiest were building thousands of miles of physical railroad infrastructure. This involved the latest technology, research, and plenty of labor to create profitable connections between the businesses and cities of this country. Much of this network still exists today as a reminder of the industrial revolution.
And yet, the Underground Railroad relied very little on set physical infrastructure. It utilized trails, wagons, and homes, but its primary currency and engine was relationships. The need to trust and help one another was far stronger than the need for the latest technology.
And so we get to the disciples. They are sent out with no tools, no money, and no bread. Their charge is to make the world a better place. It sounds like an overwhelming and impossible task, and yet they are given one thing more powerful than any tool: relationships. They are sent out in pairs and told to stay in people’s homes. Their goal is connection, and with that connection comes healing.
The term “miracle” is a loose one - but I believe that we can hope for miracles in ways big and small. And we can work to improve this world with the best tools we have at our disposal. Our most effective tools for ministry are each other, our own belief that God is with us, and the relationships made along the way. We can choose to believe that God walks with us on this journey, while keeping our eyes open to what we can learn and who we can join on the way.
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