Seen And Unseen

July 8, 2007     Proper 9 C

2 Kings 5:1-14             Psalm 30

Galatians 6:7-16         St. Luke 10:1-11, 16-20

All three synoptic Gospels record a mission of the Twelve during Jesus' earthly ministry. The mission of the Seventy (some texts have seventy-two) is peculiar to Luke.

In chapter 9 Luke has already followed his Marcan source for the mission of the Twelve. Here he follows Q (a collection of sayings of Jesus, so named because in German the word for source starts with a "q") and his special material for the mission of the Seventy.

The Q material is also used by Matthew in his mission charge to the Twelve. So it is clear that the idea of a mission of the Seventy was created, not by Q or Mark, but by Luke or his special material.

There can he little doubt that the number seventy is symbolic. The mission of the Twelve represents the Church's mission toIsrael  (twelve tribes); and the mission of the Seventy, its mission to the nations of the world (which according to Jewish tradition, numbered seventy or seventy- two).

Some critics maintain that the whole idea of missions during the earthly ministry is a retrojection of the post-Easter mission into the earthly life of Jesus. But it is noteworthy that the disciples are charged to proclaim Jesus' own message: "The kingdom of God has come near to you," not the Christological kerygma of the post-Easter Church.

The mission is to be characterized by urgency and detachment. The exact expression of this urgency and detachment is conditioned by the circumstances of the time. But in some form or other, urgency and detachment must always characterize the Church's mission.

Two very distinctive Mediterranean ideas strike the Western reader in this passage: hospitality and human power over the spirit world.

In the Mediterranean world hospitality is extended almost exclusively by men and only to strangers. Graciousness extended to relatives or near relatives is called "steadfast love" or "steadfast loving kindness."

In the ancient world, any person who departed from the family village entered a foreign and hostile world. Death was always and everywhere a threat. Such a traveler had to rely on the kindness of a village elder to extend hospitality and temporary protection from those who intended to harm or kill this stranger (see Gen 18:1-16; 19:1-26). Jesus, therefore, utters a cultural truism when he says to the seventy: "I am sending you as lambs into the midst of wolves"-strangers among nonrelatives (Luke 10:3).

In the peasant world of the Middle East there are no free gifts. Every gift comes with a string attached. A common proverb says:  "Don't thank me: you will repay me."

Jesus advises his disciples to be discriminating in accepting hospitality on their journey. If the host reciprocates their greeting of "peace," the disciples should stay there and preach and heal the sick.

On the other hand, if the town insults them by refusing to extend hospitality, they are to go to the town square (a very public place) and publicly return the insult. Both gestures, healing and preaching, and the public insult, bear witness that "the reign of God approaches and is indeed near."

Our Mediterranean ancestors in the Faith not only recognized a rich and densely populated spirit world, but they also arranged the entire cosmos in a hierarchy as follows: (1) God; (2) gods or sons of God, or archangels; (3) lower non-human persons: angels, spirits, demons; (4) humankind; (5) creatures lower than humankind.

Beings higher on this ladder controlled those beneath them, but sometimes, though very rarely, a lower being could control a higher being. Notice in the New Testament that no one denies the reality of Jesus casting demons out of possessed persons. Rather, they charge that he has no legitimate authorization to use this power (Luke 20:2) or that he has obtained his power from the devil (Luke 11:15).

Jesus, in turn, gave this same power to his disciples. Sometimes it was not effective (Luke 9:40), but in today's story it seems to have been very effective: "Lord, in your name, even the demons submit to us!" (Luke 10:17).

Two other features are worthy of note. First, it is not the disciples (and therefore not the Church) that initiate the mission. The initiative comes from the Lord of the harvest in response to the Church's prayer.

The disciples return from their mission elated by their success, but Jesus at once dampens their elation: "Do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you; but rejoice that your names are written in heaven."

There is an even more significant joy for the missionary: prior to their mission, they had been admitted to the privilege of partaking in the eschatological salvation. When they forget that, they are tempted to think that the mission is their own cause and that the success is their own achievement. Even an apostle or an evangelist is a justified sinner.

We also, are called to go out and prepare the way for Jesus. We go not because of some great victory we have won, but because Christ has won the victory for us. We go not to demonstrate the power we possess, we go because the lord of Creation has power over all of creation. We go not to conquer, but to offer peace. But go we must, around the corner or around the world. The call is the same: to demonstrate in our lives the life of Jesus Christ and its ability to affect things seen and unseen.