Iconography of St. Mark as a Lion
With the first Sunday in Advent we will leave the year of Matthew and begin the year we read from the Gospel of Mark. I think I need that change.
Matthew has been relentless, especially these last several Sundays, summoning us again and again to the care of neighbor and warning us of the consequences of failure. I have grown to appreciate Matthew deeply over the years, but in this era when so many cruelties abound, the killings by police, the peaceful demonstrations that turn to violence, the hateful speech, the falsehoods, the conspiracy theories, all on top of a massive pandemic, make Matthew’s unrelenting case for faithful obedience to God’s reign of grace seem like one more challenge on top of a pile of challenges.
I need to see the Jesus of Mark’s gospel storm in and kick butt. Mark’s story begins with a bang and keeps on exploding. There is no Christmas story in Mark; Jesus bursts onto the scene seconds after John appears in the wilderness. The heavens are torn open in Mark’s account of Jesus’ baptism. Demons are silenced with a word. The sick are healed. Lepers are cleansed. Disciples drop their nets at the command to follow. And all in the first chapter!
The lame walk. The blind see. Sins are forgiven. The dead are raised.
It’s all stuff that happens in Matthew’s Gospel, too, but Matthew is living in the aftermath of war when apocalyptic fervor has faded and the task of doing justice, loving mercy, and walking humbly are the things that need emphasizing. Matthew knows that the believers are in for the long haul and wants to build the faithful community. Mark sees deliverance at hand. No cruel, demonic, power can stand before this Jesus. No hate can stand. No cruelty can stand. No power of death will prevail.
Satan’s kingdom is falling.
It’s good to hear such a message when evils seem to surround us. It’s good to hear when our president betrays our constitution, pollutes our airwaves, and threatens our stability. It’s good to hear when people rage against the simple kindness of wearing a face mask. It’s good to hear when racial animus gains a new flowering – or at least, an emboldening. It’s good to hear when deaths mount and folly prevails. It’s good to hear when isolation eats away at our mental health and families are stressed too far. It’s good to hear when unseen forces destroy jobs and security and the ordinary rhythms of life. Satan’s kingdom is falling. No power can stand against this Jesus.
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My father’s caregiver brought COVID-19 into his house. He’s been sick in bed with the virus for two weeks now. He lives in another state and I cannot reach him, nor would it be safe. I still cannot see my mother; no outsiders are allowed into her care center. Her memory of us is fading. On Sunday morning I look out over empty pews and they fill up with memories. I first saw Bob Boesenberg sitting out there. I think it was during the eucharistic prayer on All Saints. Since then, the pews have begun to fill with others: Martha Deboni, Irene Fisli, Mabel Chesnut, Kerstin Jansson, Vern Rossow, Evelyn Knorre, Clarence Rinne, Terrie and Norah Houseman, Ralph and Marion Bridge, Bob and Mary Ellen Roselli, Cameron Showecker, DeVonne Crick, Jim Conway, Jonathan Nathan, Ilene and Bruce Clarke, Mike and Connie Miri, Yuki Bunch, Bob Taylor.
The list goes on and on: Arloa Kelsen, Del Beumer, Dae Wasson, Dona Frakes, Louise Onnen, Helen Andersen, Don Bremer, Mary Alice Grieshaber, Joanne Goelzer. I know where they all once sat.
The throat gets tight and eyes water as I remember all these we have lost. But there is something wonderful in the thought that we are joined in our worship with all the congregation of heaven. Between the tears is the glimpse of something eternal. Beyond the sorrow is a lamb upon a throne and a world made good.
Satan’s kingdom is falling. Evil will not stand. The demons are silenced in the presence of the holy one. The cross shines.
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We need Matthew’s story. We need to hear Jesus speak about what is honorable in the eyes of God. We need to hear him expound on the commandments. We need to hear him talk about prayer, and giving, and life in the community of the faithful. We need to hear him speak about our mission, and the promise of the harvest that will surely come. And we need to hear the warnings that it is not about saying “Lord, Lord” but doing the will of the Father.
But we also need Mark’s story. We need to see Jesus knocking down the gates of hell to set all its prisoners free. We need to see that inexorable march to the cross and empty tomb. We need to see that evil cannot stand.
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Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Il_Leone_di_Venezia_in_Friuli….JPG;
ElmAgos, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
jacob_limping 
powerful share. thanks.