a lawless blog

Gospel

One of the scribes,
when he came forward and heard them disputing and saw how well he had answered them,
asked him, “Which is the first of all the commandments?”
Jesus replied, "The first is this:
Hear, O Israel!
The Lord our God is Lord alone!
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul,
with all your mind,
and with all your strength.
The second is this:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
There is no other commandment greater than these."
The scribe said to him, "Well said, teacher.
You are right in saying,
'He is One and there is no other than he.'
And 'to love him with all your heart,
with all your understanding,
with all your strength,
and to love your neighbor as yourself'
is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."
And when Jesus saw that he answered with understanding,
he said to him,
"You are not far from the kingdom of God."
And no one dared to ask him any more questions.

It's a shame that the lead-in to this particular passage is not included in the reading for this Sunday: we are told that the scribe approached Jesus because he heard the dispute going on, and was impressed with the way Jesus answered. (v.28a). The scribes were not a distinct group, like the Pharisees, the Saducees, etc, or at least, they were not a political or religious faction. As the name implies, they were professional providers of writing services of various kinds, though they were particularly involved in copying and interpreting the Law. For this reason, they are sometimes referred to as "lawyers".

To get back to this particular scribe/lawyer, it is obvious that he is approaching Jesus with total sincerity and is not out to trap him. Nonetheless, it does seem strange that he should ask that particular question. Jesus' answer is not something new and radical; in fact, as the first reading indicates, Jesus is quoting from one of the best-known bits of Jewish Scripture. It's obvious too that the scribe already knew the answer! So, what we have here is not so much a case of Jesus answering a question, but an interlude of harmony and understanding amongst all the conflict and tension. But it is more than just a peaceful lull in the storm. It is a reminder of what is really important, what God really asks of us, something that is more fundamental than the Temple cult, more important than the nit-picking details of the Law, and of much greater importance than maintaining one's position or one's power.

But there is something very surprising here. Of course, in the Gospels the message of Jesus is most often conveyed to us through stories and through Jesus' interactions with others. In this case, it is not one of Jesus' own followers who shows understanding of what Jesus really represents...  But here in Mark's account, the person who shows understanding, the person who is in harmony with Jesus when he is so beset by conflict, is a member of a group who is almost invariably associated with his enemies.

He answered with understanding

Cathy, thank you for picking out the curious fact that this scribe seems to be an unlikely one to be given the unique accolade of being "not far from the kingdom". As it happens I was interested in the same issue and noticed another angle. The words omitted in vs 28: when he came forward and heard them disputing and saw how well he had answered them, perhaps indicate that this scribe was an outsider, not one of the group looking always to trap Jesus in his speech. Or at least he broke off from the group of hecklers to listen carefully to what Jesus was saying.

After the exchange in which Jesus and the scribe delineate the first commandment in slightly different words, the story focuses again on this extraordinary man.

And when Jesus saw that he answered with understanding, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God."

In fact I have the impression that this is the story Mark is telling. In all the gospels, I think this might be the only instance where someone is praised by Jesus for being a thinking person. The disciples are described on many occasions as being "without understanding". This man of letters has shown understanding. And when Jesus says "You are not far from the kingdom of God", I think he is approving the approach that this one has taken to the mysteries unfolding around him. He thinks. He reflects. And he comes up with convictions that go against the accepted wisdom of his peers. And he is not afraid to voice those convictions publicly.

We know today there are many women and men giving witness to the truth in their writings, in lectures, and in their living of the christian way, our own Catholica editor among them. All the above surely applies to them. I believe we are all invited to be thinking things over and aiming for a personal understanding that goes far deeper than what amounts to "following the party line".

*****

In closing off the story, Mark drops us into another blind alley with the remark: "And no one dared to ask him any more questions." Why not, I wonder!

What was it in the above encounter that caused everyone else to clam up, not daring to raise any other issues with him? It is not for fear of being beaten in an argument with Jesus, because that is not the context. It may be that in this scribe they recognised an honest and truthful man (as Jesus did), and with that they became aware of the hotchpotch of motives in their own hearts and the convoluted thinking in their heads. They were shamed into silence.

After all, one of the odd things about this teaching of the greatest commandment and its other half - love of neighbour, is that the teaching is really self-evident. I can hear a football coach urging his young recruits: You've got to love the game, love the team, love to play, and love to win! Atheists claim to love truth, to love/respect every human being. Like the things we saw last Sunday, this teaching is an immediate consequence of the beatitudes. "Blessed are the pure of heart for they shall see God!"