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| Saint Junipero Serra Today's Readings (Audio) |
"Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go."
Jesus answered him, "Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests,
but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head."
The Son of Man came to his own but his own received him not (see John 1:11). This was literally the case in Bethlehem where "there was no place for them in the inn" (see Luke 2:7). Perhaps this man hoped that Jesus would one day occupy a palace after the triumph of his Kingdom. But while Herod, "that fox" (see Luke 13:32) was found in a palace, where "those who wear soft clothing" (see Matthew 11:9) are to be found, Jesus had no plans to take up residence in an earthly palace. In order to follow Jesus, Jesus himself had to be the central goal. One could not instead hope to follow him somewhere and for something that he could then choose over and against the one who led him there. Such distracted desires would not conduce to the path of the true disciple.
Catch the foxes for us, the little foxes that spoil the vineyards, for our vineyards are in blossom (See Song of Solomon 2:15).
The scribe may also have assumed that Jesus was going to be a religious leader. Since he had called him a "Teacher" he might have assumed that he would find his proper place in a temple, like the birds who made their nests at the altars of the Lord (see Psalm 83:3). But in a great collusion of worldly powers, the leaders of state and religion would conspire to ensure that the Son of Man would truly have nowhere to lay his head. The climax of this alienation of the creator from his creation was the cross where Jesus desired but was not permitted to rest. There was to be true rest for both Messiah and disciples only on the far side of that cross. Only after that cruciform posture was forced upon Jesus would he bring humanity to a deeper form of rest in the Father's heart. The resurrection would make it possible to live even waking temporal existence from this posture of rest. From this we can begin to understand how there will be no need for night or for further rest once the Kingdom fully arrives.
And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever (see Revelation 22:5).
As disciples we may be tempted to try to find a posture which requires no further change, to truly arrive in such a way that we no longer need to listen to further guidance or to internalize further teaching. But we never fully arrive in this life, which is always a pilgrimage to something greater and something more. Rest stops along the way are necessary to restore us so that we can continue this journey until the end. But when we are tempted to make them the end in themselves let us arise and keep going, just as Jesus does.
Another of his disciples said to him,
"Lord, let me go first and bury my father."
But Jesus answered him, "Follow me,
and let the dead bury their dead."
Augustine famously said, "Make me chaste, but not yet", or something to that effect. And oftentimes many of us perceive the goodness of the call of God, but would prefer to continue to dabble in lesser goods (which are often sinful), rather than embrace that good here and now. We look for distractions. If possible we candy coat them with the veneer of duty or religious obligation. But no such excuses are ever valid, since nothing trumps the claim of God on our lives. To make a full and vigorous commitment to Jesus may seem to involve giving up former things to such a degree as to be painfully difficult or impossible. But our addiction to sin won't grow any easier to sever when we dally with it further. The sooner we choose to follow Jesus fully the better. We will then proceed with less baggage, fewer wounds requiring supernatural healing. Let us learn to stop hesitating before our hesitation turns into an outright refusal. Let us go now, trusting that the good we will find in Christ is to be preferred to even the greatest earthly goods.
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