St Martin's & St Paul's
Parish Canterbury
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A few days ago, we were watching the news at home and an item came on about the enforced removal of some Jewish settlers from Palestinian lands. The settlers, who had been holding out despite an agreement, were displaying a banner saying: "Israel belongs to the Jews". They were defying the lawful agreement and time had run out. The soldiers were being very firm and manhandling them as they refused to move. Suddenly our son (aged 11) asked, "What's happening?"
How do you begin to describe that complex situation? And how do you relate this to the concept of "The Holy Land" - the place where Christ lived? We did our best. It is a reminder that children cannot be forever shielded from the problems of the world; they have to become aware of them and to begin to understand them. Sometimes they fall victim to them.
What is the place of John the Baptist in the history of Israel, and how do we make sense of him? Mark doesn't even begin to try to explain who John was or where he came from; he just tells us "John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance...". But he does also relate John to the prophecies of Isaiah; he identifies him as the one who prepared the Way of the Lord.
For it was John who provided the catalyst for the emergence of Jesus from obscurity to prominence: Jesus responded to John's message and the two met: Jesus' ministry began and soon after John's ended with his arrest and his execution.
A short while ago on television there was a programme about two scientists: Eddington and Einstein. Eddington was working in England and Einstein in Germany during the Great War. Einstein wanted nothing to do with weapons science and had developed his theory of relativity; Eddington had been following his work (which challenged some of Newton's findings) and when Einstein was beleaguered in Germany he sent his papers to him. To test the theory, Eddington set up some experiments, in the face of much hostility (since all things German were anathema to people whose sons were dying in the conflict). Eddington proved Einstein right and did much to influence the acceptance of a theory that changed the course of scientific understanding. They met only briefly, it seems, after the war, and then went their separate ways: Einstein is now remembered, Eddington mostly forgotten.
The Christian church might well have forgotten John the Baptist, but each of the Gospel writers recognised his significance and recorded it, in very different ways. He remains an obscure, even tragic figure, but one who is still remembered and honoured as we in Advent prepare the way of the Lord.
Amen
