The gospel reading for the day is entitled "Jesus Annointed at Bethany," and it comes from John 12:1-11. Many of you have heard the story before.
Jesus goes to spend time with his friends in Bethany (yes, that's where my name comes from), a little town outside Jerusalem, before heading to the big city to celebrate Passover. Lazarus is there (you remember, the guy who was dead for three days?), along with his sisters, Martha (the over-achieving forerunner to Stewart) and Mary (the former woman of ill repute). So there they are, the party all assembled, and Jesus is reclining and having a drink when Mary bursts in on the scene with a bottle of nard, which is a funny word for an extremely expensive perfumed ointment. Mary dumps the entire contents on Jesus' feet and then wipes his feet with her long, unbound hair. It is extravagant and scandalous, and the disciples are rightly scandalized. But, Jesus says that wherever His Gospel is proclaimed, Mary will be remembered for this good deed.
But, what's so special about verse 3? For one thing, it's the part of the story where Mary pours the perfume and wipes Our Lord's feet with her hair, and it finishes, "the house was full of the scent of the ointment."
Some translation say "perfume," rather than ointment, but this one comes from the Jerusalem Bible, and I prefer it's choice of the word ointment. Of course, nard is both a perfume and an ointment, but the Old Testament is full of perfume rising to the Lord: burnt offerings, hymns, righteous deeds. The New Covenant in Christ is about something that was needed more than these, though.
An ointment.
Salve.
Salvation.
The house was full of the scent of salvation.
And, who was there? Jesus Himself, and the distracted homemaker, and the dead man, and the prostitute. Peter was there, the Rock and the Denier. Thomas the Doubter. Matthew the Tax Collector. James and John. James the Just. Simon the Zealot. Andrew, Bartholomew, Thaddeus, Phillip. Probably some other unnamed disciples.
And the Turncoat, the Traitor, Judas.
All gathered together, at the foot of the Son of God, while the house was filled with the scent of salvation.
It was a reminder to me that everyone is welcome to gather in a house with Our Lord and His disciples, and our homes are houses of God; they are "domestic churches." Do not be afraid to welcome those who do not seem to belong, who strike you as unholy. Remember that it was Judas, the respectable one, the one who was scandalized, who betrayed Christ for a handful of metal. Mary, the prostitute, the foolish, scandalous woman is the one who broke open the jar that filled the house with the scent of salvation.
But remember, the welcoming, the gathering is not the end. Remember verse 3. Break the jar. Unbind your hair. Fill the house.
0 comments:
Post a Comment
If you have questions, words of blessing or encouragement, or simply want to say, "Hello," you are more than welcome to share here. I do ask visitors to respect this as a place of peace, not dispute. Please refrain from posting any ungracious comments. Thank you.
Comments are open, though I reserve the right to moderate or delete at my discretion. If you post anonymously, please identify yourself in some way (initials, pseudonymn, etc.) so that I can address you specifically, as there are often multiple anonymous posters on any given comment thread.
I do so look forward to sharing with you all and, God willing, meeting some new friends. May the peace of Christ be with you all.