What are we up to?

(This is one reflection in a daily series for Holy Week on my blog.)

Tomorrow I would like to reflect on the final meal that Jesus shares with His disciples prior to His death. We speak of this as when Jesus “instituted” the Lord’s Supper - an odd way to speak of this event I think.

In any case, for now I simply want to point out an aside that happens during the meal that really has nothing at all to do with the purpose of the story. If this detail were not there, the story would still be the same. It jumps off the page, though, as saying something about the disciples’ understanding of the heart of Jesus.

In John 13 we have the “Last Supper” taking place. Jesus has just told them that one of them would betray Him, and they are each claiming personal innocence. Jesus then looks at Judas and says, “What you are about to do, do quickly.” Of course no one but Judas knows what Jesus it talking about. But the disciples have a few guesses as to what is going on.

They either think Judas, their treasurer, was supposed to buy something for the meal or give some money to the poor. The former guess is an obvious one based on immediate contextual clues (they were eating a meal at the time!). The latter is an assumption based upon nothing else but the character of Jesus. Naturally, the assume, Jesus is making sure the poor are being taken care of.

John Perkins, in his book With Justice For All, wrote, “Our response to the poor is a crucial test of our faithfulness to the gospel.” (88)

Ouch.

If we are followers of Jesus, if we are continually being formed into His image, if we are deliberately seeking to be less ourselves and more Him, then should not others look on us with the assumption that we are caring for the poor?

When people see us hurriedly going about our responsibilities, I wonder what they assume we are up to. When they look in from the outside on our conversations and activities, I wonder what they think we are trying to accomplish.

I would like to think that we are so intimately involved in God’s redemptive mission in the world that their best guess would be the similar to the disciples’ assumption about Jesus. I fear this may not be the case - not about me at least.

Jesus expressed absolute solidarity with the poor (Matt 25). Jesus defined His whole reason for walking around on this earth as bringing good news to the poor (Luke 4:18-19). Jesus said that the Kingdom of God belongs to the poor (Luke 6:20). The prophet Isaiah said that if we want our lights to shine and God to be with us, then we must spend ourselves on behalf of the poor (Isaiah 58). The wise teacher told us that as soon as our ears are closed to the poor, God’s are closed to us (Proverbs 21:13).

“O Christ of the poor and the yearning, kindle in my heart a flame of love for my neighbor, for my foe, for my friend, for my kindred all. From the humblest thing that lives to the Name that is highest of all, kindle in my heart within a flame of love.” (Celtic Prayers from Iona)

Shawn