Which Mask?

Monday of the 3^rd Week of Easter

St. Joseph the Worker

Acts 6:8-15

They could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit 

with which he spoke. 6:10

Withstand: remain undamaged or unaffected by

They could not withstand.  A response/a change was assured.  What would it be? 

The ‘so-called’ Synagogue members throw around inflammatory rhetoric. Just as in Luke’s Gospel they misunderstand and are scandalized.  

With an Ignatian sensibility I place myself in the scene:

Am I Stephen the Scapegoat?  No. It is best not to fall for making myself the hero of the story;)

Am I one of the members of the ‘so-called Synagogue’? 

Depending on the day…I certainly am.  It happens when I can’t withstand wisdom and truth that upsets my current knowing; that asks for humility; that demands metanoia. (example: when I stall in questioning my own impact on the environment because I want to believe that my choices do not have real implications for others. The funny truth is that they also have real implications for my own peace of mind and heart.)

Am I part of the easily stirred up crowd of people, elders and scribes?

Ohhh.  Yes.  This happens when I prefer sloth to actually thinking things through on my own, when deliberate reflection is too much work.  When I let sloth take the upper hand I fall for the most proximate rallying cry.

(example: succumbing to the temptation to believe bumper sticker reductions of complex issues or not believing them but still refusing to seek clarity and understanding in light of the tradition and my own experience)

Am I a Sanhedrin member?

Good question.  They hear the inflammatory accusations.  They looked intently.  They saw innocence.  But the text leaves us guessing…for now.  Stephen’s speech is coming. God, Moses, the Law, and the Temple!  Is this just tooo much?  The narrow vision of stability and self-protection or the grand vision of the prophet like Jesus?  I’d rather not take that part in the scene.

To be continued…