The gospel according to Jesus Christ presents us with a radical and inconvenient truth - ‘All are welcome!’ There is an inclusivity that is formed by the breath of the Holy Spirit and exemplified in the crucified Christ who dared to say, ‘You belong.’
Belonging is a deep psychological, emotional and social need. We all want to belong and we all need to feel safe. At this point and as we move towards Christmas, it may be helpful to remember the image of a welcoming table set before us. Think of the table where Abraham welcomed and ate with three visitors in Genesis 18; the table at which Jesus ate his final meal and at which he washed the disciples’ feet; the table we gather around to celebrate Holy Communion in the breaking of bread. Sadly, there are always those people who like to think of the table as a place where only a select few are welcome, a place where another select group has deemed us worthy of belonging, or not.
We can all probably recall instances of exclusivity that do not chime with the truth rooted in the transformation of the wilderness of our human failings into the fertile ground of God’s welcome. We read in Isaiah 40 of the ‘herald of good tidings’, the good news for which we should all lift up our voices. The displacement of exile is referenced by Isaiah, but there is good news too. As one commentator writes: ‘Jerusalem is the place of divine self-revelation.’ It is the place where Jesus died, was buried and rose again. These historical moments capture a transcendental reality: at the table of the Last Supper, here is our God. The integrity of the table, therefore, has not been set by us. It is not up to us to decide who can be at the table and who should stand aside. Our job is to protect and promote the integrity of the table.
In today’s Gospel reading from Mark, we anticipate meeting this Jesus. Mark’s Gospel is like listening to and watching a mini-series on the telly, written in a fast-paced Greek that isn’t necessarily sophisticated, but it is very real and captivating. The beginning of Mark’s Gospel echoes the passage from Isaiah. John the Baptist is introduced with a mix of references from the Hebrew Bible, speaking to the hopes of the Jewish people at the time. Mark moves us out of Jerusalem only for John the Baptist to point us back towards it, towards a sense of exilic return to the source of all life and the source of all love. Jesus is not even on the scene yet, but we know he is not coming alone: ‘He will baptise you with the Holy Spirit’ (Mark 1. 1-8). We are asked to get ready; we are asked to watch and wait.
And so we come back to Advent, to the deep questioning of our relationship in, and with, time during this season of reflection. We recognise that our place at the table of this eternal banquet has been prepared and remains through time and space. We celebrate with confidence that the invitation is authentic and the calling to be at the table is constant and consistent. We come to this table through pain, suffering, and rejection, and loss, loneliness and labelling, betrayal and anger. And Jesus gets all of that because he lived through these experiences too.
The Church still has much to learn, so much for which to repent and lament, and so much work to do to remember that the news is good, that the good news is Jesus Christ, and that his table is a non-negotiable space of belonging. As we, the Church, preach the gospel we need to think about the effect our words and interpretations have on others. As we preach Jesus Christ crucified, we preach about the table, and the resurrection and the life.
God knows it is not easy to be a follower of Christ, but encourages us to hold onto the image from Isaiah 40. We worship a God who is safe and steady, loving, kind and understanding. We worship a God who is absolutely inclusive, presiding at a table where all are welcome, whoever you are. We can come home to God at the table and relax, because God will feed us through the love, light and healing of his Son. It is here we all belong. This is our feast, this is our fire, this is our resting place.
With Advent blessings,
Christian