Article
- Date:
- Wednesday 17th July 2024
- Place:
- Holy Trinity, Hurstpierpoint
- Service:
- Service of the Word
- Readings:
- 1 Samuel 11
Luke 22.39-46
Saul, the subject of our reading from 1 Samuel, the first King of the Chosen People, anointed in the face of the Prophet Samuel's reluctance, was a deeply flawed man, so much so that his disobeying of the Lord's commands, delivered through Samuel, led to his deposition. Nonetheless, during his topsy-turvy reign he was often an effective instrument of God's will. He had been chosen to destroy the new kingdom's enemies and that is frequently what he did, justifying, at least temporarily, the reason for his anointing in the first place.
The disciples, in the garden of gethsemane, recorded by Luke, fell asleep instead of watching and praying with Jesus in spite of knowing that something momentous was going to happen although, in fairness, they did not know exactly what; only later would the story of the Eucharistic Institution, and then the Judas betrayal and all that followed be assembled into a coherent narrative. Nonetheless, even if they thought the visit to the Garden was nothing special, they still failed.
Since the rise of the internet, it has been increasingly difficult for people to escape their past: employers are looking at internet histories before they interview candidates; public figures are confronted with unguarded statements they made in their youth; and small infractions are blown out of proportion. And the venal mass media and social media which exist entirely to make a profit, expect everybody but themselves to be perfect such that many good people are frightened to enter public life. We live in an age of hypocritical perfectionism.
But what the Bible teaches, markedly in the history of the Chosen People and in the fallibility of the Apostles, is that, regardless of our shortcomings, we are all properly fitted to be the servants of God.