Thoughts on Luke’s Gospel, When Mary and Joseph lose track of Jesus...

Chapter 2, Verses 26-56

When Lost, Head to the Life Guard Station…Church!

By My Wife and Me

Do you believe this story? If so, why? Yes, we believe this story, in the sense that we believe the author of the story and his purposes behind the story. The actual facts of the story may have slightly varied or been heightened to some extent over years of interpretation, but we believe in the truths in which the story conveys. The reason we believe the truths of this story is because of the true-to-life sequence the story takes on. How many of us have experienced God’s powerful hand of “coincidence”, or even the simple act of being lost from our parents or losing track of one of our own children? The symbolism in this story is the real aspect we’re being asked to believe in. The symbolism of being without Christ or lost from Him, then slowly realizing that the way to connect with Christ is at his Father’s Church with His teachings. What’s not to believe? We live with this symbolism… daily!

What is the easiest part of the story to believe? What was the hardest?

The easiest part of the story to believe was that Jesus’ parents lost him. There were times as a child when we’ve all been lost at some store or another. Of course our parents would keep an eye on us, but with all of the product isles and commotion, we’d run off. Undoubtedly we were usually discovered at the ever-popular toy aisle. What about the beach? Haven’t we all experienced being carried a little too far by the waves? We all knew where to go when lost in that scenario…the life guard station! The only difference between real life and Luke’s story is that the life guard station is the church of our beloved God! The hardest part of the story to believe is the actual facts. How old Jesus actually was, the irony of Simeon meeting Jesus at that time, etc. However, in a story such as this, the facts are irrelevant. The meaning and purpose behind the story is what we’re asked to believe. Much of our faith, and even faith in that time, revolved around mysteries that we aren’t intended to question but rather trust in without visibility… through faith!

What is your understanding of this Gospel?

Our understanding of this good message relates to our relationship with Jesus through God’s Church. We thought back to our college days when we were away from our parents’ teachings of Christianity. The state college we went to was secular and taught secular values (moral relativism). We always thought that their causes were well intentioned, but the affects of their ideas did not sit well with our strongly-rooted religious upbringings (i.e. the indifference of traditional marriage, no difference between a mom and a dad; same.) Regardless of good intentions, we always knew that there was something missing in our college education; wisdom. So when we sought out to re-discover the Biblical meaning and reason offered in Mass, we were able to quickly experience them through the Catholic Church. The Catholic ideas and values taught at church helped us re-connect, because we found them very applicable to our daily lives. It is interesting that “religion” in Latin means “to re-connect with” and just as in this passage, Mary and Joseph lose their Son, seek to find Him in the faces of those in their caravan, only to re-discover Him in the only true place He can always be found… in God’s Church.

Dose of Reality: "What?! You turned the other cheek and he hit you again!?" she shouted

"Turn the other cheek..."
(Hmm...I wonder if "Ralphie's" walks to school would have gotten better if he'd never decided to stand up to the bully in "A Christmas Story".)


This is a no-brainer, but sometimes people say the above comment without real direction; like they're spreading great advice. When I was in 3rd grade I remember we had a normal class of kids and a few that were rough. I recall it like it was yesterday. My 3rd grade teacher told us about turning the other cheek like Jesus did. Then she said, "If someone hits you, instead of fighting back turn the other cheek." Long story short, recess started and the geeky kid gets hit by the bully and what does he do? He readily says, "Hey, I turn the other cheek." He said it with such nobility and then GOT PUNCHED AGAIN! Recess ended and class came back into attendance. The kid that got smacked told the teacher he got hit. He said, "I turned the other cheek and he hit me again." (Right where he left himself open...)


"What?! You turned the other cheek and he hit you again!?" she shouted.

"Yes, that's what happened...he hit me again."

At this point I thought, ya know, physically turning the other cheek might not be what was meant for everything. At the same time, I could not stop thinking how both of them were surprised like it was something so unpredictable, "Wow, where did that come from?!" Now as I find myself a parent I re-read that portion in the Bible and got further explanation of this scripture. A person who is slapping someone on the right cheek would be using the back of his own right hand. The thuggish person described here is insulting someone (a.k.a. back-handed offense).

So what's my point? Like in the past, we have a problem with bullies (we've seen the crazy videos of teens beating someone on a bus, such as the graphic one seen here.) As we all know, Christ came to offer salvation and compassion, but by-standing, pacifying...I just don't see that wisdom from our values. It is why it's good that we teach our kids self defense when a bully isn't interested in "talking it out." But then again, when are they?


Here is a take from A Faith-Based Response to Adolescent Bullying:

[Still more Christian parents, quoting Jesus, tell their children to “turn the other cheek” (Matthew 5:39) when bullied. What’s remarkable is that when Jesus was slapped on the face by the guard of the High Priest, He did not turn his face so the guard could slap him again. Instead Jesus responded, "If I said something wrong, testify as to what is wrong. But if I spoke the truth, why did you strike me?" (John 18:19-23) Jesus not only defended himself with words, He confronted the bully and demanded an answer for his unjust treatment.]
____________________________

Let's not forget when Christ went to his Father's temple & saw it converted to a temple-o-swap meet. He got pretty heated...so heated he threw over tables and cleared out the place (Mark 11:15). Christ taught compassion, but compassion also compels moral order. (First aiding the kid that is being kicked on the floor. Not initially asking the kicker if there is something wrong with his "self-esteem.")

I am not trying to say that we should start kickin' tail when people cut us off on the road or flip us the bird. However, it's important to have the common sense to know when you need to defend yourself. For example, if you're getting pummeled in the head, defend yourself for crying out load. Likewise we should not allow others to be humiliated or slammed to the ground. (Not my problem, not my cheek.) There has been so much talk about "love, love, love" that I think we forget the courageous faith of action. It's what helps stop terrible instances from continuing. As a young kid, I was happy to see "Ralphie" stand up for himself and glad when my Father taught me martial arts. It was a real lesson…