Guest Post by Valerie Boyer
Tuesday is such an eventful, holistic, emotionally diverse day for Jesus! My goodness! We have a few riddles in the forms of parables about “random” things of people’s “random” life stories, teaching us about what’s important in life. A handful of yelling sessions using allegorical genius to shade the Pharisees and Sadducees, as only a person of color can. You have some of the babies trying to get to him, and people trying to block, and Jesus being who he is reminds them that they still “don’t get it.” Forgot to mention he started his morning cursing out a tree, and later on, finishes the day healing a few people, in the Temple, like we’re supposed to do.
This right here is a whole lot happening! I encourage you to go and see this READ Jesus gives in Matthew 23:23-36. Now let’s be clear: the people of the bourgeoisie class amongst the community had the right words, and rhetoric. They just didn’t have the actions to back it up. And yes, they were openly vocal about their offense, but “when you throw a brick into a crowd, the one who hollers it hits,” a parable courtesy of my Granny.
With Liberty & Justice for All?
This deconstruction of who gets access was dangerous to the system that was put in place. And even more so, to do this kind of work on the ground is disgraceful. The ground has had all kinds of people on it. Different feet and sandals from all kinds of journeys, are on that ground. People have made messes on the ground. People have gotten sick on the ground. The homeless, differently abled, and mentaly challenged were usually laid, left, and discarded on the ground. And yet, Jesus decides that the ground is where he’ll meet them…meet us. It is in the nitty gritty and the complicated, where Jesus decides that revolutionary change could take place. And the kind of work he’s doing, the words he’s speaking, that level of truth, is actually the kind of work that can get you killed. Wait.
Grounds are where secrets get buried, and treasure gets found. Grounds are where cousins playing together get dirty. Grounds have the evidence of stories known and unknown. Grounds expose things. Grounds put everyone on the same level. Grounds give everyone access. That’s why they’re dangerous. That’s why Jesus meets them there. Not the platform in the temple, but the ground. Not above them, but rather, the ground.
Jesus Reads the Multitude
Now about this work on the ground. I had to figure out if I was going to deal with verse 24, when Jesus calls them childish, verse 25 where he comes for their dishwashing skills which is SLANDER amongst the Blacks, or verses 30-32 where he comes for their Mama and ‘nem. I chose the latter!
The Pharisees and Saducees were known for often calling out the things their ancestors got wrong, which we should. In our different threads of heritage, we should absolutely learn, and keep, the good things that were handed to us. We should simultaneously learn from, and unlearn the toxic things passed down to us.
A prophet, as understood in this context, was one who spoke truth to power, exposed the root of the problem, and foretold what was needed, not wanted. However, wehn prophets would speak out, they would usually be “dealt with”. (By dealt with, we mean killed.) The Pharisees and Sadducees condemned their ancestors for shutting down God’s mouthpieces, but lived a livelihood shutting down God’s mouthpieces. Because when you’ve conceded to a system in which you ascend, no matter how immoral it may be, a threat to that system is not taken lightly.
So in one swift blow, Jesus says all y’all have gotten this wrong, you, and your ancestors. He basically said you’re more of a disgrace than your Mama and ‘nem were. And as we all well know, THESE ARE FIGHTING WORDS.
But he wasn’t wrong. I have been fortunate enough to be well versed in family and community history. Let me tell you though. Some of that stuff is A MESS. I mean, they could’ve kept some of those genes to themselves. However those are the genes that got me here. Those are the genes that carry me. Jesus’ ancestors weren’t perfect either. They were far from it, actually.
That’s one of the beautiful things about Jesus. He reminds us none of us can quite escape this humanity thing. The difference here? Whereas the Pharisees and Sadducees chose to join in the mistreatment of others because of what was taught (and done) to them, Jesus shows us that we can do something different. We can both honor who we are, where we come from, and do better. We can get free. We can get on the ground.
Let’s honor all who we are, by remembering to get on the ground, together, while we head toward Calvary’s way.
Born and raised in Galveston, TX, curated at Howard University, journeying to Detroit, and now Columbus, OH, Valerie has spent her life through the lens of preaching, praying, poetry and activism. Today is no different. Her love for her God, family, community, both locally and global fuels her passion for all that she does. Her favorite quote is “when life gives you lemonade, sprinkle black girl magic, make apple juice, and leave people wondering how it happened.”
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