TODAY’S READINGS

Today’s Gospel (Jn 4:43-54) has us jumping to the next chapter in John. Here Jesus returns to Galilee with quite a reputation earned in Jerusalem:

Jesus himself testified
that a prophet has no honor in his native place. (v. 44)

“The Gospel author makes a comment, and while its meaning is clear, the reason the author makes the comment is not immediately evident. It was proverbial in the ancient world that a prophet or other significant person ‘has no honor in his native place.’ Familiarity can breed disrespect, even contempt. In the other Gospels, Jesus makes this observation after he experiences rejection in Nazareth (Matt 13:54-57; Mark 6:1-4; Luke 4: 16-30). John’s Gospel, however, does not present the occasion on which Jesus made the observation; it only recounts what he at some point said, citing it as an explanation for why he went to Galilee (verse 43). As such, it is a puzzling explanation, for Jesus will be welcomed by Galileans upon his arrival (verse 45). Scholars suggest various explanations for the comment. One suggestion is that Jesus suspended his highly popular ministry in Judea (3:26) and went to Galilee in order to avoid confrontations with religious authorities (4:1-3), expecting to receive less attention in Galilee since ‘a prophet has no honor in his native place.’ In this interpretation, Jesus wished to keep a relatively lower profile for a while.” (Bringing the Gospel of John to Life, 114-15)

The last explanation above makes a lot of sense. “Hometown boy makes good” is acknowledged at first, but it likely won’t be long when Jesus becomes rather uninteresting, and folks are reminded that this is the same nondescript child of nondescript parents they had known for decades. Also, maybe they think he has become “too big for his britches” and they’ll knock Him down a peg or two. And we shouldn’t discount envy as a motivating factor either — who is this young ‘so-and-so’ to gain all these accolades while the rest of us live and toil in an obscure backwater with no hope for fame?

So, don’t feel too bad if at times it seems like the respect you get is only at the workplace or public gatherings while at home you are ignored, trampled on, and taken advantage of. Jesus has no pride, so this wasn’t an issue for Him. But humility, he has in spades. Just remember he knows through first-hand experience what it means to be humble (starting with the Incarnation). For our part, getting knocked down a few notches can be good for the soul.

Vocation of the Apostles (1481) by Domenico Ghirlandaio

God bless.