Lent
March 25, 2016

Scripture Reading: John 20:1-18

Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping? For whom are you looking?’ Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, ‘Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Mary!’ She turned and said to him in Hebrew, ‘Rabbouni!’ (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, ‘Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, “I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.”’ Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, ‘I have seen the Lord’; and she told them that he had said these things to her. –John 20:15-18

Jesus caused many paradigm shifts in his time on earth. One of the most profound for me was, of course, his acknowledgement of the equality of women in the world. Well really, the equality of all of God’s children and I am in the women category so that is where I feel the impact directly. Mary was also a woman but she too may have been mentally ill. Scriptures say Jesus cured her of seven demons, we know no more than that. Physical illness was also credited to demons at that time. The mentally ill are often caste aside in our world today as are some with physical illnesses.

I too know something about being on the other side of equality, as I am white. Thus, I am in the category of a race that enjoys dominance in our world. I can sit in meetings and readily identify ways of treating women that “put us in our place”. My sense is that most men practicing those ways do not have a clue they are doing them. Many years ago I developed the first adult protective services program for Oklahoma. Spent many hours researching what others had done, wrote several drafts that were reviewed by my immediate supervisor, and finally attended a meeting with him to present the draft for consideration by the powers that be in the agency. The directors barely acknowledged that I was in the room and addressed all the questions they had to my supervisor. I guess, he grew weary of their ignoring me and said, “You know I am not up to speed on this, Marilynn will have to answer your questions” and I amazingly became a part of the conversation. He could have answered any question they asked.

I am not yet fully witnessing whiteness* and I can see it rearing its ugly head at times even in my own behavior. I also, as a woman, am still trying to overcome seeing discrimination in inappropriate reaction to something I do or say. I have found being able to run life by a loving God who is incapable of discrimination is the only way I can clothe myself in the paradigm shift of Jesus in my relationships with others.

I do not know why Mary did not readily recognize Jesus in their encounter at the empty tomb. My guess, is she still practiced not looking a strange man in the eye. He had to call to her by name to make himself known to her. Today, Good Friday, we observe his death on the cross as a final statement of the need for God’s justice and mercy. The paradigm has indeed shifted and we have been called to make God’s justice and mercy the ruling force in our world.

Prayer: Lord, heal our wounds that hold us back from fully being the person that you created us to be, guide us in seeing any oppression we may be practicing, and enable our loving others so that your justice becomes the way of all our lands and peoples. Amen.

*A phrase described in the book Witnessing Whiteness by Shelly Tochluk.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized 
Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council 
of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights 
reserved.