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Sunday School Reflections

           In fact, probably Mary and Joseph, in the privacy of their own home had taught Jesus the scriptures and what it  meant to be Jewish, that is, one of God’s own people.

          I relate to Jesus in this story because I came from a mostly working class community where my father worked in the petro-chemical industry. My dad became an area foreman with authority over many men in a whole area of the plant. He had presented himself as an electrician when in fact he did not know a whole lot about the practical end of putting electrical machinery together and maintaining it. He learned it by watching and speaking with the experienced electricians in the plant. And eventually he was able to cobble together what he had learned previously from books and friends along with what he was learning from the men under his supervision at his plant into an acceptable knowledge base for a supervisor .  And evidently he came to be respected by his underlings as well as his peers for what he knew and for his ability to communicate with workers and management. He was a good communicator.

           So likewise Cameron, my father, passed on some of his communication skills to me, probably mostly by example, whereby I learned by watching and listening to him. In addition, I was a slightly above average student in school and learned to use language to my advantage. And so in college I eventually came to be known as a student  who understood what was in the books and was able to communicate it well, not that I was a great intellect or academician. Eventually, I think, I gained a degree of respect, at least among faculty, for my academic and intellectual abilities.

            Unlike Jesus, however, I lacked confidence and charisma, and in general, among my peers I was seen as nothing special. And if I had been articulate and smart enough, I could have commented that a Scholar is respected elsewhere but in his own hometown, he was just another Pasadena boy of Cam and Inez who were just hard-working, church-going, people in the neighborhood.

           So this man Jesus appeals to me because he does not stand on or care about status in the community, but instead wears sandals where his toes get all dusty and dirty and he wears a plain colorless tunic that allows him to mingle with common folk, converse with them as a guy from the neighborhood who understands them and doesn’t wish to be set apart from them. But when he talks with people he focuses intently on them, his eyes locked on theirs, and accepts them as they are, while at the same time invites them to turn from sin and to become better people. This lock-eyed communication style makes people feel valued, respected, and uplifted. And they are attracted to him and are curious about his message.

Jesus Sees Into Their Hearts

Mark 6:34  When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.

          Jesus had a special ability to look at people and see behind their faces and gestures with an extraordinary vision. We know the image of Superman and his x-ray vision, but Jesus could see what was behind the eyes and in the hearts of people. He sensed their needs. He could see and feel their lostness and craving.

             Mark 8:6  NIV He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. When he had taken the seven loaves and given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to distribute to the people, and they did so.

Mark 8:7  Mark 8:8-9

FROM NEW AMERICAN COMMENTARY

Again women and children are not included in the enumeration. Inasmuch as there were so many more Gentiles than Jews, a question arises about how the larger number could symbolize Jews and the smaller one Gentiles. Perhaps the answer is that the larger number or the placement of the accounts symbolize the precedence of the Jews. According to one interpretation the four thousand men symbolize the four corners of the earth from which the Gentiles came