Childlike Matthew
Due to rain I did not get outside today to work in the garden. But my day was brightened by a visit from Matthew, the son of my nephew and his wife. Matthew is nine months old, and his face radiates the innocence and joy of a child. Another Matthew, the Gospel writer, tells the story today about Jesus encountering two persons possessed by demons in foreign land of the Gadarenes on the other side of Lake Galilee. The demons recognized Jesus and his healing power and asked that if he drove them out to send them into a herd of swine nearby. Jesus did and the swine herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea where they drowned. The swineherd persons recognized what had happened and ran to town to report what happened. The whole town came out to meet Jesus and begged him to leave the district. Even though I had been at the place where this supposedly happened I could never understand why the persons of the town asked Jesus to leave. Today reading the Gospel again I read an accompanying poem by poet laureate Richard Wilbur that perhaps explains why the townspersons asked Jesus to leave. In his poem the townspersons were not childlike and had very materialistic reasons to ask Jesus to leave.
“Rabbi, we Gaderens
Are not ascetics; we are fond of wealth and possessions.
Love, as you call it, we obviate by means
Of the planned release of aggressions.
We have deep faith in prosperity.
Soon, it is hoped, we will reach our full potential.
In the light of our gross product the practice of charity
Is palpably inessential.
It is true that we go insane;
That for no good reason we are possessed by devils;
That we suffer, despite the amenities, which obtain
At all but the lowest levels.
We shall not, however, resign
Our trust in the high-heaped table and the full trough.
If you cannot cure us without destroying our swine,
We had rather you shoved off.”
Little Matthew, Jesus or some of us do not belong in this territory. Like nature, it is not childlike.
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