August 3 , 2008 Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Proper 13 Commentary by Bruce G. Epperly

See also: [2005] [2002]

Psalm 17:1-7, 15 or 145:8-9, 14-21
Genesis 32:22-31 or Isaiah 55:1-5
Romans 9:1-5
Matthew 14:13-21

Today’s scriptures reflect on spiritual transformation in a time of personal crisis. Jacob goes to solitary place as he awaits a showdown with his brother Esau, whom he has cheated out of his father’s blessing. In the wake of the death of John the Baptist, Jesus retreats to a “deserted place all by himself.” Both Jesus and Jacob find themselves at a spiritual crossroads in which they must choose the next steps of their journey. Crisis calls them to contemplation and encounter with their personal calling within God’s global vision of possibility.

Jacob’s encounter with a nocturnal stranger has all the characteristics of a theophany, a dramatic revelation of the divine in human experience. Anxious about what lies ahead of him and worrying that the “chickens are finally coming home to roost” after a lifetime of shady dealings, Jacob seeks a solitary place in which ponder his future. The crisis that looms ahead strips him of his defenses and scheming and awakens him to a “thin place” in which he comes to know both God and himself for the first time.

 Alfred North Whitehead notes the importance of solitude in the religious life. While our lives are profoundly relational, eventually we must confront our deepest selves in moments of private introspective. In solitude, we discover the wondrous complexity of the lives we lead, the inner expanses that are galactic in size. Yet, solitude is not always peaceful, nor is encountering God always consoling. When Jesus goes on a retreat to the wilderness following his baptism by John, he faces his greatest spiritual temptations and in the process embraces his calling as God’s Beloved Child and Healer.  In like fashion, Jacob’s quest for “just a little time to think and plan a strategy” leads to a wrestling match with the Holy One. The creative transformation Jacob experiences as a result of his nocturnal struggle is neither pleasant nor peaceful. As a matter of fact, it is painful and disfiguring. When morning comes, Jacob limps toward his encounter with Esau. His limp will be a lifelong reminder of the day he discovered his vocation and place in God’s vision. Every step from now on will bear the imprint of God’s transformative touch.

In the midst of the pain of wrestling with the Holy One, Jacob receives a new name. The nocturnal stranger engages Jacob in a “call and response.” “What is your name?” the stranger asks. Now, we suspect that after a night of wrestling, this question is not merely informational in nature. Perhaps, Jacob pauses awhile as he is asked to discern and then reveal who he, Jacob, really is, that is, what his deepest identity is – and will be – in relationship to God, his family, his brother, and the world. Am I really a trickster, schemer, loyal to none but myself, or do I have a divine vocation and a role in shaping the future of my people?

Jacob’s self-identification, “I am Jacob, the trickster,” leads to the discovery of a new name and a new identity. The trickster becomes the wrestler and contender with God, a mortal who goes the distance with the Holy One. The one who always sought the easy way out, lived by his wits, and skipped town just a step ahead of his pursuers, has, for once, persisted in relationship and encounter. His painful persistence is rewarded with a larger self and new self-understanding. “Israel” is the one who has “striven with God and humans and has prevailed.”

But, what does it mean to “prevail” in relationship with God? Are such words simply an ancient anthropomorphism, irrelevant to modern persons? Do they have a deeper spiritual meaning for those who experience the pain of wrestling with God for a sense of meaning? Do these words describe the spiritual and intellectual calling of those who are compelled by the events of their lives to pursue the truth and seek after healing and justice regardless of the personal and relational cost?

While mere mortals cannot defeat or outlast God, they can be persistent in their relationship with God. In the solitude, Jacob hangs on to the Holy and receives a blessing and a vocation. Indeed, in hanging on for dear life, he experiences new life! He may remain a sharp business person, but he will, from now on, know that business success is more of a game than a vocation. Perhaps, in wrestling with the Holy One at the Stream of Jabbok, Jacob comes to understand his earlier encounter with God at Bethel. At Bethel, Jacob dreams of a ladder of angels, ascending to and descending from the heavens, and exclaims upon awakening that “God is in this place and I did not know it! ” Now, Jacob realizes that the God of revelation is also the God of wrestling matches, and that God hangs on as fiercely to Jacob as Jacob hangs on to God. God hangs on to Jacob for Jacob’s dear life! God is in my life, in this limp, and now I know it!

In the course of reflecting on Jacob’s nocturnal adventure, the preacher may choose to share his or her own wrestling with God as an invitation to persons in the congregation to explore their own spiritual journeys, especially those parts of their spiritual lives where they feel wounded, perplexed, uncertain, or confused. In so doing, the preacher will challenge the pervasive denial of questions and doubts that haunts most congregations. Faithful as we may be, few of us escape long, dark nights of questioning, doubting, and arguing with the Holy One. Encountering God may leave you with a limp, or a sense of disorientation or loss of familiar moorings, but in walking forward you will experience transformation and new life.

Readers of these two encounters might wish for a window into the inner lives of Jesus and Jacob. We might want to know Jesus’ motivation for going on retreat amid the demands of his teaching, healing, and welcoming ministry. In the wake of John’s violent death, what were Jesus’ feelings? How did he experience his future now that his older relative, spiritual companion, and theological guide was no longer there to provide a sense of history and continuity for Jesus’ own spiritual journey? I suspect that Jesus needed to go away for awhile to feel his feelings and experience his grief, to escape the demands of his followers, and to have a break from feeling the pain of those who sought his healing touch.

Jesus goes to a deserted place. We are not told how long Jesus was away or where he was going, but we are reminded that kairos time cannot be measured in minutes, hours, or days. What we know is that Jesus returned from his retreat with compassion for those who were hungry of body, mind, and spirit. He cured the sick and fed a multitude. While the point of this scripture may not be the importance of self-care in ministry and church leadership, it is clear to me and to those who study congregational life that  the importance of solitude and rest for spiritual activists cannot be minimized. Lack of spiritual depth and refreshment is a major factor in compassion fatigue and burnout among laypersons and clergy alike. Without moments of rest and prayerful contemplation, social activism becomes an imposed duty rather than an act of fidelity and love. In silence, there is a blessing that flows forth to others in acts of compassionate care. In silence and solitude, we experience more clearly the needs of those who demand our attention, rather than to our images of what they need.

Paul’s grief over his people’s hard heartedness reveals the apostle’s love for the Jewish people and his understanding of God’s unmerited grace. Despite their inability to believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ, God’s historical covenant with the Jewish people remains certain. Disobedience and obliviousness do not place us outside God’s ever-expanding circle of grace. God is faithful to the Hebraic people and calls those who follow Jesus to respond to the Jewish people with affirmation and respect. If only Christians had read Romans as an affirmation of the Jewish people rather than a denunciation of their infidelity, our mutual histories would have been transformed in healing ways!

Still, the question of God’s choice of the Hebrews and their descendents remains. In a post-modern, pluralistic age, the idea of a chosen people is as anachronistic as the idea that only those who believe in Jesus as Savior or follow certain rituals receive salvation.
Process theology affirms both the universality and the uniqueness of revelation. God touches all creatures, but the touch of God is always personal and unique as it relates to individuals and communities. Further, universality of revelation is complemented by variability of revelation. The One who was uniquely and energetically present in Jesus of Nazareth was also uniquely present in the historical adventure that began with Abraham and Sarah, and continued through Jacob and his descendents. Further, revelation did not cease with Jesus but has, throughout the centuries, continued in the life of those who follow Jesus as well as those from other faith traditions or paths of questioning. The universality of revelation, embracing all lands, does not eliminate God’s unique relationship to the Hebraic peoples and the Christian family. Our own unique experiences of God call us to learn from others even as we share our own insights and experiences of God.

So, we must wrestle both in community and in solitude. We must find theologically and spiritually sound ways of embracing the ever-expanding pluralism of our time and the many claims to truth and salvation. We must wrestle with the God who is sometimes absent, but other times, too close for comfort. We must be willing as preachers to point our congregations to times of solitude and meditation and help them find safe and hospitable places to wrestle with God and one another.

Bruce Epperly is professor of practical theology and director of continuing education at Lancaster Theological Seminary. He is author of fifteen books, including a response to The Purpose Driven Life, the forthcoming Holy Adventure: Forty-One Days of Audacious Living (Upper Room Press).

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