Meditation for January 24
From The Rev. Peter Munson
Mark 6:13-29
What's It Going to Cost?
"For John had been telling Herod, 'It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife.' And Herodias [the brother's wife] had a grudge against him, and wanted to kill him. But she could not, for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he protected him. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed; and yet he liked to listen to him. But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and for the leaders of Galilee. When his daugther ... came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, 'Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it.' And he solemnly swore to her, 'Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom.' She went out and said to her mother, 'What should I ask for?' She replied, 'The head of John the baptizer.' Immediately she rushed back to the king and requested, 'I want the head of John the Baptist on a platter.' The king was deeply grieved; yet out of regard for his oaths and for his guests, he did not want to refuse her. Immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard with orders to bring John's head..." (Mark 6:18-27)
In this gruesome story, I am left to ponder two questions. What does it cost to do the right thing? And, what does it cost to do the wrong thing?
There are often very real consequences associated with our choices. I guess "lesson #1" in this passage might be: "Don't get so swept up in a moment that you make outrageous statements or promises." Herod swears to his daughter, "Whatever you ask me, I will give you!" Whew! He didn't think she would ask for anything like "the head of John the Baptist on a platter." But, of course, he wasn't thinking. More than his lack of foresight, though, was his lack of a backbone. As the Roman ruler in Galilee, he could have said, "No. I regret my words. I'm not going to give you that. I'm not going to let my rash statement cause the death of an innocent man. Better that I eat my words and look like a fool than cause the death of John." But he didn't say that. In order to "save face", in order to not go back on his word, in order to keep a promise, he commands that John be beheaded. This is clearly a case where somone compounds their sin, in the name of keeping an oath. Maybe this is why Jesus cautioned his disciples, in the Sermon on the Mount, "... you have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, 'You shall not swear falsely, but carry out the vows you have made to the Lord.' But I say to you, Do not swear at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. Let your word be 'Yes, Yes' or 'No, No'; anything more than this comes from the evil one."
It is not always easy to speak the truth. Truth-tellers often get criticized, attacked, or even killed. One of the foundations of this country is free speech, which includes the right to dissent. And yet, sometimes those who speak the truth, especially when it is against the majority view, are labeled "unpatriotic", and attacked for it. We look at some of the most courageous truth-tellers in history, folks who have done the right thing, and we see their fate. John the Baptist, Jesus, Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr. - I'm sure you could name many others. There can be a very real cost to speaking the truth, to doing the right thing, even if you aren't killed for it. So perhaps it is no wonder that we are sometimes afraid to speak the truth, or do the right thing.
And yet... there is another side. I think of the times that folks made racist comments in my presence, and out of fear, I said nothing. What was the cost of that? The cost of that was that I had a hard time living with myself afterwards, because I didn't speak up for some of the things I count as my fundamental values. My silence could definitely have been interpreted as me agreeing with the awful things that were being said. Because I let my fear get in the way of doing the right thing, of saying the right thing, I missed an opportunity to be a light shining in the darkness. I missed an opportunity to live into my baptismal vows, to "respect the dignity of every human being." And let's name my silence for what it was. In that moment of being silent, I sinned. And I have to live with that choice I made - the choice not to speak up, when I most certainly should have said something. There is guilt there. There is shame. Fortunately, that is not the end of the story. We follow a Lord who forgives us when we confess our sins, and who gives us new chances to grow in faith and courage, new chances to do the right thing. But the point is this: not doing the right thing, not saying the right thing - there are huge consequences for these choices, too. There can be a type of inner dying - a deep pain associated with not being true to yourself, your God, your values - that is at least as bad as the attack that might be launched on us by others, when we do the right thing.
Being able to live with yourself is not a light thing.
So... when we get into that fearful or anxious place, when we find ourself in a situation where doing the right thing or saying the right thing might cost us something, we should take a few moments to breathe and to think and to say a little prayer, and remind ourselves that the Lord is with us, and that He is our Rock and our strength. "Lord, help me to move beyond these temporary moments of fear. Help me to be the light that you call me to be. Help me have the same kind of courage that you demonstrated while you walked this earth. May I trust in you, and do the things that you lead me to do, and not fear men. I want to be a person of faith and love. Sustain me, O Lord. Help me to walk in your truth. Amen."