I’m thinking about the third chapter in Mark’s Gospel (Mark 3:20-35). At this point in his account, Mark has described the beginnings of Jesus’ ministry, some of the opposition that began to develop, but especially the degree to which people were attracted to Jesus: to his teachings, and also to seek healing for their ailments and illnesses.
As this passage opens, Jesus had returned to his home in Capernaum. So many people surrounded the house, said Mark, that Jesus was not even able to eat. Some of those who were suspicious of his teachings accused him of casting out demons by the power of demons. “How can Satan cast out Satan?” Jesus replied. “A house divided against itself cannot stand.”
1800 years later an American politician would quote those words, and we tend to remember them more because he said them, than because Jesus did. Nevertheless, Jesus may have been first. Jesus quoted a lot, so it’s hard to tell.
Unity is a challenging thing in the Christian Church. Unity in first century Judaism was not to be found. There were significant differences between fairly substantial and organized branches of Jewish teaching and thought: Sadducees, Pharisees, and Essenes. Jesus himself represented a particular tradition within the Pharisaic tradition. He taught an awful lot like what is recorded of Rabbi Hillel, who had spoken some 50 to 60 years before.
But although they argued, they lived together in reasonable amity — at least until the rebellion came — and that kind of unity, that ability to live with one another’s differences, that ability to appreciate one another for who they are regardless of where they may fall on particular questions: that was a characteristic that made for endurance of what were otherwise pretty challenging conditions in the first century.
Here in the 21st century we once more experience challenging conditions. We have perhaps emerged from a lengthy global pandemic (I’ve seen that there are some warnings that illness may rise once more this coming year). In the United states we are faced with significant political challenges. And the entire world faces, whether they acknowledge it or not, the realities of a changing climate and its effects upon agriculture, upon transportation, upon literally where one can build a home.
A house divided against itself cannot stand, said Jesus, and we have seen the truth of that assertion time after time after time over the centuries. How can we, how will we, live with one another and appreciate one another for who we are? How will we attempt to correct the mistaken views which some will inevitably have? How will we correct our own mistaken views when others bring new information to us?
Unity without diversity is simple tyranny. But diversity without some sense of unity, well, that leads to inevitable conflict, and conflict that can get terribly, terribly serious. A house divided against itself cannot stand. Let us not divine our home.
That’s what I’m thinking. I’m curious to hear what you’re thinking. Leave me your thoughts in the comment section below. I’d love to hear from you.
