“They were on the road, going up to Jerusalem”(Mk. 10:32).
We are very grateful to the Dean and staff of Virginia Seminary this year for hosting the Orientale Lumen Conference, and for gathering us for worship at this Evensong. This ecumenical gathering of Eastern Catholics and Orthodox Christians commemorates the anniversary of the First Council of Nicaea: an ecumenical council in an ecumenical register, looking to Christian unity and to our common confession of faith. It is good for us to be together.
I never cease to wonder at the coincidental nature of our lectionaries, which bring to the forefront the right reading at the right time. Tonight is a case in point, as we encounter Jesus and the disciples “on the road” (Mk. 10:32) together, journeying toward Jerusalem. “Walking together on the way” is a major ecumenical theme, as churches understand each other as journeying together toward the common goal of the kingdom of heaven. The word “road” (hodos) forms the root of the word “synodality” (syn-hodos): the church’s way of being in the world, as we travel together toward the kingdom. Just as Christians move together in company with Christ, traveling the same road with him, so the divided churches journey forward together, in their own form of synodality.
Notice that the journey leads to Jerusalem. In our reading from the Gospel of Mark, Jesus and the disciples are engaged in the final journey that leads to death and resurrection. No sooner do we learn that they are on their way, then Jesus tells them for the third time what is to take place. “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death; then they will hand him over to the Gentiles; they will mock him, and spit upon him, and flog him, and kill him; and after three days he will rise again” (Mk. 10:33-34).
Make no mistake: the road the disciples walked with Jesus led to his death and resurrection. This is the same road that we, his disciples today, walk with him. They, and we, are invited into the mystery of his dying and rising, so that we too can die and rise with him. We are meant to share in this mystery with Jesus, who through his dying and rising makes new life available to us. Our life together with him in the Church, our synodality or walking together on the road, is the means by which we share in the mystery of his death and resurrection, and receive the gift.
As Jesus’ dialogue with the disciples continues, James and John want to claim places in the coming kingdom at his right hand and his left. Do they know what they are asking? “Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” (Mk. 10:38). In other words, are they able to share in the cup of sufferings that lie ahead? Are they able to share baptism into his death? (cf. Rom. 6:3). They confidently reply, “We are able” (Mk. 10:39).
Clearly, none of the disciples could possibly have imagined what was ahead, even though Jesus had told them plainly. In a way, of course, James and John spoke truly: they were capable of the walk. In fact, the road ahead had far more twists and turns than they were able to envision, but it is the road they walked. The journey itself would be transformative, so that even if they had the goal in view, in the course of the trek the ground would change and shift under their feet.
This is also true for churches that are walking together on the way. We cannot imagine how we will manage to arrive at the destination, but the journey will be transformative. The context changes as churches journey together: as relationships are formed and reformed, and we grow in love toward Jesus and toward each other.
Jesus’ final word to the disciples in our Gospel is about the nature of Christian discipleship, and the nature of leadership in the Church: that is, the way in which we undertake the journey together. “Whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Mk. 10:43-45). Humility, and service, are the keys; the true test of synodality, or walking together.
If we want a practical example of this from just the last few days, we might look to Pope Francis for his recent comments on the true meaning of the “order of love.” Here, the Pope is modeling a pattern of leadership in the Church that is at the humble service of all Christians, across ecumenical divides; and also reminding us of what it is to be of service to our neighbors. Jesus gives himself as a ransom for many, and as those who share in the mystery of his dying and rising we too must be of service to others. This, too, is something the churches can do together, as we journey together on the way.