For Sunday, March 1, 2015 – Mark 8:31-38
What a privilege when someone trusts us enough to share “the rest of the story.” And what a responsibility, too. To know someone’s story is to move from being acquaintances on the journey to companions. Ready or not, Jesus begins to reveal to his inner circle the rest of his story—the suffering that lies ahead, which will lead even to death. He does not soften his story with euphemisms or jokes. He does not say, “Well, we’ve got some rough waters ahead. Not to worry. We’ll be fine.” No, he tells them straight up that he will be rejected, and not by just anyone but by the very ones who are most devoted to religion and God. Even more, he will be killed, and after three days he will rise again. It is a mighty big “share,” as they say in 12-step lingo.
We might think we know others fairly well, but the rest of their story can be a whole lot more than we expected. Many a community has atrophied for fear of learning too much. Who wants another tale of suffering in this heartbreak world? Better not to encourage self-revelation and truth-telling. Keep a low profile. Bear your suffering quietly. The trouble is, unrevealed pain makes a bigger impact than we know. Whether it’s the kind of suffering that has already happened or the kind that we dread in the future, if we don’t find ways to reveal it, to cup some small portion of it in our hands and offer it up, we will never really know each other, or ourselves. We will never know how expansive and compassionate our hearts can be.
It isn’t easy. Even Jesus and Peter have trouble listening compassionately. Each of them rebukes the other for saying what he does not want to hear. We, too, will have many opportunities to be forgiven when we start to listen to and tell the rest of the story. But notice it says Jesus “begins” to teach them that he will undergo great suffering. He does not lay out all the details at once, just enough to begin. Sharing the rest of the story is not a final destination but a beginning practice for the long haul. For what will it profit us if we hide out from our whole story, if we gain the entire world yet never let ourselves truly be known?
