“We went to the junkyard,” Marguerite said, “and Monty was full of questions.” At seven, Monty has not yet learned to keep his questions quiet so as not to bother the adults. His wise old aunt takes him on some kind of adventure each week to give his house-bound parents and introverted older brother some relief from Monty’s buoyant curiosity. Last week they found a psychedelic VW, minus wheels, engine and doors, and Monty hopped right in, ready to drive it away. She’s collecting these stories in his own words, capturing Monty’s good news in their journal.
When Jesus gathered a child in his arms and said something like “Whoever welcomes this child, welcomes me,” I suspect he meant both vulnerability and trust, inclusiveness and imagination – the very things he was trying to teach his disciples about the realm of God, here and now.*
On the road through Galilee, Jesus redefined what the disciples understood about a promised messiah. They didn’t understand and were afraid to ask. Somewhere along the line, they had been taught to keep their questions quiet. Instead, they argued among themselves about who was the greatest, the most favored, the most likely to succeed in the coming kingdom. They preferred their belief that the messiah would topple Roman rule and introduce a benevolent hierarchy. They dreamed of greatness, not loss and betrayal, and so they didn’t ask – because they did not want to know.
I do that, too. Avoid questions because I don’t want to know the answers or because, as an adult, I think that I should already understand what is happening. There’s an element of pride and ego-driven individualism in keeping quiet. I expect to stand on my own two feet and not be dependent on others. Questions mean not knowing. Questions mean the possibility of change, while silence suggests control even when that is illusory.
Another element of asking questions is the synergy of emerging insights. New possibilities develop. Questions give birth to new questions. Across time and cultures, wisdom teachers have cultivated a “beginner’s mind,” asking questions and trusting the interdependence of not-knowing. And for me, a monthly dose of Monty’s questions have helped to loosen my adult restraint and made my heart more willing to ask the questions I have been harboring.
–Marjory Zoet Bankson, Editor of InwardOutward.org
- What questions have you been afraid to ask?
- When has a question opened some new horizon for you?
- Who, in your circle of friends, asks “good questions?” What might you learn?
