Sermon at All Saints’ Church, Winterslow, Morning Worship -– Sunday 11th July 2021
Mark 6
14-29
Back in my
schooldays, when morning assemblies and Christian teaching were commonplace I
especially loved those stories from scripture which contained blood and gore –
I guess I was no different from many schoolboys of my age and times or even
today. The stories I especially loved
where those of David and Goliath, the stabbing of King Eglon of Moab, the
46,000 Ephraimites being slain on the banks of the Jordan, the execution of the
baker in Joseph’s prison and many more.
Indeed, the Old Testament seemed to be full of battles and bloodshed and
quite often we would recreate these gory scenes in the playground – not
literally I hasten to add although scraped knees and the occasional battle
wound would be sustained.
The story of
John the Baptist’s beheading was another of such stories and I think, as a
child, I didn’t realise the subtleties of this particular story; and I wonder
how many other people realise that it has a lesson for us all in today’s modern
world of envy and revenge.
Mark, in our
reading today, sets out the scene very clearly for us, but to recap, King Herod
II (Antipas), who was the puppet monarch of the Roman occupiers in Judea, had
already heard of all the miracles and particularly healings which had been
carried out by Jesus and knowing what had happened to John the Baptist was now
superstitious of John having come back from the dead to haunt him. So much so
that he was absolutely convinced of this and that Jesus was not a mere prophet
but the Baptist back. He must have been
terrified living in fear of revenge for his part in John’s death.
What is
clear is that before the fateful party where Salome, the king’s stepdaughter,
danced, King Herod held John the Baptist in high regard and acknowledged his
righteousness. John had warned the King
that nothing good would come out of marrying his brother’s widow, Heroditas,
and in our own British history I am sure this piece of scripture would have
been well known to King Henry VIII when he married his brother Arthur’s widow,
Katherine of Aragon. For this reason
Heroditas had a terrible hatred of John the Baptist and wanted above all things
to have him done away with but Herod fearing the power which John wielded
through his preaching and baptising of the common people feared both them and
in particular God’s wrath knowing that his marriage and kingdom were not
secure.
Then, of
course, during the course of what we can only imagine was something of a
drunken party he was struck by the erotic dancing of his stepdaughter and made
a wild promise that she could have anything she desired up to half of his
kingdom. This was King Herod showing off and trying to impress his guests with
his largess. This was the moment that Heroditas had been waiting for, priming
her daughter, Salome, to ask for John’s head. Revenge served up on a platter
before the king and his guests.
We read that
King Herod realised the mistake he had made and certainly did not want to harm
John whom he feared but so as not to lose face amongst his guests he submitted
to Heroditas’s request through Salome and the gruesome deed was done. This was why when Jesus started moving amongst
the populace with tales of miracles and healing King Herod feared the worst –
that as John reincarnated he would be out for revenge.
When we
analyse this story there are so many aspects of it which we can apply to our
own attitudes and beliefs today. In the
tradition of lectio divina I wonder where, after careful reading, prayer and
re-reading we would place ourselves in the story and what emotions it evokes?
Leaving
aside John himself for the moment, we have a fearful king – a man who knows
that his hold on power depends upon his ability to control his subjects for the
benefit of the Roman occupiers – a well-known policy of Rome was to ensure that
to keep control of its Empire it needed the assistance of collaborators – just
as Hitler’s Nazi Germany needed Vichy France.
Also, Judea was a God-fearing nation which looked back on its history
and its freedom from slavery and exile at the hands of Jahweh, the one true
living God. Herod therefore had to be
careful, treading a tightrope – keeping the Romans and his religious community
happy. He also wanted to be popular with
those around him to maintain his throne and power – hence the throwing of
lavish parties and feasts.
Then we have
a vengeful woman, Heroditas. She knows that in marrying her dead husband’s
brother she is breaking with the law and thus the religious community. Although
we are told this in the passage which we read this morning, she was probably
not thought of well by the population – another parallel with English history –
Edward VIII and Mrs. Simpson. John had
been very vociferous of his condemnation of their union and this had brought
about an intense hatred on the part of Heroditas.
And finally,
Salome, the exotic dancing stepdaughter/niece of the king who entranced him and
his guests. She has been told she can
have anything she wants up to half of his kingdom but she consults with her
mother and does her bidding, asking for John’s head. Clearly she was not her
own person, she was being controlled by her mother because she had to go to her
to decide what she could ask for. Was she a pawn in all this – being used by
her mother in the same way her stepfather was using her to titillate his guests
or was she part of a wider conspiracy to remove the Baptist?
These are
some of the questions which the passage poses and we may never know the true
answer but when we read this passage again and perhaps again I am sure there
have been times in each of our lives when we have been in similar situations to
all three players – although hopefully not with such tragic consequences.
Let’s look
at them again. Herod. Have you found
yourself in a situation where you have been forced to do something by another
which you know was wrong or with which you found yourself very uncomfortable
doing? Perhaps at work? I know I have
and I can think of a number of such times – especially when I practised law and
took on a case which I was unsure about the truthfulness of witnesses for
example.
Heroditas,
the woman whose position was tenuous and unlawful. Her power and strength came from being
married to the king and here was a strange man influencing her husband and
others emphasising her weakness. “Hell
hath no fury like a woman scorned” wrote William
Congreve in 'The Mourning Bride' in 1697.
Have there been times when you have sought revenge or wanted to remove
someone who is compromising your status or position? Perhaps not in having them
murdered but perhaps in trying to remove their influence or reduce their
reputation?
Finally, Salome. How innocent is she in all this? Well let’s say she is or at least naïve. Have
there been times when you might have been used by somebody else for their
benefit and not your own? In this story,
Salome could have had riches beyond compare – she could have been co-ruler with
Herod but she went along with her mother’s evil plan to remove the thorn from
her flesh.
All this, goes to show us how stories
from the bible can help us understand ourselves and our own emotions. Scarcely is there an issue can arise today in
which we will not find some biblical precedent.
That is the beauty of theological reflection and in many cases we will
discover that we are far from perfect ourselves. Each of our three characters was flawed and
each of our three characters will have displayed some of our own faults too.
This goes to remind us that whilst we
all want to be Christ-like it is always a long journey which we will never
complete until we are re-united with Him. We will go on making mistakes but we
know that we have a Father in Heaven who loves us and the Holy Spirit which,
through Jesus, will intercede with us.
As they say, there but for the grace of
God go any of us. Indeed, God’s grace
will always surmount our darkest moments and raises us up.
Amen MFB/162/09072021
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