Lonely places and deserted places

 

Reflection 7^th February 2021

 

The passage in Mark we’re thinking about today (Mark 1: 29 – 39) seems to be presented as “A typical day in the life of Jesus”. And in fact, if we were to see the complete day we should also read Mark 1: 21 – 28 which sets the scene for this passage. Jesus and his disciples are in Capernaum and they’ve been in the synagogue there. Now they leave the synagogue and go to “the house of Simon and Andrew” (Mark 1:30).

There they find that Simon’s mother-in-law is gravely ill. Jesus heals her and in response she immediately “began to serve them”. Mark 1:31 (By the way please don’t think “shouldn’t the poor soul be resting after being so ill?” She clearly is miraculously restored to health. And the Greek word translated into English as ‘serving’ is diakoneo. This is a word frequently used in the New Testament for those who have specific ministry of serving others. Peter’s mother-in-law is given the privilege of serving Jesus and the others as an honour, not a duty.)

Having eaten, that evening “they” (the disciples? Other people in Capernaum?) ³² …. brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons. ³³ And the whole city was gathered around the door” And he cured many. Mark 1: 32 - 33

Then Mark tells us

³⁵ In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed.

Unlike in Luke, in his Gospel Mark does not make a big theme of Jesus praying. Nevertheless, it is clearly an important feature and maybe, (as we are in “A typical day in the life of Jesus”) perhaps Mark is suggesting that Jesus started every day with prayer? Mark clearly wants to demonstrate to his readers the importance of starting the day with prayer.

But “Simon and his companions” had other ideas. In verse 36 we are told, depending on what translation you read they “went to look for him” NIV or “hunted for him” NRSV. (“hunted” seems more appropriate as a more literal translation of the Greek katadioko is apparently “pursued”) Whatever word is used, clearly Simon and the others think they know what Jesus should be doing. It shouldn’t be sitting in solitude and prayer. There are crowds that require Jesus’ immediate attention.

It is almost as if Simon and the others think that Jesus has got lost and set out to find him and point him back to what his “job” should be. Being a rabbi in Capernaum and curing the sick there. (How often do we tell Jesus what to do when we are praying?) But Jesus reminds them that he is not lost, and he knows what his task is. It is to preach the Good News. And consequently, Jesus will not be restricted to one town and to share the Good News with the disciples solely.

³⁸ Jesus replied, ‘Let us go somewhere else – to the nearby villages – so that I can preach there also. That is why I have come.’ ³⁹ So he travelled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons. Mark 1: 38 – 39

Let’s return to verse 35 for a moment:

³⁵ In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed.

The Revised Standard Version of the Bible calls it “a lonely place” as opposed to a deserted place. And when we think of it this way it takes on a quite different meaning.

The Dutch Christian writer Henri Nouwen stated:

"... the secret of Jesus’ ministry is hidden in that lonely place where he went to pray ...In the lonely place Jesus finds the courage to follow God’s will and not his own; to speak God’s words and not his own; to do God’s work and not his own." Out of Solitude: Three Meditations on the Christian Life

It is a lonely place as when Jesus goes off to pray, he might be physically alone, on his own. But all too often he feels alone, abandoned by his friends. And on one occasion, in the Garden of Gethsemane, even though the disciples are nearby as he prays, Jesus feels alone, abandoned by his friends.

The reason he is alone is that the disciples, those closest to him, have no understanding of what he is going through or what his mission is. And this for me shows us the humanity of Jesus that he is pained by the loneliness.  

It seems to me that loneliness has two aspects. There is the lack of other people around us – and we know as human beings most of us need that interaction with others. But there is also the sense of feeling abandoned or others not understanding what we are going through. To this extent it is possible to feel lonely even when surrounded by other people.

As far as we know from the Gospels, Jesus coped with his loneliness through prayer, through being able to talk things over with God his heavenly father. And I feel sure that prayer can play its part during our times in a lonely place. But equally, being able to talk to someone on the phone, or via Zoom, or even socially distanced, is good too.

That is where as a church family we must all play our part. To think about those who are alone and reach out to them. To phone, to write. We mustn’t assume we know what they are experiencing. But being prepared to listen and interact can mean so much. It can bring love to someone who is feeling unloved.  It can bring hope to someone who feels hopeless. It can bring much needed company to someone alone.

Henri Nouwen, who I mentioned earlier, also wrote these words:

“When we think about the people who have given us hope and have increased the strength of our souls, we might discover that they were not the wardens or moralists. They are the few who were able to articulate in words and actions the human condition in which we participate and who encouraged us to face the realities of life. Those who do not run from our pains but touch them with compassion bring healing and new strength. The paradox is that the beginning of healing is in the solidarity with the pain. In our solution-oriented society, it is more important than ever to realize that wanting to alleviate pain without sharing it is like wanting to save a child from a burning house without the risk of being hurt.”

As a wise lecturer at college once explained it to me. “Sometimes David, as Christians we need to climb down into the pit with our sisters and brothers in Christ and stand alongside them.”

Sometimes we all need our deserted place to take time to be with God and take time for ourselves. But sometimes when the deserted place becomes the lonely place that’s when we need Jesus and those he sends to be with us.

Picture: https://www.deviantart.com/tristancampbell/art/Time-is-a-lonely-place-142967500