Breaking the Word

When they had departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you. Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him." Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed for Egypt.  He stayed there until the death of Herod, that what the Lord had said through the prophet might be fulfilled, "Out of Egypt I called my son." When Herod realized that he had been deceived by the magi, he became furious. He ordered the massacre of all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had ascertained from the magi. Then was fulfilled what had been said through Jeremiah the prophet: "A voice was heard in Ramah, sobbing and loud lamentation; Rachel weeping for her children, and she would not be consoled, since they were no more."  (Mt 2;13-18 )

A new born baby poses a threat to the most power man in the country. The powerful man makes use of his power to destroy the future of the society. Massacre is not in numbers (it also) babies killed rather the whole future, a generation is destroyed. A paranoid man will do the same. He will not accept the reality and he also will not face the challenge posed by the situation rather he will destroy the future.

Matthew quotes the Old Testament in three places in this passage. He quotes Jeremiah 31:15 ("A voice was heard in Ramah, sobbing and loud lamentation; Rachel weeping for her children, and she would not be consoled, since they were no more." ) This is all about God’s renewal of the covenant. It is about bringing Israel back from exile at last. Though Israel must weep and mourn, rescue is on the way. This is about Jesus bringing deliverance.

His coming out of Egypt is also given as a model and based on a model of Exodus. He himself experiences deliverance and he actuates deliverance. One should experience what he wants to give to the other.  

On the first day of the week, Mary of Magdala came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark, and saw the stone removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them, "They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don't know where they put him." So Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb. They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and arrived at the tomb first; he bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in. When Simon Peter arrived after him, he went into the tomb and saw the burial cloths there, and the cloth that had covered his head, not with the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place. Then the other disciple also went in, the one who had arrived at the tomb first, and he saw and believed. (Jn 20:1-8)

John the Evangelist calls himself as ‘the other disciple whom Jesus loved’. It is an interesting description of himself and this is how he wants to be remembered. This shows the relationship which he has with Jesus or the relationship which he wants to have with Jesus. Each one should have his own definition or description of his relationship with Jesus and that is what he should reveal to the others and not his personal identity.

Peter and John ran. John ran faster than Peter, may be because he was young or he was good at running. In the garden of Gethsemane the disciples were running away from Jesus (all, everyone). Here they are running towards Jesus. John, though he ran faster he did not make use of his talents to gain precedence. He waited for the other.

At the end he also entered in and he saw the empty tomb and he believed. His belief was based on the empty tomb. Belief in the resurrection comes from the empty tomb. Emptiness is the sign of hope. Nothingness fills their mind with presence, a powerful total presence; presence of Jesus.