Under The Tree

I wrote my mother 
I wrote my father 
And now I’m writing you too 
I’m sure of mother
I’m sure of father
Now I wanna be sure of you
Don’t sit under the apple tree with anyone else but me.
Anyone else but me, anyone else but me
No! No! No!
Just remember that I’ve been true to nobody else but you…

These are some of the lyrics from the song, “Don’t Sit Under the Apple Tree” sung by the Andrews Sisters of years gone by.  I remembered it because of today’s Gospel reading:

“…Nathanael said to him, "How do you know me?"  Jesus answered and said to him, "Before Philip called you, I saw you under the fig tree."  Nathanael answered him, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel." 

Jesus answered and said to him, "Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than this." And he said to him, "Amen, amen, I say to you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man."

In a biblical way we are not to "sit under the fig tree” with anyone else but Jesus.  We are to be true to nobody else but him.   He wrote his mother [Mary]; he wrote his Father [God], and now he wants to be sure of us. 

Adam and Eve sat under the apple tree [actually fruit and probably a fig], but they messed up.  They weren’t true to God [ate from the prohibited tree].    When sitting under the tree [pine, oak, maple?], let’s try to be true, and if successful, we might see those angels of God ascending and descending on us as well.   Heavens!

Deacon David Pierce