Off With Their Heads

Today’s world and political events might make us think we’re reliving part of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland following the white rabbit down the hole and witnessing a tea party with the Mad Hatter front and center. Then there’s the Queen of Hearts who had only one way of settling all difficulties, great or small.  “Off with his head!” she would say without even a second thought.  I suspect many of us will lose our heads or at least our minds as we get deeper into 2020 and we must endure the campaigning and madness leading up to the Presidential election.

Off with the head of John the Baptist was the demand of King Herod’s daughter. She did the bidding of her mother Herodias who harbored a grudge against John who complained about Herod unlawfully marrying his brother’s wife – Herodias.

After promising his daughter that he would grant his daughter a wish, Herod quickly regretted that wish which was John’s head.  So, off went his head; it was brought on platter to the girl who gave it to her mother.  Sounds like something out of Game of Thrones.

It’s safe to assume that just about everyone has said at one time or another: “Off with his head!  Or, “Off with her head!”  Not literally of course, but the temptation to have someone’s head on a platter can be overwhelming.  The desire to be their executioner can be quite strong.  Revenge is a likely reason for the chopping block or the guillotine.  Rage and envy are two other reasons.  Feeling betrayed or being victimized can be added to the list of reasons.

We all know it’s necessary to sheath the swords and hold the blades. To do otherwise is to run afoul of what we all say we believe – why we go to church which is to worship God and to follow Jesus with mercy and forgiveness being some of the important themes of every Mass.  The Lord’s Prayer testifies to this theme.

We also go to Mass for the Eucharist.  Jesus chose bread and wine to be the sacraments of his body and blood because they are examples of a process of unification and reconciliation achieved through Christ’s death and resurrection.  The one bread is made from many grains of wheat and the one cup of wine results from many grapes.  So, also many people are brought to unity through Christ’s body and blood.

When we eat bread and drink wine, we change these elements into ourselves, but when we consume the eucharistic Body and Blood of Christ, we are changed into Christ.  That is our overarching, central Catholic belief we must take seriously.
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In our first reading we heard of the LORD forgiving David’s many sins.  The LORD exalted his strength forever and conferred on David the rights of royalty and established his throne in Israel.  The LORD did this even though David was guilty of many sins such as betraying Uriah by having him killed so David could have Uriah’s wife Bathsheba.

Despite how difficult it may be, we are expected to forgive, like the LORD’s forgiveness of David.  We are not to be like Herodias or Wonderland’s Queen of Hearts.  The only thing we should want on a platter are meals to share with others and our eucharistic meal we receive at every Mass.

Deacon David Pierce