Thorns Or Gold?

The Bride says: On my bed at night I sought him whom my heart loves – I sought him but I did not find him. I will rise then and go about the city; in the streets and crossings I will seek Him whom my heart loves. I sought him but I did not find him. The watchmen came upon me, as they made their rounds of the city: Have you seen him whom my heart loves? I had hardly left them when I found him whom my heart loves. (Songs 3:1-4)

On the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene 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."

Mary stayed outside the tomb weeping. And as she wept, she bent over into the tomb and saw two angels in white sitting there, one at the head and one at the feet where the Body of Jesus had been. And they said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "They have taken my Lord, and I don't know where they laid him." 

When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus there, but did not know it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?" She thought it was the gardener and said to him, "Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you laid him, and I will take him." 

Jesus said to her, "Mary!" She turned and said to him in Hebrew, "Rabbouni," which means Teacher. Jesus said to her, "Stop holding on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and tell them, 'I am going to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'" Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord," and then reported what he told her. (John 20:1-2, 11-18)

Love is a many splendid thing! As the song sings: Love is a many splendored thing. It's the April rose that only grows in the early Spring. Love is nature's way of giving a reason to be living. The golden crown that makes a man a king. Once on a high and windy hill, In the morning mist Two lovers kissed and the world stood still. Then your fingers touched my silent heart and taught it how to sing. Yes, true love's a many splendored thing. Christ is our king, and he wears a golden crown in many artistic impressions.  How weird it is to go from a crown of thorns to a golden often bejeweled crown.  

Priest, prophet, and king is Jesus our Christ. Our Catechism paragraph #783 reads: Jesus Christ is the one whom the Father anointed with the Holy Spirit and established as priest, prophet, and king. The whole People of God participates in these three offices of Christ and bears the responsibilities for mission and service that flow from them. It also reads (#1241): The baptized serve as priests through their sacrificial efforts to bring people to God. They serve as prophets through their witness to the truth in word and deed. And they serve as kings in their efforts to lead others—again through word and deed—to use their talents to advance the Kingdom of God.  

I guess this means women can be kings?  No, women are titled queens when they ascend thrones.  Our queen is Mary whom we love as opposed to kings who we are supposed to serve.  Of course, history is full of bad kings – rulers with the power to crush their opponents.  We don’t want kings.  We never have although millions of Americans appear to want one to dictate how they should live and what they should have.  Startling! They want someone to tell them what to do and how to think.  Perilous!  They tend to be afraid and fearful people.

Jesus tells us to wear a crown made of thorns, not valuable metal.  He recognizes that most of us already wear a thorny one made of pain, sorrow, loneliness, and absence of love. 

Jesus prefers we refer to him as a suffering servant and not a king.  Mary Magdalene appeared to have that understanding and love for him made evident in the reading from John.  As alluded to in Songs, she sought him whom her heart loved. She sought him, but she did not find him [in the tomb].

Do we seek Jesus as our king, or do we follow him as our suffering servant to whom we turn when we are suffering?  Yes, he is our priest, prophet and king as noted in the Catechism, but I’d rather refer to him as our role model and Savior.  For this reason, I would prefer to rename our Mashpee Church as Christ Our Suffering Servant.  That would be a better and lasting reminder about our obligations as his followers – as the one we love.  

By the way, this blog site is "Kings Corner."  I prefer "Christ's Corner" as a way to remind us of our suffering servant.

Deacon David Pierce