Walking Around
I will write each day about some aspect of Holy week, according to the Scriptural references that record Jesus’ last days on earth. I will not interpret Jesus’s thoughts and actions but will instead take the point of view of an observer to these singular events, puzzling, wondering and discovering insights that may illuminate our own walk through Holy Week.
Today’s scripture is Matthew 21: 17-18
And he left them and went out of the city to Bethany, where he spent the night. Early in the morning, as he was on his way back to the city, he was hungry.
This scripture is just the opening verses of a long series of parables and sermons that Jesus shared at that time that are detailed in all four gospels. Some entries describe Jesus walking back and forth to the Temple in Jerusalem where he continued to teach. He also appears at Mt. Olivet and continues outpouring parables and commandments. You may wish to read the entirety of these stories that precede the events of Passover.
A few years ago, I was slated to teach a course on leadership in early childhood. I looked for a variety of different books as reading assignments when I happened upon Managing while Walking Around. It was one of those faddish, popular books published every so often, and in education at that time, it was gaining a lot of traction. The book centered on one main principle: Leaders in the hands-on fields such as education are much more effective if they trade the traditional model of the “boss in the corner office” to one where the leader spends a large portion of her day in the classrooms, gaining first-hand impressions and information rather than relying on people to come to her. This approach has a lot of advantages for everyone: The teachers get used to seeing their supervisors pop in and out of the classrooms, taking any mystique (and sometimes fear) that can characterize supervisory relationships; Leaders and teachers talk casually together about problem or praise areas, in the moment; The leader gets to know the children well, instead of being that person who is only seen when someone is “sent to the office”. It’s easy to see that the main focus of this book was not about getting miles of exercise each day as the supervisor walked the hallways. It was all about establishing genuine relationships with everyone who walked through the school doors. Feelings of isolation and failures in communication dropped precipitously when leaders implemented the simple practice of walking around the school on a regular basis. Leaders’ suggestions and even admonishments were better received. The emotional atmosphere was positive, and the staff felt they had a direct line to the expert. Managing while Walking Around became not only a popular book to read, but an effective style to put into action.
Today, we read about Jesus’ frequent walks between Bethany and Jerusalem. According to sites describing the geography of the ancient Holy Land, these two locations were a little less than 2 miles apart, not an extremely onerous journey. These walks were only a small portion of the many walks that Jesus took during his three-year ministry. Throughout the gospels, lots of important events and heart-felt stories occur while Jesus was walking around. We might be saying- Well, of course! Walking was the main mode of transportation for the common people during that time. What else would Jesus be doing but walking? But a closer look gives us some insights in how this wisest of leaders used his walks to infuse his ministry with power. There are a few times when Jesus stopped and taught huge crowds at one time- Jesus delivered the Beatitudes from a mountain top and Mount Tabor is the likely site of the Transfiguration. During Holy Week, Jesus spoke from Mt. Olivet, leaving a rich legacy of parables and commandments from this vantage point. The Temple in Jerusalem was also the site of many teachings during this last Holy week. However, the majority of Jesus’ life was spent walking from place to place. Jesus used his semi-nomadic life to great effect. He established relationships with people he would not have encountered with an “ivory tower” approach. Could Jesus have set up camp in one location and invited everyone to come to him? Would his words still have been miraculously effective if he was “the boss in the corner office?” Definitely. Yet, he walked among the people day after day. As he walked, he observed people in the crowds around him and paid attention to the natural world that surrounded him. Many of his parables derive from the sights that Jesus saw as he walked. Jesus was not walking to seek “new material” for his sermons. He walked to show that he was accessible and that what he had to say was based on the real-life experiences of those whom he met or who chose to follow along on the road. He walked to touch as many lives as possible while he could.
Lent is often compared to a walk, and during this time we have explored the value of pilgrimages or other walking related spiritual practices. Today, we look at the wisdom of Jesus and his choice to preach and teach while walking around. We look at the ways that Jesus’ journeys yielded lasting spiritual blessings that continue from that Holy Week to this one. In Walking Around, Jesus conveys not only his wise words, but the silent wisdom of establishing genuine relationships with those who Love him.
Today’s tile is a paper collage of a person walking, bent with the effort. Around are mountains, lakes, walls, and fields. These could be insurmountable challenges, or the source of our own personal parables that Christ still writes for us. We form relationships through walking around, living our daily life in relationship with the Divine.
Consider today where you have journeyed since Lent began many weeks ago. What stories touched you and touch you still? What spiritual walks lie ahead?
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God as call me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3: 13-15. NIV
