Of Gossip and Eavesdropping 21/5
As a child, I have a very vivid memory of toddling down the hallway to go to the toilet in the middle of the night. My parents were in the lounge room and they didn’t hear me but I could hear them talking. I knew that I wasn’t supposed to be hearing this conversation because they were talking about..little old me. I was surprised by two things. First, they were talking about me and secondly, I was thrilled by the content of their discussion. They were saying all sorts of gooey things about me, but also expressing their worries. It felt a bit wicked, sneaky and delicious and I kind of knew that I shouldn’t have been listening and yet I really wanted to stay and hear more.
Later on, I would learn that overhearing a conversation like this was called eavesdropping and much later on I would have exactly the same sort of conversations about our children.
Today is the Sunday between the Ascension and Pentecost. Jesus has ascended into heaven and the Holy Spirit has not yet come with its flames and wind. In this subliminal time, our Lectionary feeds us a text all about Eavesdropping and we get to overhear a conversation between Jesus and his Father. We are reminded that although Jesus has gone away physically and is now at the right hand of God the Father Almighty, the power of God the Father Almighty is also right here with us.
John 17 gives us the chance to “overhear” an intimate conversation between Jesus and his Father.
When you think about it, it’s rather stunning to realise that we are privy to a conversation between two members of the divine Trinity. That alone is a signal that the things Jesus is praying about are already true: namely, that thanks to Jesus’ ministry, we have gained access to the God of the universe. Jesus asks the Father to be mindful of us, to protect us, and the mere fact that we get to hear Jesus ask for this is proof that this is going to come to pass. Indeed, it’s true already!
That’s why we get to hear all this.
Sometimes eavesdropping is a bad thing of course. To consciously search out information that is not rightfully ours and then to use that information to our advantage… Well, you get the general idea.
But sometimes when you overhear a conversation, you hear people you love saying really wonderful things about you. And when that happens, you feel great. Be careful of the information that you accidentally hear and how you use it. Ask yourself... ‘Do I really need to do anything with this information’? ‘Really??’ In today's gospel I think that all we have to do is simply rejoice and be delighted.
Gossip can work the same way. It’s one thing to tell the world about the birth of a new child with the consent of the ecstatic Mum and Dad. It’s quite another to let the world know that Mr Bloggs’ car was parked outside Mrs Smith’s house all last night and we all know what that means… or do we??
This solemn reminder needs to resound loudly and frequently to clergy and laity alike; Particularly in this stage of electronic history when we can send information to multiples of people literally right around the world in a few seconds. And once it’s sent… it’s out there, printable, there forever. And it can then be sent to an uncountable number of people and forums.
Might I encourage you in general and myself in particular to guard the information we hear with what I will call S.P.C. Severe Protective Custody? Also, it's not an entirely wicked thing to accidentally on purpose let it slip that what-their-name is just wonderful in the way that they… here insert their particular skill or something encouraging.
But back to the sheepish little boy in the passageway. My parents are both now on the other side of the grave. This does not stop them from loving me any less. In fact, sometimes I suspect that they love me more in a different potent way because they are in the nearer presence of God.
Perhaps their conversation with each other and with God has never really stopped.
But then what is true of me is also true for you.
For your reflection you might like to think about and be comforted by those who you love who have temporarily disappeared but are still loving you, still talking about you, still enjoying you. Perhaps the experience of death does not quash love but rather sends it rocketing into another dimension that is unassailable and triumphant.
So what are Jesus and His Father talking about today, right now? What if we could eavesdrop on the conversation they are having at this very moment? What might they be talking about and what would happen if we could eavesdrop on their chatting and then gossip relentlessly about it? Is this what it means when we say …Therefore with angels and archangels…?