A Troubling Situation
The Gospel reading for today tells of Jesus cursing a fig tree on which he could find no fruit. St. Mark makes a point of noting that there were no figs on the tree because ‘it was not the time for figs,” making it clear that the reason for the lack of fruit was not the fault of the tree. Sometime later, Jesus and the disciples pass the tree and find it withered to its roots because of the curse. Why would Jesus curse a tree that was simply following the process fig trees follow? It seems unreasonable and unjust.
My House Will Be Called a House of Prayer
This incident is followed by an account of Jesus driving the merchants and moneychangers out of the temple area. They, too, no doubt believed that they were simply doing what was expected to assist faithful Jews in fulfilling their obligations for sacrifice under the Mosaic law. They would have been very surprised to be turned out of the Temple and the Gospel tells us that their leaders were outraged.
And who has not had the experience of saying or doing something innocently and receiving a harsh reprimand that seemed to come out of nowhere? Who has not been criticized for not fulfilling an expectation for which we had no idea we were responsible? This, too, seems unreasonable and unjust.
A New Reality
But Jesus is introducing a new reality here. His relationship to the Father gives Him the authority to drive the merchants out of sacred space of the temple because their activity has reduced the Father’s house to a marketplace. The fact of His Sonship gives Him the right to ask for a commensurate response from the people of Israel and from creation (the fig tree). And when someone corrects me, even if it seems unwarranted, there is usually a piece of truth that it would be well for me to incorporate, a new reality whose assimilation will foster my growth.
What gives me the ability to set aside my hurt feelings, to go beyond focusing on the harsh reality that has been put in front of me? Jesus gives us the answer, “Therefore, I tell you, all that you ask for in prayer, believe that you will receive it and it shall be yours.” Only my faith in God will help me to cross the gap between my nature and the response Jesus desires from me, a gap that the moneychangers and the fig tree were unable to bridge. And lest we be guilty of withering someone else’s roots, Jesus reminds us to “forgive anyone against whom you have a grievance, so that your heavenly Father may in turn forgive you your transgressions.”
Thank you, Sister Veronica, for this rich reflection today! I had never considered the fig tree story from this angle before. You put it so well: “Jesus is introducing a new reality here.” It is worth meditating upon this, how our faith allows us to bridge “the gap.” Thank you and God bless!