NOTES for Mat 10:16

The wisdom of the serpent and the simplicity of the dove are a paradoxical combination even at a first, quick glance. It becomes still more paradoxical on closer consideration. The matter here is evidently the very serpent that tempted the first people in the Garden of Eden. It is he who is called "wise" in the biblical story of the fall. Or, more precisely, "prudent," "cautious" - this is exactly what the corresponding Hebrew word in the story means. Just as does the Greek word from the Savior's speech addressed to the apostles.

The same "prudence" is also characteristic of a wise person - at least this is what is said about the wise in the Book of Proverbs. Translators call the serpent "crafty," but when the same word refers to a person, they most often call this person "prudent," and sometimes, as in our Gospel passage, even "wise."

But the point is evidently not definitions. In essence the matter concerns one and the same thing: the ability to see the world as it is. With all its pluses and minuses. With all its possibilities, even those that can be used for evil. The ability to distinguish white and black, light and darkness. And to understand the logic of the action both of the forces of light and of the forces of darkness. At least so as not to be deceived about those who have chosen the side of darkness. But this knowledge alone is not enough. The serpent who tempted the first people also had such knowledge. In itself it does not yet save from evil.

What is also needed is the wholeness and purity, precisely these qualities are designated by the corresponding Greek word, of the turtledove, the woodland dove, the only bird suitable for every sacrifice, including a cleansing one. That wholeness which will allow one to make a choice and a decision relying not on the wisdom of this world, so well known to the one choosing, but on the will of God. And that purity which allows one, while seeing all the evil of the world as it is, not to look back at it at all when the matter concerns God's work.

The prudence of this world is useful when analyzing a situation, but it becomes spiritually destructive when one must make a choice and decisions by following God's will, decisions corresponding to the Torah and the Gospel. The Kingdom of God is reality, not a pious fantasy or religious symbol, and therefore the one who seeks it must be a realist. But his realism must not be limited only to the realities of the fallen world, as often happens with the realists of this world. Then the Kingdom too will become reality for such a person, a real goal that can be reached.

Today the Lord speaks to us about how to die for another, how to die for the faith, and therefore for Him. But has it been granted to us to die for Him? No one persecutes our faith; we are free - does this mean that we have no share in martyrdom? Here is what the poet and preacher John Donne writes in the "Litany" dedicated to the martyrs:

And when You so irresistibly
Strove to die, even before it was granted You,
And afterward, when it was no longer granted You to die again,
You, in Your generously scattered mystical body, desired
To die in Abel, and yet
In Yourself. Let their body be
For our forgiveness, by meaningful acceptance
Of death, or rather, of life: for behold, there are those
For whom not to be a martyr is martyrdom.

We really are free - but if it is torment for us not to be martyrs, if love for God and people is so strong in us that everything within burns with the desire to lay down our life "for our friends," then by our life we partake of their death.

The Christian life is full of risks and dangers, as Jesus warns His disciples. And the greatest, deadliest dangers come from those closest to us. Yet in this life we can also experience what is most beautiful and precious: the presence of the Son of Man with us and the action of the Spirit of God within us, bearing witness to the greatness and glory of the Father.

The words that the disciples are sent out as sheep among wolves may recall the popular worldly principle, "When you live with wolves, howl like a wolf." But no, we have not been given a commandment to turn into wolves. And yet how can we avoid becoming wolves without also becoming eaten?

Like much of what the Lord has revealed to us, these words of Christ are paradoxical. But behind this paradox stands a reality confirmed by the experience of spiritual life: if we want to rely on human strength alone and intend to become equal to the wolves, we risk rejecting the help of the Heavenly Father. This may give us some temporary advantages, but degradation will inevitably follow. And conversely, what people are used to considering a manifestation of weakness may turn out to be not only a manifestation, but also a source of strength.

Christ warns of the inevitability of persecution, and it will come not only from obvious enemies; many of the dearest and closest will also become enemies. In such circumstances it is hard to preserve love for one's neighbor, but this is precisely what the Lord wants from us, calling us not to become like the persecutors. All the more so because in a number of cases love for neighbors and love for enemies mean love for the same people...

Among the things Christ promised, especially astonishing is the promise that the Spirit of the Father will speak in us in difficult moments. Meanwhile, many Christians who have gone through trials confirm the truth of these words. And this is practical confirmation of the truth of the Gospel.

Today the Lord speaks to His disciples about coming disasters and trials. Betrayal, rejection, exile, and martyrdom await them. What, then, does He call them, and us, to do in this difficult hour? In such situations the world needs the intervention of God Himself, and Jesus calls His disciples to become instruments of this intervention. Let kings and rulers hear the word of salvation through them; let the suffering receive comfort and encouragement through them. They themselves will need nothing, for the heavenly Father Himself will care for them. They need only learn to trust Him. Then their bond with Heaven will become stronger than all earthly bonds, and God will be a greater reality for them than family, property, even life itself.

In the face of trials, the Lord calls us to surrender ourselves entirely to His will and to become His healing presence on earth.

The distinguishing mark of Christ's disciples is that they are open to God and to the world. They carry the news of God's Kingdom, and at the same time they go to people; they hope only in God, yet they receive help from people; they address rulers and kings, yet they speak the words of the Spirit. Both are not simple: being open to God can be difficult and frightening; being open to people is always difficult and sometimes dangerous. The disciples will have to combine in themselves qualities that are hard to combine: to be lambs, wise as serpents and innocent as doves.

Nevertheless, this is the task of the disciples, each of whom is in some sense an apostle, that is, a representative, an ambassador of Christ in the world. For a messenger must in some way resemble his lord. So the disciples imitate the mission of the God-man Christ: belonging to God, they are turned toward the world and toward people, losing their connection neither with Heaven nor with earth.