In this Sunday's Gospel passage, Jesus states: “Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me; and whoever receives me, receives not me but the One who sent me” (Mark 9:37). Later in the Gospel of Mark, Jesus adds: "Amen, I say to you, whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it" (Mark 10:15). To understand the words of Jesus more fully, we need to consider the different status of children in the society of his time. In today's culture, children tend to be the focal point of the life of a family, with lots of time, energy, and resources invested into their development, education, entertainment, and overall well-being. Much of a family's decision-making revolves around considerations involving the children.
Children were important to ancient families too, but they did not get nearly the same amount of attention as children do today. In the ancient world, children were very much at the bottom of the bottom of the social hierarchy and families made much fewer decisions on the basis of what would be best for their children. We have to bear in mind this cultural difference when we seek to understand the meaning of the words of Jesus.
Read more...