A reflection on Mark 6:7-13 from Thursday of the fourth week in ordinary time.
For some cultures, canes are still powerful symbols of authority. While living in Laguna, NM this past summer, I learned a lot from the Pueblo people living there. In the 1600’s the Spanish crown gave all the Pueblo governors a vara, or cane, that would stand as a symbol of their authority among their people. In the following centuries, other government leaders like Abraham Lincoln continued this tradition by giving the Pueblo canes as a sign of respect. While canes serve as powerful symbols for the Pueblo, the people also showed me by their hospitality and care what it meant to be a “living cane,” to be a true source of support and accompaniment to all those you meet.
In the sixth chapter of Mark's gospel, when Jesus sends the 12 apostles out on mission, he tells them to bring nothing with them for their journey except a walking stick. As silly as it might sound, that walking stick kept coming to my mind as I reflected on this passage, and I didn’t know what exactly to make of it. I thought Jesus told the apostles not to take anything with them on the journey, as it says in Matthew and Luke. Both of those gospels portray Jesus as prohibiting the use of a walking stick. And yet here in Mark, Jesus tells his apostles that they better not forget it.
I guess one could say that the walking stick is Jesus’ way of giving the apostles authority for their mission. There is a tradition in the bible of canes being used as symbols of authority, like Aaron’s flowering walking stick in Numbers. Why did Jesus allow the apostles to take a walking stick for their journey? For me, the explanation is simple.
Right before Jesus sends the apostles, he takes them to his hometown in Nazareth. One can almost hear the conversations Jesus was having with his apostles on the way; “Oh just wait until you meet so-and-so, we were pals growing up.” Or one might be able to picture Jesus’ excitement at bringing his closest friends to his home synagogue, where he might demonstrate his talent in preaching. And yet the gospel tells us that his mission there went poorly, that barely anything could be done, and that even Jesus himself was amazed at the lack of faith among the villagers of his hometown.
So from the ashes of a failed mission, Jesus commissions the twelve to go on their own mission. Far from being out of his depth, Jesus knows firsthand the difficulties of this mission. He knows the roadblocks the apostles might face along the way - rejection, neglect, persecution. He knows that in the midst of these struggles, everyone needs a little support.
This gospel reminds me of my extended Pueblo family because they understand what it means to lean on each other, to share hospitality, and to bear one another's burdens gracefully. We are not invincible. Even Jesus faced failure. But in those moments, Jesus asks us not just to bring our walking stick, but to be a walking stick. Our mission as followers of Jesus is to be sources of support and accompaniment to all those traveling on the road with us so that they might experience the mercy of God and know that they do not travel alone.
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