The story of Jonah is a wonderful story … and it is that – a story. The details stretch the realm of credibility until is screams for mercy. But the story of Jonah and the great fish, or whale, and his dispute with God offers us a profound lesson on what it means to be called through faith.
To briefly recap the story of Jonah: God comes to Jonah and tells the prophet that he is to go to the great city of Ninevah (the largest and most powerful city of the era) and tell them that their ways are sinful and repugnant to God, and they are to repent.
Jonah promptly heads to the sea port and boards a boat heading west … Ninevah is to the east, in modern day Iraq. Out at sea, Jonah climbs into the hold and falls asleep as a storm begins to gather. The storm worsens and intensifies. The sailors on the boat fear for their lives – they call on their respective gods and plead for their lives … Through it all, Jonah remains asleep in the hold, until one of the crew wakes him and tells him to call on his God and seek mercy …
Jonah owns up to the fact that the storm is likely his fault – it was Jonah who was fleeing God … The crew draw lots and the losing lot falls on Jonah, so they heave him over board – he can take his chances in the surf … and almost immediately the storm abates and the seas calms.
The interesting happening in the story is the aside comment of the other sailors who witnessing the calming of the storm – fall down and begin to worship God … and there is no reaction from Jonah (possibly he was too busy staying afloat, or swimming away from the whale …)
Then Jonah is swallowed by a great fish – or a whale, depending on the translations of the text, and for three days sits in the belly of the fish … three days in which the whale travels from the Mediterranean Sea around the entire continent of Africa, up the east side, around the Arab peninsula, to be spit out on the beaches of what today is Kuwait and Iraq … There is no boat in existence that can do that journey, in three days …
But, the story of Jonah is only just beginning … from the beach he wanders to the city of Ninevah, and journeys a days walk into the vast – huge city. He then preaches a message of judgement and God’s demand for repentance … Jonah clearly wants the vengeance of God to fall on the people of Ninevah – Jonah wants the people of Ninevah to suffer.
But the people hear the message, and they repent. They hear the prophet’s words and see the error of their ways – and they claim the gift of God’s grace … But rather then being overjoyed, Jonah is furious. He doesn’t want the Ninevites to experience God’s mercy – he wants them to experience God’s wrath.
So, Jonah turns tail and pouts – he finds a place outside the city and sulks as he sits there … So, God grows a carob seed through the night, and in the day time the bush shades him from the harsh sun … But the next night, God sends a worm that chews the carob and kills it … Jonah weeps over the loss of the shrub, and God is nothing short of indignant.
You weep over a bush that lives and dies in a single night, challenges God, yet you would willingly sacrifice thousands and thousands of human lives???
The absurdity of this proposition ends the book of Jonah … are the lives of people not more valuable then the life of a shrub, yet God’s messenger wants thousands of human lives ot be snuffed out, while he rages over the loss of a plant …
So, we are left to consider how we are to follow God’s ways when God’s plans and visions run counter to what our ego says is right and justice and dare we say: holy.
I like the story of Jonah, because his responses and reactions are so incredibly common … Jonah is just like us.
God says “Jonah go to Ninevah …” and Jonah heads the other way …
The people of Ninevah hear what Jonah has to say and repent, and Jonah is not overjoyed, but is ticked off and heads off in a pout …
Then Jonah sits in the sun and sulks …
Jonah is like us – he runs away – he pouts, he sulks and at the end of the day – God stays with him …
Contrast Jonah with the disciples that Jesus is beginning to call along the shores of the Sea of Galilee.
Jesus says to Simon, Andrew, James and John – come and follow me – and they do. The leave their nets behind and head off into the unknown.
They are UNLIKE Jonah in this. Jonah zooms the other way while the disciples Jesus calls, follow.
The Gospel texts tell us that the disciples journeyed with Jesus were by and large an enthusiastic lot – likely too enthusiastic. Where as Jonah was a brooding sulking pouter.
So – one could ask – who was the more faithful follower? But that would miss the whole point of God calling people according to God’s plans, not ours … Our egos have no place in the moment of call.
When God calls us it’s not about what WE want, it’s about what God wants of us. The readings today remind us to check our egos at the door … it’s not easy, but it IS the call to faith that was issued to Jonah, Peter, Andrew, James, John, and it is the call to faith that still resounds within us today.
So, how do we move forward knowing that often our ways are not God’s ways, and what we want for ourselves, our lives and our community may not be what God wants. How do we make the jump from fleeing God to actively following God …
Therein lies the power of the story of Jonah. In it’s over the top imagery, in its bold brush strokes of storms and whales and all the details, we find ourselves reflected in the story of Jonah.
Our urge is often to flee – to find the easy route and expect everything to be nice and easy and what WE really want. God has different plans.
In the midst of the storms of life, it is easier to be pitched overboard then to face the fury of the storm … how many times have we wanted to just give up … but even in the storm, God still has plans – and so the fish swallows Jonah and drags him in the darkness to the beach where he is spewed onto the sand …
Even there – dragged back to where God may want us to be, Jonah sulks off in a pout when things don’t go his way …
The turning point in the story comes when Jonah is sitting in the sun pouting – even there, God sends a bush to shade him, to keep him safe in the hot middle eastern sunshine. But, to underscore God’s point, the bush dies after God sends a little worm to chew on it … God gives relief, then when the relief withers and dies, the lesson is there for Jonah to see …
It’s a shrub. I came to give you relief, and then died in a single night – and you mourn it, yet you would willingly let thousands perish for your ego Jonah … is this just? Is this faithful? Is this caring?
We don’t know what Jonah’s response was … we only know that God left Jonah with that though … aren’t the lives of my children more valuable then a silly shrub?
Aren’t the lives of others more valuable then our own egos?
Aren’t we called to proclaim the Gospel, and leave the rest up to God?
It’s not easy – but sometimes that’s the reality … Things may not unfold as we demand nor want, but through it all, God is steadfast and present and things will unfold as God’s love and care decrees, not as our ego wants … It’s hard to check our egos at the door, but in faith we need to have the courage to leave our egos behind much like the disciples left their nets behind …
We are called to follow a path of faith … may we have the courage to follow it, and invite others to share it with us along the way – even the Ninevahites.
May it be so, thanks be to God …
Let us pray …
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