The Boy Jesus In The Temple

Last week in my sermon I talked about the foundational beliefs that create the character, the DNA of the church.  I based this on the story of Jesus being presented in the Temple as a baby.  Today I want to reflect on the next time Jesus goes to the Temple in Luke’s Gospel, when he is twelve years old.  He is preparing for adulthood and he stays in the Temple talking with the scholars about their faith.  He was there even when his parents left to return to Nazareth.  They thought he was with another family in the community group that had travelled to Jerusalem together for the passover.  When they discovered him missing, you can imagine the emotions they went through; shock, fear, confusion, worry, anger.  They rushed back to Jerusalem and finally found him in the temple talking.  His only answer was, “Didn’t you realise I would be about my Father’s business?”  Let’s forget about the human drama that would have followed and look at what we can learn about discovering the foundations of faith from these experiences.

Jesus was there learning.  He spent days in conversation discussing with the experts of his day.  Our faith is a mosaic of sources of learning.  The Bible is a primary source to discover basic beliefs and values.  But we also learn much from our experiences of life and the experiences of those around us.  We might also read books where people share their perspectives and experiences.  We can’t avoid learning experiences, but the challenge is to actually learn from them.  This always takes awareness and reflection in some deliberate way through discussion with others or through a personal journal so the learning is crystallised into values, beliefs or resolution we can access at a later time.

Foundational beliefs often grow through stress and conflict.  Certainly Mary and Joseph experienced this and Jesus’ answer to them certainly clarified his primary allegiance and commitment. Conflict and stressful experiences force us to reflect on what is most important and to choose between alternatives.

Finally we discover the importance of respect.  Even though Jesus had revealed his life’s focus, he went home with his parents and showed them the respect they deserved.  He was not rejecting them through this experience, he was discovering his primary vocation.  He was putting his priorities in order.  Respect is another word for love.  In this story he shows his devotion to God his Father and he shows his respect for his human parents.  Later he will tell us that love for God and love for people always go together.  This is primary to his DNA and is to be the centre of ours.

Adrian.