Time travel

One staple of fiction used to be tales of those who travelled back in time, often to find that there was a situation (about which they would discover new information) about which they could do nothing lest they change the course of history. More recently, writers will indulge their fancy (and great fun that is... even if the historian part of me winces) by imagining 'what if this or that had gone differently,' and writing a version of the outcome.

One near certainty in middle age (when one is fully aware, but often trying to forget, that nothing in this life is ever certain) is that one will begin to think "what if I had done (whatever) differently?" Of course, all of us have made mistakes - some of which we indeed knew better than to make at the time - yet the major wrong decisions we can accept. The puzzles which trouble us are more along the lines of opportunities we feel we missed, decisions which were not wrong but could have been better, and so forth. When we travel into that mental time machine, it is quite easy to berate ourselves about the past as if, when we made choices then, we should have known the future. It makes little difference that we are fully aware that, no matter what choices we had made, we never could know what the outcome would have been.

Some of the books of 'church history' (and I employ the term lightly) and hagiography which were common in my youth tended to give the impression that all and sundry characters were very enlightened, and highly aware, in their own decisions, that the Holy Spirit was on their side. (Those about whom this is true, in any era, tend to be highly dangerous... but I'll save that for now, to continue ravelling my thread about how all is uncertain.) Of course, with centuries of hindsight (and considering that the winners write the history books), the radical innovations which came at the hands of many of the great ones have a fond and respectful glow about them. The sort of works which I am referencing were intended to be inspirational (perhaps in a different sense than that familiar to the Holy Spirit...). It was not emphasised that many saints were loathed in their own time, or that they may have been opposed (or imprisoned!) by church authorities, or that a project they began may have flourished only long after they were gone.

For the great ones, struggle and uncertainty would have been constant. Am I zealous or headstrong? Inspired or defiant? Is this 'voice' that of the devil or God?

I may be capable of competent exegesis, but I am going to indulge my literary inclinations today, fully aware that my treatment of the gospel incident to follow is undoubtedly dreadful exegesis. :) Bear with me - I had the silly thought, reading the gospel for evening prayer, that it seems highly unlikely that any Pharisees would have been hanging around in cornfields to notice what Jesus and his followers were doing on the Sabbath, so my taking liberties is inevitable.

Jesus faced uncertainty from the outset of his ministry. I can just see the evil one, during those temptations following Jesus' baptism, showing Christ the great kingdoms of the world, such a contrast to 'little' Israel. "So, the business with 'my beloved son' and the descent of that dove was the first revelation of a Trinity... who do you think will ever believe that one? The Greeks? And certainly no pious Jew! Where would your message be considered? Egypt?! And you certainly cannot think that your mission will ever be given any prominence in Rome!"

There is such irony in that only the demons were aware of, and acknowledged, Jesus' identity. That does not mean that they ever were quiet in trying to instil doubt! Jesus' temptations were to ignore his unique relationship with the Father, and abandon his vocation of proclaiming the kingdom. It matters little whether these were actual evil spirits (which is not to say that evil was not overcome by the kingdom) or the mere human inclinations to doubt and fear. The voice always says, "fall down and worship me."

Save us from the time of trial. Deliver us from evil.