Gospel
While still more people gathered in the crowd, Jesus said to them,
“This generation is an evil generation;
it seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it,
except the sign of Jonah.
Just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites,
so will the Son of Man be to this generation.
At the judgment
the queen of the south will rise with the men of this generation
and she will condemn them,
because she came from the ends of the earth
to hear the wisdom of Solomon,
and there is something greater than Solomon here.
At the judgment the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation
and condemn it,
because at the preaching of Jonah they repented,
and there is something greater than Jonah here.”
Our picture above is found in the early Christian catacombs of Rome. From right to left. Jonah is thrown from the boat, swallowed by the whale, vomited up on the shore at Nineveh, then asleep under the vine after his preaching and the city’s conversion
From the beginning Jonah is a prophet who doesn’t appreciate God’s plan, yet he fulfills it. The people of Nineveh believe. At the same time Jonah seems unchanged by the amazing things that occur. He remains a small-minded man.
Jesus uses the story of Jonah in the gospel as a sign of the power of the resurrection. God’s power is at work. It’s not human power. God raises Jesus from the dead, He uses people like Jonah, who don’t altogether grasp God’s plan. They’re not perfect, they’re weak even till the end. God works more than they imagine.
The Jonah story ie commonly portrayed in the Christian catacombs in early Rome over the remains of someone deceased. The whole story is usually there, from Jonah getting thrown off the boat, to being swallowed up by the whale, to Jonah sitting in the shade of the vine.(see above)
Early Christians recognized the wisdom in the stories of the Jewish scriptures more than we do today. Most of the people in the Roman catacombs were ordinary Christians, not heroic saints. Citizens of the great city of Rome, conscious of their weak faith, did they recognize the power of Jesus Christ who, in his resurrection, brought life even to a city of little faith. Did they see themselves and their loved ones who passed on like the citizens of Nineveh in the Jonah story? Outsiders saved by God’s mercy.
The Jonah story was their story. Isn’t it also ours?
Lord, you know me better than I know myself. Prepare me for the journey, no matter where my travels will take me. I am tempted to pack too much, afraid I won’t have all that I’ll need, but you call me to take little. Though I want to trust you in all things, I often don’t. My possessions give me a false sense of safety. I believe my home is my security, yet the only thing I can truly count on is you. Help me to follow wherever you may lead me.
Jonah’s call and response remind me of this prayer of the Pilgrim from Abbey of the Arts
https://abbeyofthearts.com/prayer-cycle/soul-of-a-pilgrim/prayer-cycle-soul-of-a-pilgrim-day-1/
Jesus knew how to shake up the complacent.
He stirred the awe of the Gentiles.
He put the Messianic promise into sharp relief.
He used the sign of Jonah who was sent,
To people who needed to repent.
Are we too proud to be humble?
Do we think we are without sin?
With heads bowed and knees bent,
“Lord, have mercy on us.
In your promise, we hold belief.”