Hometown

What good can come from there?

The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, "Follow me." Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth." Nathanael said to him, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Philip said to him, "Come and see." When Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him, he said of him, "Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!" Nathanael asked him, "Where did you get to know me?" Jesus answered, "I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you." Nathanael replied, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!" Jesus answered, "Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these." And he said to him, "Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man." - John 1:43-51

What does our hometown say about us?

Nathaniel's comment was just as much about Philip as it was about Jesus' hometown.

How could you be so foolish as to think the Messiah could come from a place like that?

The belief at the time was that the Messiah would come from Bethlehem, the place of David's birth and lineage, so Nathaniel does have a point, but the judgment is what catches my eye.

Jesus even says that a prophet is not respected in his own hometown, so we get the picture that people will automatically make judgments based on their prejudices.

Surprised?

We shouldn't be.  It happens all the time, and it is not something we can erase or cure.

Prejudice taints our ability to see the truth, or to see anything as truth other than what we choose to believe.  It is more than a filter.  It translates what we see and hear into something that confirms our conceptions of reality.

It is hard to have and maintain an open mind.

I remember being taught that the only way to have an open mind is to intentionally take on the opposing viewpoint as your own.  You have to try it on and see what fits and what doesn't.

Nathaniel could have tried to think about what it would be like to grow up in Nazareth.  What would he be if he had?

But that takes work.

It is easier to judge based on feelings than to feel what it is like to be the other person.

More to come...