Le royaume s'approche Lc 10, 1-20 (14ème dimanche du temps)

D’après ces quelques versets d’évangile (Lc 10,1-20), nous ne sommes pas, comme disciples missionnaires, chargés de convaincre les gens, seulement de les informer : Que vous le vouliez ou pas, le Royaume de Dieu est proche. Le Royaume s’est approché de vous.

Nous revient de dire la proximité du Royaume, non de prêcher la morale sexuelle ou politique, ni les dogmes. Juger n’est pas notre affaire, ce que montrent les versets omis par la liturgie, seulement faire connaître la proximité du royaume, le royaume s’est approché.

Reste à savoir ce que cela veut dire. Les termes sont simples, mais la proposition curieuse, parabolique, qui interdit qu’on la prenne pour une évidence. C’est quoi, le royaume ? Comment un royaume peut-il s’approcher ?

Partons à la recherche de ce qu’est le royaume chez Luc. Le mot est employé une quarantaine de fois. Ce n’est pas rien. Presque toujours qualifié de royaume des cieux. On traduit parfois par règne comme dans le Notre Père – que ton règne vienne ‑, le plus souvent par royaume – Jésus, souviens-toi de moi quand tu viendras dans ton royaume.

C’est moins un lieu que ce qui s’approche comme nous venons de l’entendre, même s’il est difficile aux riches d’y entrer comme en un lieu, et qu’est heureux celui qui a part à son festin. Il est non seulement proche mais arrivé jusqu’à nous, et même au milieu de nous.

L’expression parabolique est elle-même expliquée par des comparaisons ou paraboles ‑ à quoi vais-je comparer le royaume ou le règne de Dieu ? Les enfants sont le type même de ceux auxquels il appartient par leur aptitude à accueillir, à faire confiance, à vivre des autres.

Il faudrait relire toutes les occurrences. Si le royaume est un mot qui en cache un autre, qu’on ne peut dire, qu’il faut remplacer, c’est peut-être bien qu’il désigne Dieu lui-même, ou son envoyé. Jésus n’est-il pas celui qui s’approche, est tout près, est au milieu de nous ? N’est-il pas celui en qui nous sont faites la proposition et la promesse de vivre en proximité avec le Père ? Et pour ne pas confondre mission et prosélytisme, pour ne pas prononcer en vain le nom de Dieu, pour ne pas croire qu’un mot suffit quand c’est d’une vie entière qu’il s’agit, on taira jusqu’au nom de Jésus et ne parlera « que » du royaume.

Dire la proximité de Jésus. Jésus, comme le renard du Petit Prince s’approche doucement pour nous apprivoiser, pour qu’on l’apprivoise. Si Saint-Exupéry vous paraît trop profane, allons chercher la même idée chez Irénée de Lyon. « Le Verbe s’est fait fils de l’homme pour accoutumer l’homme à recevoir Dieu, et pour accoutumer Dieu à demeurer dans l’homme selon le bon-vouloir du Père. » (AH III, 20, 2)

Cette habitation en proximité se manifeste par la bonté débordante, ou, si vous préférez, par un redressement de tout ce qui est tordu, pourri, corrompu dans la création. Voir la misère avec le cœur, la miséricorde. Et c’est cela notre labeur missionnaire, plus que la parole, si du moins nous en croyons le commandement du Seigneur : guérir les malades.

La proximité est encore commensalité, elle est aussi œuvre de restauration. Surtout, elle signe une attitude typique de Jésus, qui invite à la table du royaume comme ou quand il ne cesse de partager la table de ceux qu’il rencontre : un pharisien, les foules des multiplications des pains, Lévi le publicain, Marthe et Marie, Zachée, les envoyés ou apôtres à la cène, le larron. Elle indique une humanité fraternelle, sans hiérarchie puisque le maître se fait serviteur, le fils unique rassemble la multitude des enfants d’une Jérusalem brisée.

La proximité est enfin souhait de paix, celui que nous partageons ‑ la paix soit avec vous ‑ dans la célébration, ou « le Seigneur soit avec vous », puisque le Christ est notre paix. Les chrétiens qui parlent arabe disent avec les musulmans ce que nous disons : Salam 'Alaykoum, la paix soit avec vous. Annoncer la paix, c’est déjà la construire.

Voilà donc notre feuille de route de disciples missionnaires, construire la paix, vivre en fraternité et soigner tout ce qui est défiguré dans la création. Si nous nous y mettons, c’est évident, tout le monde le verra : le royaume s’approche !


Traduction de Jezn-François Garneau

I always read Patrick Royannais' homilitic blog with great profit. Here he is posting what he's prepared for this Sunday's mass. My impression is that this is one of his best. I translate them in English to slow my reading, but also to force myself into bumping into translation difficulties. This in turn prompts me to draw associations that Patrick may very well have not meant to do. I try to put these associations in brackets, most of the time. In any event, I hope you like the depth of his theological insights at least half as much as I do, there is lots to ponder here.
And because it is Michael's birthday (a belated one because of the different time zones) and I know that this Australian likes Patrick's writing, I dedicate this translation / paraphrase item to him. To use the words of Patrick's conclusion: Shalom Shabbat, May peace be with you, Salam Alaykum, May the Lord be with you, May his Kingdom cometh.
So here's my translation / paraphrase:

The realm of the divine has made itself closer to you than ever Lc 10, 1-20 (14th Sunday of the time)
If we follow what is said in Luke 10: 9, we (as missionary disciples) are not charged to convince people of anything, only to inform them that, whether they like it or not, the realm of divine things has made itself closer to them than they ever thought possible. The Kingdom has made itself near them.
Our task is to proclaim how close to everyone’s heart the Kingdom is, not to preach sexual or political morality, nor even theological dogmas. To judge is not our affair, as verses omitted in this Sunday’s liturgy reminds us, our task is only to make known the proximity of the kingdom, to proclaim that the kingdom has approached.
The real question for us is to understand what in the world this can mean. The terms seem simple, but the curious, parabolic proposition forbids us to take it for granted. What is the kingdom? How can a kingdom come near?
Let's go in search for all that Luke means by kingdom. The word is used forty times. This is therefore not a peripheral concept. It is almost always used as part of the expression “the kingdom of heaven” [the kingdom of heavenly things, the kingdom of things divine]. One sometimes also translates the Greek original by kingship rather than kingdom as is done in the French version of the Our Father – where the expression “Thy kingdom comes” is actually translated as “May your kingship comes”. Once this is said, kingdom is the more frequent translation – as when one says: “Jesus, remember me when you come to your kingdom”.
Once this is said, that place (the kingdom) seems to be less “a place THAT WE GO TO” than “a place THAT COMES NEAR US” and this, despite the fact that if it is difficult for the rich to enter it as a place, and that the one who is happy is the one invited to be part of its feast. In fact, not only has that kingdom made itself near to us, but it has fully reached us, is in the midst of us.
The parabolic character of the expression [the fact that it hides itself behind metaphors to reveal itself] is further explained by other comparisons and parables. What am I going to compare the kingdom (or the kingdom of God) to [says the Gospel], before telling us that children [rather than theologians backed up by the CDF] are the very type of people to whom it belongs, because of their ability to welcome, to trust, and to live with one another.
All occurrences need to be read and re-read. If the word kingdom is an expression which hides a concept which can not itself be expressed in words and must therefore be told through simile [the very meaning of a parabolic expression], it may well be that it designates God himself [or what’s divine in the universe, if we take the universe to include both what’s divine and what’s created]. Or if not God [for no man can see God face to face], then his/its envoy [his/its messenger, his/its angel, … depending on how comfortable we are in envisioning the divine in “personal’ terms]. And is it not Jesus himself [that the Gospels present as] the one who is approaching us, is making himself closer to us, is making himself present in our midst? After all [says the Gospel], it is through Jesus that we are offered and promised to be able to live fully in the proximity [of a Most High that Jesus himself calls, and encourages us to call] the Father? And so as not to confuse missionary work with proselytism, and not to pronounce the name of God in vain, or so as not to believe that uttering a word is sufficient when it is the entirety of a whole life that we are talking about, Luke’s gospel will [often] leave Jesus' name unsaid and will speak instead "only" of the kingdom.
If we are to speak of how Jesus makes himself close to us, however, perhaps our best metaphor is that of the fox in [Saint-Exupéry’s] The Little Prince. It approaches us slowly in order both (i) to domesticate us [that is: to make us worthy of a kingdom viewed now as a “philia »], and (ii) to be domesticated by us [to make it capable of living within us, in our own intimate “midst”]. If Saint-Exupery seems to you too profane an author [to be invoked in order to explain such matters], let's then pick the very same idea from Irenaeus of Lyon: "The Word became the son of man to accustom man to receive God, and to accustom God to abide in man according to the good will of the Father. (AH III, 20, 2).
The acquired ability [of mankind and of divineness] to inhabit in close proximity to one another manifests itself by overflowing goodness or, if you prefer, by a recovery of all that used to be twisted, rotten, corrupted in creation [and creation’s sense of what’s truly divine]. To be able to see misery with the heart [what the English language can only call mercy but is actually a compound of the two words misery and heart, in both French and Latin, as in “miséri-corde” / “miseri-cordia”]. And, if we are to believe the command of the Lord, this is what should be the core of our missionary work: to heal the sick [and make what used to only be walk bent or crooked be capable of walking straight and in an upward position].
The concept of nearness and of proximity is further presented to us [in the gospel] as commensality [the French word « restauration” is beautifully ambiguous, referring both to the idea of restoring what was lost AND feeding the hungry –as in a restaurant]. Above all, the concept of nearness is meant to refer to an attitude typical of Jesus, who invites to the kingdom table whomevever he meets: a Pharisee, the crowds of the multiplication of the loaves, Levi the publican, Martha and Mary, Zacchaeus, the envoys or apostles at the supper, the thief [even the traitor].The concept [of nearness] points to a fraternal humanity, without any hierarchy [of wealth, birth or even purity] since the master becomes a servant. The [until then] “only” son brings together the multitude of children of the broken Jerusalem.
[And as befits a city whose very name means “the foundation of peace”] the notion “closeness” is finally a wish for peace, the peace that we share in religious ceremonies – [Shabat Shalom!] “the peace be with you” being used interchangeably with "the Lord be with you", since Christ is our peace. Christians who speak Arabic say it the same way that Muslims do: “Salam 'Alaykum”, “May peace be with you”. To announce peace is already to build it.
Thus is the roadmap for our missionary work, to build peace, to live in fraternity and to heal all that is disfigured in creation. If we put ourselves to it, then it will become obvious to everyone that the kingdom is coming!