Geography and Prophecy

January 3 - Monday after Epiphany

1 John 3:22-4:6 / Psalm 2:7bc-8, 10-12a / Matthew 4:12-17, 23-25

Geography and Prophecy

There is a lot of geography in today’s gospel passage: Galilee, Nazareth, Capernaum, Zebulun and Naphtali, Syria, the Decapolis (the Ten Cities), Jerusalem, Judea, the Jordan. Ten places if we go by names (or perhaps as many as 19 if we count each of the ten cities separately). Jesus was on the move constantly it seems. 

Readers like me who are geographically challenged might want to simply skip over the place names and dive into the content. But these place names help to anchor the gospel in a real time and a specific space. Jesus did not benefit from a satellite feed, internet connection or a broadcast tower to spread his message. He met real people in real places.

People on pilgrimage to the Holy Land consider it a grace to stand in those places, even if they are 15 feet above the level of the streets in Jesus’ day. In our own lives there are places that mark moments of deep conversion, realization and key experiences for us. So it was for Matthew and his community as they remembered not just the who, what, when, why and how of Jesus’ life and ministry, but also the where.

·         Take a moment to recall a place you have grown spiritually, where you met Jesus. What does this place mean for you?