Possessiveness is not an attractive characteristic. It’s uncharitable, inward-looking and ultimately selfish. It prevents us from seeing the good in others. Eventually it can corrupt and destroy.
Yet unfortunately this kind of attribute is something we’re all too familiar with. In the encounter in today’s Gospel, Jesus reveals the dangers of exclusivity even among his followers. The disciples have come across someone performing exorcisms in Jesus’ name. Because they don’t recognize him as one of their number, they seek to prevent him. In the face of the prejudice shown against the outsider, Jesus’ attitude is of tolerance and acceptance. ‘Do not forbid him… [He] that is not against us is for us.‘
We may be irritated by the disciples’ narrowness of outlook, but we should stop before we become too critical. How much of them do we recognize in ourselves? All they can see is that the man is an outsider, ‘not one of us.‘ And so they are quick to write him off. But how do we respond to outsiders in our own society? How do we react to refugees, to asylum seekers? What do we think of those whose faith is different from our own? How do we relate to members of other churches? The disciples’ failure has deep roots, which we all share. It’s a failure in faith, a failure to see and acknowledge the power and the freedom of God’s Spirit.
The Spirit works wherever he wills. The Spirit who works in outsiders is the same Spirit who encourages people to come inside, and who leads and directs the Church. We need to look at how we welcome those on the outside. How eager are we to open ourselves to them?