Fr Paolo Consonni, MCCJ
O’Clarim 14 Sunday OT Year B
“Jesus came to his hometown […] many who heard him were astounded. They said, ‘Where did this man get all this? […] Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary? […]” And they took offense at him. Jesus said to them: ‘Prophets are not without honor, except in their hometown, and among their own kin, and in their own house.’ […] And he was amazed at their unbelief.” (Mk 6:1-6)
Have you ever been to Italy? If you travel by bus or train through the countryside, the first thing you might notice in the landscape are bell towers. Every village has one, and their unique shape can help you identify and locate the town from afar. Catholicism in Italy has influenced the layout of cities and towns which were often built around a church, typically featuring a bell tower. In the course of history, individual towns have maintained their distinct governance, culture, and values, allowing the flourishing of beautiful traditions and artistic expressions. Unfortunately, these strong local identities also created hateful conflicts with neighboring towns.
The Italian word “campanilismo” describes this phenomenon. Translated literally, it means “bell-towerness.” In English, the equivalent term is “parochialism” (parrocchia means “parish”), and it defines an excessive attachment to one’s territorial values and self-interests, symbolized by the bell tower, which leads to insularity and to a close-minded refusal to consider different opinions and ideas.
In this Sunday’s Gospel (Mk 6:1-6), Jesus faced a similar kind of attitude. He went back to his hometown, a place where people knew him and his family well. They saw him grow up there. They saw him working as a carpenter. They were the ones to provide him with a religious education in the synagogue. After beginning His public ministry, Jesus came back to his hometown preaching and behaving in a different way, with an authority that went well beyond the humble status of his background. His countrymen could not accept this change. How could He, an ordinary carpenter from an ordinary family, pretend to be the One sent by God?
We all expect God to manifest Himself to us according to the preconceived ideas we have about Him, which, consciously or not, often include privilege and reward for one’s self-righteousness. Jesus offered none of this and instead invited them to a journey of conversion which requires believing in God who manifests His power by assuming our human nature and by offering His life for the whole of humanity, and not only for a selected few. The Gospel proclaimed through deeds and action of Jesus, while rooted in the revelation and the tradition of the Old Testament, invites us to open ourselves to a deeper understanding of God’s nature and God’s plan for humanity.
In our life of faith, we are more comfortable entertaining our ideas about God than having an actual encounter with Him. We often get stuck with what we have learned around the “bell tower” in the center of our comfort zone and thus block the possibility of a journey of discovery of the ways in which God makes Himself present into our lives, often quite unpredictable: a sickness, a failure, a sudden realization that we need to change something in our life…
One modern version of the parochial attitude of Jesus’ countrymen is what the media world calls “echo chamber.” An echo chamber refers to an environment where individuals are exposed only to information or opinions that align with their existing beliefs. In such a setting, people only encounter content that reinforces their perspectives, leading to a distorted view of reality. Echo chambers can occur both online and offline, hindering open discussions and consideration of opposing viewpoints.
One reason why echo chambers are particularly prevalent on the internet is the fact that algorithms easily tailor content we encounter online based on users’ past interests, potentially limiting exposure to diverse ideas.
Pope Francis has been addressing this issue several times, most recently in his message for the 58th World Day of Social Communication titled “Artificial Intelligence and the Wisdom of the Heart:
Towards a Fully Human Communication”. He wrote: “The digital revolution can bring us greater freedom, but not if it imprisons us in models that nowadays are called ‘echo chambers. In such cases, rather than increasing a pluralism of information, we risk finding ourselves adrift in a mire of confusion, prey to the interests of the market or of the powers that be. […]. Information cannot be separated from living relationships. These involve the body and immersion in the real world; they involve correlating not only data but also human experiences; they require sensitivity to faces and facial expressions, compassion and sharing.”
Every day Jesus returns to the home of our heart. Are we ready to welcome Him and listen to the Good News —which includes the often-uncomfortable truth about ourselves and about reality—that He shares with us, or we will stick to the abstract ideas we have of Him?
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