Eavesdropping

The other week, I witnessed an odd exchange on the supermarket car park.  The wife was overtaken by her husband at a gentle trot.  As he passed her she must have asked why he was running.  I caught just part of his response: that he was going to tell …. “I’ve already told her,” she protested, walking briskly to keep up with him.  Her husband didn’t ease his pace, “But I need to explain,” he announced, and jogged off to the far side of the car park.  The defeated wife turned back, presumably towards their own vehicle.

Now, what was going on here?  Several questions came to mind.  The wife was clearly puzzled.   She had already imparted the necessary information to the third party; what additional explanation ought she to have provided?   What had prompted the husband’s hasty mission?  Didn’t he trust his wife to inform whoever of the complete situation, or was he concerned that she might have misrepresented his part in whatever had made this message necessary?  Was some subterfuge involved?  Did he need to impart to this unknown and unseen female some detail of which his wife was unaware?  (Can you see the mind of the wannabe novelist at work here?)

Another completely different interpretation might apply, of course.  These two were of an age that they might have had a teenage daughter.  Maybe she had travelled with them to the town centre, and was meeting friends there.  Mother had told her that they would expect her home at teatime; father, however, wanted to dot i’s and cross t’s.  Maybe he wanted to issue strict instructions as to her behaviour, or tell her where they would be during the afternoon, should she need to call them.

When it comes to the variety of stories that have grown up around a definite set of facts, little can be more prolific than religion.  The number of so-called ‘Christian’ sects is scarcely measurable.  When we are faced with unfamiliar rituals or cults, or with another mainstream religion such as Islam or Judaism, it is all too easy for traditional Christians to reject them out of hand, and have nothing to do with them.  While this might be the right response, I feel we ought always to examine these differing beliefs, and discover on what they are based.  What are the basic facts behind them?  Do they coincide with those of true Christianity: Jesus the only Son of God, incarnate, sacrificed for the sins of mankind, resurrected, and returned to Heaven where He intercedes on behalf of believers?  Are some of these elements twisted or missing, or subject to inappropriate additions, further conditions and so on?  We are warned (Rev. 22:18-19) about adding to or subtracting from God’s Word, and surely the same applies to the teaching of His Church.

That supermarket incident is now some weeks ago; the couple were totally unknown.  And, even if they could be located, would they recall a minor exchange that, to them, was part the cut and thrust of normal life?  One thing is virtually certain, however.  They had no idea that their words would become a subject of Christian teaching!