Sunday is opening day of Major League Baseball. Hot dogs. Nachos. Overpriced
cokes and beer.
For over a century, baseball has resonated with Americans-along with the
Fourth of July, hot dogs, and apple pie. Baseball was the national pastime, the
sport of choice for most Americans and the most popular game across the nation.
But somewhere along the line, MLB was overtaken in popularity by other major
sports, at least by perception.
In today's day and age, football reigns supreme in television ratings, but
baseball is still high on the number of followers. If baseball is still so popular, why
does baseball struggle for television ratings? I believe the primary reason is the
pace of play. Baseball is simply too slow a game to capture the attention of
television viewers. It is a sport that has to be watched in person to be appreciated
fully.
In our gospel reading today, Jesus has learned that Lazarus has died and wants
to go to Bethany. Bethany is five miles from Jerusalem, so to go to Bethany is
tantamount to going to Jerusalem, and to go to Jerusalem means that Jesus will
likely be arrested by the authorities and put to death. Jesus will not be dissuaded
from going, so Thomas-of "Doubting Thomas" fame-resigns himself to going
to Jerusalem with Jesus and says, "Let us also go, that we may die with him."
Although Thomas had no confidence in Jesus' prediction of his resurrection,
Thomas understood very clearly that to be a disciple means showing up. Being
involved in the game. You can't be a disciple from a distance.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote in his gripping book The Cost of Discipleship:
"When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die." Thomas understood that
very clearly. Do we in the 21st century understand what Thomas and Dietrich
Bonhoeffer understood?
