Trying to deal with a jealous king

Today’s first reading from 1 Samuel 18-19 is about King Saul and David returning back from the battlefield and about how Saul could hear the women singing, “Saul has killed his thousands, and David his tens of thousands.” They were being praised for their prowess in battle and for the number of people they could kill. That should be disturbing enough. But the text goes on to tell about how Saul became angry and jealous because this song praises David for killing “tens of thousands” and Saul for only “thousands”. It reminds us of how a leader likes to consider himself better than anybody else but he also wants the people that he leads to also hold him in such high regard. This is a regular theme throughout history. A leader’s jealousy can easily lead to people’s lives being threatened. A jealous leader often needs to eliminate competition.

 

So this story about King Saul goes on to tell us about how his son Jonathan, who liked David, gets his father to calm down by telling him that David fought so bravely not just to protect himself but also ensure a victory for all Israel. It takes a lot of energy on the part of those who belong to the king’s family and his ministers to appease the king when he gets angry and assure him that there is no threat to his leadership. Even today we witness the jealous anger of leaders who want to be praised for being the best or the wisest or the most effective in all of history. They also want to be reecognised by being awarded prizes. It becomes childish. Unfortunately, though, it puts a lot of lives at risk, threatens the independence of nations and leads to global instability. By contrast, in today’s gospel from Mark 3:7-12, Jesus seeks to silence those who want to confer titles upon him. Let us pray in hope that new leaders can emerge who seek to work for the betterment of those that they serve rather than give in to feelings of jealousy towards those who have the courage and honesty to challenge them. Let us pray for the spirit of cooperation and peace in our world.

 

Tom Rouse