Beyond the Degree
Read Mark 11:27-33
They arrived again in Jerusalem, and while Jesus was walking in the temple courts, the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders came to him. “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you authority to do this?” –Mark 11:27-28
In 2000, Julia Roberts won an Academy Award for her portrayal of Erin Brockovich, a legal assistant who helped bring a class action suit against Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) for their pollution of the groundwater in the community of Binkley, California. Despite her lack of formal legal training, Erin’s tenacity helped deliver a $333 million settlement for the plaintiffs, which at the time was the largest direct-action lawsuit in U.S. history.
As the lawsuit grew, Erin’s boss (Ed Masry) felt the need to bring in a new partner to help bring the case to trial. Erin was not happy about this news; she worried that these new lawyers would undermine all the work she had done. It didn’t help when one of the lawyers (a woman named Theresa) treated her with condescension, suggesting that there were “holes” in her research—things “she didn’t even know to ask.”
Erin retorted: “Don’t talk to me like I’m an idiot, okay? I mean, I don’t have a law degree, but I’ve spent 18 months on this case, and I know more about these plaintiffs than ever will.” When Theresa claimed that some of the files were missing phone numbers, Erin responded that she’d supply any phone number she was looking for. Indeed, when Theresa tested her, Erin provided not only the phone number but the entire family history of a plaintiff (including the phone numbers of her relatives who were also plaintiffs in the case).
You can catch the full scene here, but be aware that there is a curse word at the very end!
The way the Pharisees approached Jesus in today’s passage mirrors the condescension of the lawyers in Erin Brockovich. Remember, Jesus had created quite the stir since his entrance into Jerusalem, most notably with his “cleansing of the temple.” The Pharisees wanted to know who gave Jesus authority to do these things. Their question, though, was a trap.
The Pharisees were all “credentialed.” They could name the rabbis under whom they had studied, the ones who had given them “authority” to teach and lead the people of Israel. The Pharisees also knew that Jesus could not cite such a tutelage. As far as they were concerned, he was self-taught and unschooled. It would be like someone who studied at an Ivy League school putting another in their place by asking: “Now, where is your degree from?”
Jesus knew that the Pharisees were not seeking the truth. If he’d responded with the truth— that his authority came from his identity as the Messiah—the Pharisees would have immediately charged him with blasphemy and arrested him. Sensing the trap, Jesus asked them a simple question: Where did John the Baptist’s authority come from—from heaven or from man?
Now it was the Pharisees’ turn to be boxed in. Like Jesus, John the Baptist’s authority did not come from the rabbis under whom he studied. If the Pharisees belittled his authority (by saying it came from man), they would lose the support of the crowds who revered John the Baptist. But if they admitted John’s authority came from heaven, Jesus could counter by asking why they opposed him. Ultimately, they declined to answer Jesus’ question, and Jesus did the same in turn.
Like the scene from Erin Brockovich, this story raises the question of how we understand authority. Does someone’s authority come from their education and credentials, or from somewhere else? I’m reminded of the wisdom I received when I began my first pastoral appointment: “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care” (a saying oft attributed to Theodore Roosevelt). Yes, Jesus’ authority came from his identity as God’s Son. But the people who gave him authority within their lives did so because they knew he loved them.
Let us be careful, then, to demonstrate care (and to listen well) before we try to exercise authority in another’s life. And let us be especially careful not to dismiss those who lack the “credentials” we associate with authority. We never know whom God might choose to bear his message to the world.
Forgive us, O Lord, when we treat others with condescension. Remind us, O God, of the dignity you have given to all people. Help me to see Your image (and Your wisdom) in all, even those I am tempted to dismiss. Amen.