As is common in such quests, the fellowship —charged with shepherding the "Ring of Power" to its destruction in the volcanic fires of Mount Doom— is packed with persons of great stature. There are current royals, future royals, great warriors, the brave, the bold, and ... some Hobbits.
These hairy-footed little Hobbits —not the brave, the bold, the royals, or the great warriors— are the focus of the story. They are from a pleasant backwater of Middle Earth called The Shire. Outside of the adventures recounted by Tolkien, these little beings live generally low-key, unsophisticated lives; taking joy from eating and drinking and other homely activities ... the kinds of lives where Second Breakfast may well be the high point of the day.
And yet, Tolkien chose Hobbits to actually bear the corrupting "Ring of Power" to its intended unmaking. Much debated: why were the Hobbits entrusted with such a crucial task?
It reminds me of the reaction of the crowd at Pentecost to those chosen by Jesus as the bearers of his Good News.
["Utterly amazed, they asked: 'Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans?'" Acts 2:7 NIV].
I know it’s not a movie script, but I think the Bible translators may have really "under sold" the crowd's reaction. Shouldn't there be an exclamation point in there somewhere??!!
Umm, Galileans?! Really?!
That pretty much sums up the general response of ... well, almost everyone who encounters this band of Jesus-followers. They consider them unsophisticated and ill-suited to the tasks they have been assigned. Nathanael was not the first (nor the last!) to ask, “Can any good thing come from Nazareth?”
And yet, these rough people are the ones Jesus chose.
In The Lord of the Rings, Gandalf chose the Hobbits to take the ring to its doom because they could bear it ... as opposed to every other member of the fellowship —those brave and bold fellows— who would likely succumb to the corruption that comes from possessing such great power.
I don't think we know why Jesus chose the Galileans for the core of His group. But maybe it was for a similar reason. None of the seemingly obvious choices, as it turned out, were really appropriate.
Sometimes, the very person needed for the difficult task is the one judged as least likely. Never forget: God chooses whom God chooses ... and God often chooses “the least of these.”
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Portions of this reflection are from Hobbits at Pentecost? (a reflection that appeared in May, 2013).
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READINGS FOR THE COMING WEEK
Here is a link to a Table of Readings that extends through May 31st: https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu//lections.php?year=A&season=Easter
Day of Pentecost (May 31, 2020)
Acts 2:1-21 or Numbers 11:24-30
Psalm 104:24-34, 35b
1 Corinthians 12:3b-13 or Acts 2:1-21
John 20:19-23 or John 7:37-39
Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth (May 31, 2020)
1 Samuel 2:1-10
Psalm 113
Romans 12:9-16b
Luke 1:39-57
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DaySpring’s Lectionary Breakfast remains on hold, of course. But we can still read this week’s scripture passages and reflect on their purpose for our own lives. We will focus on The Pentecost (the Acts passage), this coming Sunday; but, as you can see, I have also included Mary’s visit to Elizabeth, as well.
Blessings,
Steve
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