in this two-and-a-half page saga we learn of a land that is being tormented and oppressed by "nomads" who turn the small, feudal town surrounding the Emperor's castle from a "peaceful square" into a "veritable sty." as the story develops, we find that the nomads virtually hold the town ransom against itself... forcing capitulation from the townsfolk, namely the artisans. the cobbler, who happens to be our story-teller, tells that it is impossible to speak or reason with the nomads who care little to learn the language of the town which they are literally destroying.
the end of the story shows the Emperor making a rather rare, albeit submissive, appearance in a window of his outer wall to see what these nomads are doing to his town. the townspeople, seeing his acquiescence, conclude that in light of their lord's inability -- or, perhaps, unwillingness -- the responsibility of saving their town falls into their hands:
"The salvation of our fatherland is left to us craftsmen and tradespeople, but we are not equal to such a task, nor indeed have we ever claimed to be capable of it. This is a misunderstanding, and it is proving the ruin of us."
misunderstandings - whatever their form take - can keep us from getting rid of the things that are killing us. this morning at Mass, one of the passages was from St Paul's letter to the church in Galatia. St Paul tells us that we have been made free in Christ... furthermore, that we are not to submit ourselves to the yoke [or burden] of slavery ever again. many of us are like the townspeople in Franz Kafka's story. many of us, like the cobbler, submit ourselves not only the rule of these nomads but to the idea we are no longer free. however, there is one grave and liberating difference in our story from Kafka's...
our Lord came to our town.
No comments:
Post a Comment