On board the Titanic there were always two lookouts in the crow’s nest on the watch for any danger that might threaten the ship. They were told to be particularly on the lookout for ice. During the Battle of Britain the RAF used the Chain Home Radar plus coastal observers to watch for the coming of enemy fighters and bombers so they could ready the defense. On a more mundane level, any Louisiana cook will tell you to watch the roux while it is cooking in order to be sure not to burn it. These examples show that we understand how important it is to keep watch. Careful watch can prevent a disaster. Is that what Jesus meant when he tells us to watch? “Be watchful! Be alert! What I say to you, I say to all: ‘Watch!’” Maybe he meant the kind of watching which can open us up to something new. Astronomers watch the stars. Theater buffs watch a play. Kids watch Sesame Street — different kind of watching that benefits us. On further reflection, watching is not always straightforward. I enjoy watching a baseball game. The athletic talent is entertaining. Watching the Orioles play is a somewhat different experience for me. I get nervous, tense, upset, elated, and, most frequently lately, disappointed. Watching similar events produced different reactions. I watched the news about the protests in Minneapolis after the George Floyd killing with great interest. When the protests, and eventually the riot, spread to Chicago I watched with dismay and concern. Depending on where one is situated on the political spectrum you could watch the election returns with either agony or ecstasy. We watch from where we are sitting and that shapes how we experience what we are watching. If you think about, it there are other kinds of watching. When the doctor says, “Watch what you eat” he doesn’t mean take picture of your food but that you should eat more fruit and fewer fries. Your mother says to you, “I’m going out. Watch the baby.” She doesn’t mean watch the baby as an astronomer watches the stars. What she really means is make sure that the baby doesn’t touch the stove or fall down the steps or drinks out of the dog dish. If you’re walking down State Street and someone says, “Watch where you’re going” they don’t mean observe carefully the signs and the store windows. They mean don’t bump into anyone. If your teacher says, “Watch your mouth” she isn’t expecting you to whip out a mirror. No, she wants you to be careful about what you say and to say things in an appropriate manner. So watching can mean different things at different times. There are thirty-one different definitions of “watch” in the dictionary. When Jesus tells us to “watch” which one of those thirty-one does he have in mind?
Of course, every Biblical text can be read on multiple levels. There is always a sensus plenior, a fuller meaning as the old Latins put it, to any word of scripture than the one we ascribe to it. The Word of God is always deeper and broader than any human word. Chapter 13 of St. Mark’s gospel can be read as Jesus instructing his contemporaries to watch, to keep alert to God breaking into their world. Or it might be read as a warning to the Church to watch for the presence of God in the great sweep of history. Or is it meant as a statement to watch for the coming end of time when Son of Man will return as the just judge of all that is? All legitimate explanations. Looking more closely at the text there is another thing we should be watching – ourselves. Jesus implies that we have been given some chores, some tasks to do in this life. “Each has his own work,” according to the Lord. We need to be attentive, to watch and see if we are, in fact, living up to the expectations that the master has of us.
The Old Testament prophet Isaiah wants us to see ourselves as shaped by the hand of God. O LORD, you are our father; we are the clay and you the potter: we are all the work of your hands. Have you ever thrown a pot? The clay is soft and malleable so you can shape it for whatever use the pot might have – tall and thin, short and round, small or large. The prophet suggests that we should be on the watch to make sure that we are acting as the hands of the potter have molded and fashioned us. For example, we should watch to see that we are thankful. St. Paul puts it in the epistle: I give thanks to my God always. Yes, we are going through a rough patch currently but we have been given so much the only appropriate response is gratitude. We watch to make sure that we are the thankful, forgiving, generous, compassionate people the potter has made us to be.
I’m reminded of the story of some kids out playing when they saw Jesus coming. They ran into the church office and excitedly told the secretary. She looked out the window and the staff burst into the pastor’s office and said, “Jesus is on the playground and he’s headed for the office! What shall we do?” Seeing everyone’s anxiety, the startled pastor turned his chair to look out the window. Suddenly he stood up and shouted, “Look busy!” Notice in the parable as Jesus tells it the servants aren’t sitting around staring out the window while they are watching for the lord of the house to return. They were busy with their own work. That is how Jesus expects us to watch as well – going to work and school, washing the dishes, ironing the clothes, taking out the garbage, extending a hand to our neighbor, living each day with courage and fidelity. If we watch to take care of the small things, we will be ready to welcome our Lord when he comes.
