Shake if off

“When the sins of others come to mind, the soul that wants peace should flee from such thoughts as she would run from the pains of hell.”

Julian of Norwich

When Jesus sends the disciples out on a mission trip he tells them the truth which is that not everyone is going to be kind to them. They ask him what they should do in return to people who don’t treat them well or who speak poorly about them. It’s human nature, after all, to want to get back at people who do us harm. I find Jesus’ answer playful and instructive. I imagine him saying, “I thought you might ask, so here’s what I want you to do to get back at the people who don’t welcome you or otherwise offend you. Shake the dust off of your feet in testimony against them.”  

Then he was quiet. The disciples thought about it for a minute. “Shake the dust off our feet…as a testimony against them! Great idea!” They went for it.

Now here’s why I find Jesus' instruction playful and a little bit like a trick: I can’t think of anything less harmful to do to someone than to knock the dust off of my shoes. Doing that will not harm my opponent in any way shape or form.  Which is exactly Jesus’ point. If you must do something, make this symbolic gesture, then move on. Let it go.

The larger point of the teaching is that we can’t afford to hold grudges or nurture resentments. We can’t afford to take even an ounce of the negativity of a given situation forward with us. Shake it off, let it go. 

Julian of Norwich takes this teaching to the next level. She says, “Then don’t tell anyone about it. When the sins of your neighbors come to mind, let them go, shake them off. No matter what, don’t say, "Can you believe what he said!”

If our bags and purses are stuffed full of grudges and resentments, then there is no room in them for the love and grace that we need to pack for the journey. Shake it off. Let it go. This is freedom for you and for the one who has sinned against you.