Chapter 10 - Junia - Growing in Fellowship
...‘This is holy ground,’ I thought, suddenly wanting to remove my sandals. But I couldn’t follow through on that idea, as the joy and love came in wave after wave, filling my whole body…
There are moments of beauty… glimpses of glory that take your breath away. That day was full of them... the shared excitement of setting out for the festival in the early hours of the morning; the look of awe on Prisca's face as she saw the glorious sunrise over Jerusalem; the ecstatic joy we experienced as the Spirit drew us into the apostles worship in the upper room; the intensity of God's love that I knew in my baptism; the soul healing I discovered in being able to share and learn with an amazing group of women... they were all extraordinary, but there were more to come.
Another that I can still so clearly remember, is the first time I caught sight of Martha’s home. We followed the trail along the side of the hill and as we rounded a corner I saw one of the most beautiful homes I've ever seen. Nestled into the slope of the hill was a large two-story house with a commanding view over the fields and groves below. It was built with finely cut stone, unlike the rough mud brick walls of most of the homes in Emmaus.
The trail sloped down to the house, so we were slightly above it and I could see drying racks for fruits and herbs on the roof. They added a hint of thyme and sage to the thick scent of olive trees and grapevines carried to us on the breeze.
Mary took my arm, ‘Come on,’ she said, smiling at my expression, ‘Just wait until you see the view from the roof!’
The main gate led into a spacious courtyard, where we were greeted by servants who brought us water for our feet... and for our thirst.
A man appeared in the doorway of the house and Martha and her sister (another Mary I'd met on the walk there) squealed and ran to embrace him. ‘It's happened!’ Martha exclaimed excitedly, ‘The promise of the Father, the power of the Spirit.’
‘Lazarus, it was incredible!’ Mary added to her sister's news, ‘All those gathered around the pool of Bethesda were healed, thousands of people have been baptised into the name of Jesus, and they’re all hungry to understand more of the love of God.’
Lazarus embraced his sisters and looked up at the crowds of people still coming through the gate into the courtyard, ‘I see you've brought them all with you too!’ he laughed.
Martha laughed too, ‘Only those of us from the upper room and a few others who have nowhere to stay tonight.’
‘Including a few old friends.’ said Peter as he approached Lazarus and embraced him too, ‘There is so much to tell you, brother... so much has happened in the...’
‘There is a lot to tell,’ Martha interrupted, ‘But it can wait until we have our guests settled and food is prepared.’ She switched into organising mode and started giving directions to servants and the disciples, who clearly knew their way around the house and grounds.
I stood back for a moment and marvelled at the way that the women and men all worked together in preparing spaces in the courtyard, fetching water and wine, gathering herbs from the roof, picking figs and grapes, harvesting vegetables, bringing out jars of legumes from the store, and preparing food. The house buzzed with laughter and chatter as people worked. Martha was at the centre of it all like a general commanding her troops, and as soon as someone completed a task, she'd send them on another errand.
However, I couldn't watch for long because the hostess in me just wanted to be part of it. Aquila and Prisca were deep in conversation, so I sought out Mary (Cleopas' wife) and joined her in kneading and rolling the dough into shape ready for baking unleavened bread. ‘Do they often have this many people to stay?’ I asked.
Mary laughed, ‘Most of us here followed Jesus all over Israel for three years. Feeding large numbers of people and sorting out places for sleeping, was a daily task. Mags, Susanna and Joanna would take charge and organise everyone when we were travelling. Each time we set up or broke camp, all of us would do our part and share in the work. And after three years on the road, we got very good at it. But when we stay here Martha takes charge. She is an incredible hostess.’
While I kneaded the dough, I looked around at the women and men coming in and out of the kitchen area, fetching and carrying things, preparing food and all the while laughing and talking with each other. ‘My heart overflows just seeing the joy here.’ I said, as tears came to my eyes again, ‘Women and men working together like one huge family, each loving and serving the other... it... it's just beautiful.’
Mary paused in her work and turned to take in the scene. A huge smile spread across her face, ‘You're so right Junia, it is beautiful. I'm so used to it that I've stopped seeing it, but it is marvellous to witness... and even more to be a part of.’
She turned back to her kneading, occasionally glancing round at the bustling activity in the house, ‘Just ten days ago, Martha's home was even busier than this when about twice this number were here. It was amazing then too, but today I’m aware of another dimension... I can sense the Spirit's presence saturating everyone and everything… God has always been everywhere, but it’s like I can see it now… I can feel him rejoicing in this community, delighting in every little thing we do.’
She stopped kneading again, turned, raised her arms and shouted, ‘Alleluia! Praise the Lord!’ The whole household must have heard her as everyone stopped what they were doing and loud cries of ‘Alleluia!’ followed by joyful laughter echoed around the house.
We laughed too as we returned to the dough, ‘Who was here ten days ago?’ I asked, trying to imagine how Martha could have catered for twice this number.
Mary told me how in the forty days following his resurrection, Jesus had appeared to many of his disciples in different places at different times. ‘Towards the end, he called the twelve to meet him on a mountain near Capernaum, and then told them to meet him here, on the Mount of Olives a few days later’ She said. ‘As they travelled south they followed the route Jesus had taken, staying with those who’d welcomed him on his journey to Jerusalem. Many of the hosts and their households joined the twelve on their journey, eager to meet with the risen Jesus. Cleopas and I both had a dream where Jesus told us to meet him here and so did many others that had followed him.’ She closed he eyes as she remembered, ‘I think there must have been about five hundred of us on the Mount of Olives at dawn the next day. We were gathered in the same area where we sat in this morning.’
‘Five hundred!’ I exclaimed, trying to picture that number of people crammed into Martha's house, ‘That's about four or five times the number of people here, how did Martha host so many?’
Mary laughed, ‘Sorry, I wasn't clear. Only about two hundred stayed here. Some camped on the Mount of Olives, and others stayed with friends or relatives in Bethany and Bethpage.’
I'd been focused on the impossibility of hosting five hundred people, and it suddenly dawned on me what Mary had said about Jesus. I stopped what I was doing, ‘Err... What was it like?’ I asked, ‘I mean meeting Jesus like that... What was that like?’
Mary stopped working too and turned to face me, her face was glowing. ‘It was incredible.’ She said, beaming, ‘Whenever you were around Jesus everything was more vibrant, more alive... His words carried a depth and a power... and a... a love that is hard to describe.’ She closed her eyes, recalling the scene, ‘He said that he and the Father were one… he was God with us, walking among us, bringing God’s compassion and healing and hope into our midst.
‘I used to think he was more than human... I understand now that he was flesh and blood, just like you and me. He got tired and needed to sleep, he felt all the things that we feel; anger, joy, grief, compassion… He was just like us… BUT he was full of, saturated with, the power of the Holy Spirit.’
She opened her eyes and smiled again, ‘Before he left us, he told us to go to Jerusalem and wait for the promise of the Father... and ten days later here we are.’
‘That oven must be ready now!’ Martha called out from the courtyard. ‘From where I'm standing I can see you two standing about.’ She said with a mock sternness in her voice. Continuing with a laugh she said ‘Would you mind working as you talk.’
We laughed and turned back to our work. I continued to prepare the dough, while Mary stuck it to the inner walls of the clay oven, cooking it for a few minutes on each side. The smell of the freshly baked bread mingled with the other aromas of herbs and olives, and my stomach growled loudly.
‘Your stomach is beginning to sound like mine.’ Mordechai laughed, he’d just arrived and was standing silhouetted by the light in the open doorway that led to the courtyard.
‘It’s about time you got here,’ I was relieved to see him but didn't want him to see how concerned I'd been. He’d been in one of his dark moods earlier... which I just couldn't understand given the joy of the Lord was so clearly present in this community. Sometimes his black moods would go on for weeks, and it made him overcritical and impossible to be around.
As he walked towards me, I put my mental defences up and searched his face, trying to read his emotions, ‘Cleopas said you were talking with someone called Zee.’ I said brightly, a forced smile masking my anxiety.
He smiled widely, ‘Yes... talking... and praying.’ He came closer and I could see faint tracks of tears in the dust on his face. They'd been smudged where he'd wiped them, but I could still make them out. He reached out and held me by the shoulders, ‘Saying sorry for all the times I've been detached, surly and sulking, doesn't come close to making up for all I've put you through... but I am sorry...’ he paused before continuing, ‘A part of my heart that was deeply scarred has begun to heal, and... and I feel like a darkness that has plagued me for decades has begun to lift.’
I bit my lip, trying and failing to hold back the tears of relief and joy that sprang into my eyes. I stepped forward burying my face in his chest as we embraced each other. ‘I was so afraid for you.’ I blubbed into the folds of his rough shirt.
‘There is so much to tell you,’ He said holding me tightly.
I suddenly remembered where we were, blinked back the tears, disentangled myself from his embrace and held him at arm’s length. ‘I can't tell you how happy I am to hear that,’ I smiled, ‘And I look forward to hearing it all. BUT if I don't get this bread finished then Martha will... will... well I don't know what she'll do, but she won't be happy.’
He laughed, ‘What can I do to help?’
I hesitated, not sure what to say.
‘How about you ask Martha where you can get another sack of grain?’ Mary said, ‘I think we're going to need more for grinding into flour.’
Mordechai nodded and headed out to the courtyard as I turned to face Mary, tears running down my cheeks again.
‘Another miracle,’ I said quietly, between stifled sobs, ‘I have prayed for so long...’
It was Mary's turn to embrace me. We stood there for a minute without speaking, until the smell of bread beginning to burn reached our noses.
‘Oops.' Mary said, letting go of me and rushing to the oven, ‘We had better get move on, or Martha will be after us.’
She fished out the bread from the oven, and I returned to the dough. I felt a huge surge of gratitude in my heart and, as I often did when cooking, I began singing, ‘Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.’ Mary joined in, and then others nearby in the courtyard. Gradually more people heard and sang along, that psalm of praise echoing around Martha's home.
Whilst we were making the bread, others were cooking up a stew of legumes, vegetables and lamb in huge clay pots over an open fire in the courtyard. The smell of the stew carried to where we were working, and my mouth watered in anticipation of the meal. Under Martha's watchful eye, everything came together at the same time. The bread was piled high in a dozen bowls, and each bowl was put in the centre of a circle of cushions and mats. Large jars of wine were set up near the fire with piles of bowls and cups nearby. Stone jars had also been moved to be next to the bowls and filled with water, to allow everyone to wash their hands before eating.
There were so many things that marked this meal... this gathering as different and special. There were two huge things that happened in the meal, and I'll get to those, but some of the more seemingly inconsequential things are what stick in my mind.
In our hierarchical culture, everyone knows their place, but there was no order in which we were served. Although the four of us were guests in this community, I expected the twelve to be served first and then maybe the other men and some of Jesus’ family.... but it has never been that way among the followers of Jesus.
Mary and I had just finished putting out the bowls of bread when Martha called out that it was all ready and invited people to come and get their food. People started queuing up to have water poured over their hands, and I looked around for a cue as to when I should go up. Mary noticing my confusion, beckoned me to go with her.
‘Come on.’ she smiled, ‘You must be starving after your early start this morning.’
There were about twenty people ahead of us, as we joined the queue, and... and none of the twelve were among them! They included a mixture of men and women, some were servants from the house and others labourers from the vineyards.
My next surprise was when we got to the front of the queue. I held my hands out for water to be poured over them, and it was only as I glanced up to thank the person doing it, that I noticed it was Peter, the apostle! I froze on the spot, not sure what to say.
‘Come on, food’s waiting.’ Mary laughed at my expression, nudging me forward and holding her hands out to Peter. I'd barely got over that surprise, when another apostle, John, offered me a towel to dry my hands. Then it was Mags who ladled the wine into my cup and Martha scooped a large portion of the stew into my bowl.
Still somewhat stunned, Mary guided me to one of the circles of cushions to sit down. And then I got my next surprise. The circle filled up with men as well as women, servants and labourers as well as those from the upper room. That’s so normal in our community today, but it was a revelation to me then.
In Emmaus, families would sit in mixed company to eat, but in larger gatherings, the men would always sit separately from the women, and the servants (if people had any) would eat later. But in this community it was different; men and women, servant and master, teacher and disciple... all were equal... everyone was valued as part of the family. That may seem commonplace now, but it was revolutionary back then.
I sat next to Mary on one side and a young woman called Rachel on the other. The stew smelled delicious, and my stomach growled frequently whilst we waited for everyone to get served. As the courtyard filled, I chatted with Rachel and learned that she was a servant in the household here and that her husband, Achim (who sat on the other side of her), worked in the vineyards. Achim's mother, Zahava (who sat to the other side of him), also worked at Martha's home.
Mary saved a few seats so that Prisca, Aquila, Motti and Cleopas could sit with us. Mags also joined us, together with Salome, who I'd met on the walk to Bethany. The last place in our circle was filled by a small, wiry man with a scarred face that Motti introduced as Zee.
As our circle filled up, I learned more about Rachel and the home here. She couldn’t have been much over twenty, but she was an incredibly warm and confident young woman. She told me of the many times when Jesus had visited Martha’s home and shared about one occasion, a few months before when he'd raised Martha’s brother, Lazarus, from the dead, ‘It was truly incredible to see.’ Rachel’s face shone as she related the tale. She told me how Martha’s mother had died giving birth to Lazarus, and Martha, who'd only been fifteen at the time, had brought him up.
‘Then their father died when Lazarus was just ten years old.’ She said, ‘And Martha took over running this household and raising him. Mary helped too, but she is... is that bit younger.’ She blushed, clearly wondering if she'd said the wrong thing, ‘Over these last twenty years Martha’s built up the farm and run this household with great success. She is an amazing woman to work for, and we’re very fortunate to have her.’
Rachel told me how the whole household had been on the Mount of Olives when Jesus told them to wait for the Promise of the Father.
‘So, we've all been waiting.’ She said, ‘We all couldn't go to Jerusalem, but Martha and Mary have been travelling there to pray each day, and coming back to share with us what's happened.’
I was so engrossed in her story that I'd not noticed that everyone had been served with food and was seated. I was about to ask more about Jesus when silence fell across the courtyard. I turned my attention to where the others were looking and saw Peter had stood up in the group next to ours.
‘Sisters and brothers,’ he began, ‘Today we've come to know the joy that Jesus offered us, the promise of the Father, the gift of the Holy Spirit. But not all of us here could be present to receive that gift this morning.’ He looked around the group, ‘Words cannot adequately describe what it’s like to know the love of God in the way we have today, people need to experience it for themselves.’ There were murmurs of agreement around the courtyard, ‘So, before we eat let’s surround Lazarus and the servants of this household with our prayers, that they too may be baptised in the Holy Spirit.’
Clearly, some aspects of the seating had been discussed among the leaders beforehand, because it turned out that one of the twelve was seated in each group. Zee stood and beckoned Zahava, Rachel, and Akim to join him in the centre of our group. All three of their faces were glowing with delight as they stood to join him. I glanced around and saw that similar things were happening in the other groups and that Lazarus stood in the group next to us with his sisters and Peter.
Mags moved the bowl of bread to one side to make room, as first she and Salome, then Cleopas and Mary stood to surround the small group of servants.
‘You too,’ Zee nodded, smiling at the four of us still seated, ‘We're all called to pray for these good people.’ Aquila jumped up in a flash, with Prisca right behind him. I stood too, but Motti hesitated.
‘Remember, brother, you are planted in new soil now.’ Zee said to him, ‘Part of what you need to grow will be found in how you serve others.’
Reluctantly, but smiling, Motti rose and came to join us as we surrounded the three servants.
When everyone in the courtyard was ready, Peter prayed, ‘Lord, we thank you for love, for your generosity in pouring out your Holy Spirit on us today. And we now lift to you these faithful people, who knew and loved your son. Pour out your Spirit we pray, that they too may know the joys of your kingdom and the fullness of eternal life.’
As he was praying, I felt the same joy rising in me that I’d first experienced in the street below the upper room, and again at my baptism. It began like a gentle flutter in my heart, quickly radiating outwards, filling my chest and flowing out through my arms and legs. My legs began to feel like they were rooted in God himself… as if I was drawing his love into me from the very earth on which I stood.
‘This is holy ground,’ I thought, suddenly wanting to remove my sandals. But I couldn’t follow through on that idea, as the joy and love came in wave after wave, filling my whole body. My hands began to feel hot, like the love was building up in them and it needed to be released. Rachel was standing in front of me and without thinking about what I was doing, I reached out and put my hand on her shoulder. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw that the others were doing the same, all of us surrounding Rachel, Akim and Zahava with love and prayer.
Then another huge tidal wave of love surged through me and I cried out in worship, praising God. The rush of emotion was too much to form the words, and my voice joined together with the others around the courtyard as we sang songs of praise in the tongues of angels.
The words we sang had no sense, but they carried a meaning in the feeling they evoked. To me they spoke of God’s joy, of his love for all people... and, specifically, of his love for the people being surrounded by prayer in that courtyard.
One by one, first Rachel, then Zahava, and then Akim raised their hands in praise. Filled with the Holy Spirit, they joined in with the song as we poured out our praise to God.
This seemed to go on for ages, but gradually the waves of love subsided and we all lowered our hands. Rachel's face was shining with joy as she Akim and Zahava embraced each other, and all of us.
‘Well!’ Martha's voice cut through the joyful laughter that filled the courtyard, ‘that was incredible...’ she laughed, hugging Lazarus again, ‘I've lost count of the times today that I've been overwhelmed by the love of God! I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm starving.’ She turned to look at Peter, ‘Please would you give thanks, so we can all sit and eat!’