Saints Simon and Jude, and the importance of diversity on teams

Today is the feast of Saints Simon and Jude. As is the case with many of the disciples, we just don't know all that much about these men. Jude is so named by Luke and Acts. Matthew and Mark call him Thaddeus. He is not mentioned elsewhere in the Gospels, except, of course, where all the apostles are mentioned. Scholars hold that he is not the author of the Letter of Jude. Actually, Jude had the same name as Judas Iscariot. Evidently because of the disgrace of that name, it was shortened to "Jude" in English.

Simon is mentioned on all four lists of the apostles. On two of them he is called "the Zealot." The Zealots were a Jewish sect that represented an extreme of Jewish nationalism. For them, the messianic promise of the Old Testament meant that the Jews were to be a free and independent nation. God alone was their king, and any payment of taxes to the Romans—the very domination of the Romans—was a blasphemy against God. No doubt some of the Zealots were the spiritual heirs of the Maccabees, carrying on their ideals of religion and independence. But many were the counterparts of modern terrorists. They raided and killed, attacking both foreigners and "collaborating" Jews. They were chiefly responsible for the rebellion against Rome which ended in the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70.

From my perspective doing leadership development and team-building, what is so amazing is the diversity of the team that Jesus gathers to help him advance his purpose, the Kingdom of God. In addition to people like Simon, the Zealot, he also chooses Matthew, the tax collector-- a man who the zealots would have despised for his collusion with the Roman occupation. Further, Jesus chooses James and John, who have the nickname, "the sons of thunder." We can only guess why, but I would imagine that they were somewhat impetuous, maybe a bit boisterous. And then there is Simon Peter, a most unlikely foundation stone for the future church.

In all this, Jesus opts for diversity of personality and background, and seems to choose people more for their growth potential than for their professional competence, their intellectual brilliance, or expertise. In fact, from the numerous accounts in the Gospels, these men often acted like a bunch of competitive adolescents, each in their own way torn between the way of the world and the WAY that Jesus was modeling them: a way of humble, self-abnegating service.

So, if you happen to find yourself on a diverse and seemingly motley team, perhaps it is an opportunity to see that your way may not be the only way, and that God indeed can work wonders through the most unlikely people.


Gospel
Lk 6:12-16

Jesus went up to the mountain to pray,
and he spent the night in prayer to God.
When day came, he called his disciples to himself,
and from them he chose Twelve, whom he also named Apostles:
Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew,
James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew,
Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus,
Simon who was called a Zealot,
and Judas the son of James,
and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.