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Learning to Listen

April 8, 2025

2 Samuel 7:4, 8-16 | Romans 4:13-18 | Luke 2:41-52 | Psalm 89:1-29

Jesus said to the Jews, “I am going away, and you will search for me, but you will die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come.” Then the Jews said, “Is he going to kill himself? Is that what he means by saying, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come’?” He said to them, “You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world. I told you that you would die in your sins, for you will die in your sins unless you believe that I am he.” They said to him, “Who are you?” Jesus said to them, “Why do I speak to you at all? I have much to say about you and much to condemn; but the one who sent me is true, and I declare to the world what I have heard from him.” They did not understand that he was speaking to them about the Father. So Jesus said, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will realize that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own, but I speak these things as the Father instructed me. And the one who sent me is with me; he has not left me alone, for I always do what is pleasing to him.” 

When I first saw that I was assigned this reading, I considered asking for a switch. All this talk of sin and condemnation! I headed to Google to see what others had to say, and the responses were predictable: humans are fallen, sinful creatures, but if we accept Jesus as the son of God, then boom – saved. Seems simple, like checking a box. As my kids would say – “easy peezy.” I kept searching and found a blog by Dale Heinold. The author explored the theme of “talking past each other.” That was intriguing. In this interpretation, Jesus kept repeating one set of ideas (“I am…”), and the crowds, rather than actively listening, would essentially say, “ok but who are you?” They simply were not listening to what Jesus was actually telling them. 

What does it mean to truly listen? We’ve explored this as a St. Luke’s community, particularly in Fr. Jarrett’s seminars on civil dialogue. To listen actively means to be fully present, curious, and engaged. To seek to understand rather than to be understood. To set aside biases and preconceived notions and enter into a shared space of openness, grace, and humility. Beloved children’s troubadour Raffi has written recently of having a “spacious heart.” He describes it this way: 

“Make of your heart a spacious abode to house all that life can bring. Space for the contrasts of experience to have room to be enjoyed, withstood, understood. The pains of daily life, in the company of laughter and joy, can subside and ease. Storms come and go. Make your heart a safe harbour.” – Raffi

Rather than accosting Jesus and demanding answers that fit into our narrow and limited understanding – an understanding born only of our own experiences – what if we heard and held His teachings within a spacious heart? I think that when Jesus tells us who He is, our task is not to merely accept His parentage, but to accept and make room in our hearts for all that it means. To accept Jesus as son of God and as saviour means to embrace all the teachings that come with it: Love your neighbor and your enemy. Love and care for the vulnerable.

As I prepare for Easter, I’ll take some time today to meditate on these concepts of active listening and spacious heart.

Katie Anderson