Also, whenever anyone approached him to bow down before him, Absalom would reach out his hand, take hold of him and kiss him. – 2 Samuel 15:5

Today’s Scripture Reading (August 11, 2019): 2 Samuel 15

We do things that create distance. I know of people who insist on being called Doctor, reflecting the level of education they had attained, or who insist on putting their Bachelor’s or Master’s degree on their letterhead. And I get it, education is expensive, it is often hard, and we should be proud of what we have achieved, but we cannot ignore the fact that the stressing of our level of education can cause interpersonal distance in our relationships. I am always a little suspicious of people who want to remind me of their level of education. And, to be brutally honest, some of the stupidest people that I know hold advanced degrees in a field. Who knows, maybe I am one of them.

Priests and pastors have often created interpersonal distance by the way that they dress. Wearing a clerical collar often results in increased distance. For royalty, the act of bowing down in front of someone creates distance. The President of the United States is sometimes criticized on whether or not they bow down to foreign royalty. But all of this emphasizes distance and the idea that we are not of equal status.

However, anything that we do to increase interpersonal distance minimizes our ability to connect to other people. And regardless of our profession, we need to connect with others in our personal and political lives. So, some years ago, I had the privilege of introducing a local sports hero at a meet and greet where he was a spokesperson for a particular product. Before the introduction, I was given a script which enumerated all of the accomplishments he had achieved in the Sports World. The text laid out all of the Halls of Fame into which he had been inducted, which local Sports Teams with which he held ownership status, and the teams for which he had played. It included his impressive stats as a player, a coach, and as a team executive.  The list seemed to go on and on. And I was carefully warned that my job was to read the biography word for word as I introduced our special guest.

Near the end of the reading, I remember the sports hero stepping out on the stage and dismissively wave me away with the words “Oh Garry, you are embarrassing me.” And then to the audience, “I don’t know why they do that, I am just like you.” It was a carefully developed strategy. The introduction listed all the reasons why you might want to listen to this man speak, but part two was meant to decrease the interpersonal distance that had been developed by part one.

Absalom was a prince. He deserved to be greeted as a vital member of the family of David. But that increased interpersonal distance. And so he would wait until that moment when the person was ready to bow before him. The bow was what the culture demanded should happen when a member of the community greeted a royal. But Absalom wished to prove that he was a man of the people. And so at that moment, Absalom would move to take the hand, and then embrace and kiss the supplicant. The result was just another way of saying, “I don’t know why they do that. I am just like you.” And for that minimization of interpersonal distance, the people loved him.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: 2 Samuel 16